WRITTEN QUESTION E-2372/00 by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission. Repayment of interest-free loans.
Date: 2000-07-13
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: advertising malpractice, credit institution, financial institution, loan, redemption

13.3.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 81 E/193

It

Greek tourist guides cannot benefit from the Directive unless the Greek authorities, i.e. the prefects, issue
certificates documenting the nature and duration of the professional activity exercised in the country of
origin.
is up to the Greek authorities to determine the conditions for issuing these certificates.
The Commission cannot oblige the Greek authorities to institute a tourist guide licence on their territory,
since this is a matter of internal organisation within the Greek administration. However, the Greek
authorities cannot use internal organisational difficulties to justify any refusal to issue these certificates to
Greek tourist guides wishing to exercise their profession in another Member State. Such a refusal would
prevent the Greek nationals concerned from being covered by the Directive and would contravene
Community law. The Commission has not until now been informed of any such refusal to issue certificates
documenting the nature and duration of the professional activity exercised in Greece. The Commission is,
of course, willing to examine any cases the Honourable Member would care to communicate and, where
necessary, make use of the means conferred on it by the EC Treaty to put an end to such a situation.

(1) OJ L 201, 31.7.1999.
(2) OJ L 167, 30.6.1975.

(2001/C 81 E/247)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2372/00

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(13 July 2000)

Subject: Repayment of interest-free loans

Is the Commission aware of the practice by certain disreputable finance companies of offering interest-free
loans for the purchase of consumer goods over twelve months or so, but then insisting that an agreement
is signed to repay the loan over two or three years and making it as difficult as possible to set up
arrangements to repay the loan within the time concerned?

Will they propose legislation to outlaw this practice?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(13 September 2000)

the practice mentioned by the Honourable Member.
The Commission has not been informed of
Apparently this would be a problem of misleading timetables linked with offers for an interest free loan
in credit advertisements, the agreement finally proposed not maintaining the promised timetable.

Various elements could be considered to examine the problem.

Article 3 of Directive 87/102/EEC of 22 December 1986 concerning consumer credit (1) refers in turn
explicitly to Council Directive 84/450/EEC of 10 September 1984 relating to misleading advertising (2) and
to the rules and principles applicable to unfair advertising.

Directive 87/102/EEC, in its Article 4, section 2, foresees a written statement of the timetable and Article 8
provides the consumer with a right to discharge his obligations before the time fixed by the agreement.
However, Article 2, section 1, (c) and (g), allows the exclusion of (cid:145)credit granted or made available without
payment of interest or any other charge(cid:146) and of (cid:145)credit agreements under which the consumer is required
to repay the credit by a maximum number of payments within a period not exceeding 12 months(cid:146) from
the scope of the Directive, but practically no Member State has used these exemptions.

The specific problem should be submitted to the authorities of the Member State competent for the
supervising and control of the national provisions on consumer credit and unfair advertising.

(1) OJ L 42, 12.2.1987.
(2) OJ L 250, 19.9.1984.