On August 26, the All-Ukrainian information campaign for the protection of the rights of consumers of financial services "Know your rights: loans" was launched, which is carried out by the National Bank of Ukraine.
It will be a continuation of the first such campaign conducted by the National Bank in 2021 and will be held in July-October 2022 in all regions of Ukraine.
The key tasks and goal of the campaign is to protect the rights of borrowers and improve consumer knowledge of credit services.
An important focus of the campaign will be to explain the population the following issues: what to pay attention to when processing a loan, what is repayment holiday and restructuring, what are their conditions and the procedure for processing. Also, the National Bank together with its partners will tell you how to check the credit history and what to do when a creditor or a collector violates the requirements for ethical behavior during interaction with the consumer.
Improving knowledge and skills in credit services will help Ukrainians better understand their rights as borrowers and make informed financial decisions.
“We are confident that informed consumers of credit services are more protected from financial risks. They have a better understanding of financial services, make informed financial decisions, and can manage their money more carefully. As a consequence, their financial situation will improve, which will contribute to the welfare of our country. That is why the issue of consumer awareness in terms of providing credit services is important for the National Bank”, – commented the Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine Yaroslav Matuzka.
He added that lending during the war has its own peculiarities. On the one hand, the banks' appetite for risk has decreased, and on the other hand, credit demand of the population has decreased. For the resumption of retail lending, which contributes to increased consumption, and therefore the development of the economy, it is necessary that consumers of credit services clearly understand their rights and obligations to the financial institution and the ability to service loans even in case of unforeseen situations.
“Consumers' appeals to the regulator regarding legal relations under loan agreements, as well as about unethical behavior of persons during the collection of overdue debts, constitute the lion's share of complaints against banks and non-banking financial institutions. Consumer lending inherently carries increased risks for the consumer, who often does not realize the full cost of the loan and his/her responsibility under the contract. Therefore, we pay special attention to this area. The adoption and improvement of existing regulations aimed at protecting consumer rights, as well as close supervision of the activities of lending market participants, can prevent violations and normalize processes, but there is still a lot of work ahead”, – noted the head of the Office for the Protection of the Rights of Consumers of Financial Services of the NBU Olha Lobaichuk.
According to her, consumers should always make a responsible decision on concluding a loan agreement, and lenders should transparently and efficiently communicate information about the full cost and conditions of the service.
ConcordBank supports the next phase of the National Bank's campaign "Know Your Rights: Loans" with the goal of joining the general communication stream of the banking community and increasing the number of financially aware bank customers. Today it is especially important to inform customers about the tools and methods of managing their own funds, which allows to ensure the well-being and stable financial situation.
“ConcordBank always treats its borrowers responsibly, informs them in a timely and complete manner about all loan conditions and gives advice on loan servicing. Unfortunately, however, not all customers due to various life circumstances are attentive to the terms of contracts and their obligations to the banks, not everyone is aware of such tools of money management as repayment holiday or restructuring. Therefore, we need additional communication and convenient technological solutions that simplify interaction with the bank, – Yurii Zadoia, Chairman of the Board of ConcordBank, says. – For example, we have recently introduced in our NEOBANK a convenient and effective tool for managing debts to the bank – a restructuring. The client can transfer his/her debt to a convenient schedule and terms of his choice in a few clicks. At the same time, the possibility of using the established credit limit remains. It is very important for our bank, like all banks, to support our clients in this way right now, which will allow them to cope with difficult circumstances”.
As part of the campaign, the National Bank launches a special web page (landing) “Know your rights: loans” with detailed information about loan services.
The campaign is supported by international partners - the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in partnership with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the UK Government Good Governance Fund in Ukraine, as well as the European Union technical assistance project "Strengthening the regulation and supervision of non-bank financial market" (EU-FINREG).
For reference
General Partners:
Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, Free Legal Aid System, Deposit Guarantee Fund for Individuals, Independent Association of Banks of Ukraine.
Information Partners:
PrivatBank, Oschadbank, Ukreximbank, Raiffeisen Bank, Ukrgasbank, Alfa-Bank, FUIB, UKRSIBBANK, OTP Bank, Credit Agricole, Universal Bank, TASCOMBANK, Credit Dnepr Bank, Acordbank, Alliance Bank, MTB Bank, Idea Bank, PRAVEX BANK, Commercial Industrial Bank, Sich Bank, Lviv Bank, Globus Bank, Industrialbank, ConcordBank, Clearing House Bank, Bank for Investments and Savings, RADABANK, IBOX Bank, CRYSTALBANK, Forward Bank, Grant Bank, UkrBudInvestBank, Motor-Bank, Agroprosperis Bank, First Investment Bank, "ASVIO BANK", Bank "Ukrainian Capital", MetaBank, Cominvestbank, Polikombank, European Industrial Bank, Bank "Trust-Capital", BTA Bank, All-Ukrainian Association of Financial Companies, Ukrainian Bureau of Credit Histories.
