Right of withdrawal
1. Member States shall ensure that the consumer may withdraw from the credit agreement without giving any reason within a period of 14 calendar days.
The withdrawal period referred to in the first subparagraph shall begin either:
(a)
from the day of the conclusion of the credit agreement; or
(b)
from the day on which the consumer receives the contractual terms and conditions and the information in accordance with Articles 20 and 21, if that day is later than the date referred to in point (a) of this subparagraph.
The deadline referred to in the first subparagraph shall be deemed to have been met if the notification referred to in paragraph 5, first subparagraph, point (a), is dispatched by the consumer to the creditor before that deadline expires.
2. If the consumer has not received the contractual terms and conditions and the information in accordance with Articles 20 and 21, the withdrawal period shall in any event expire 12 months and 14 days after the conclusion of the credit agreement. This shall not apply if the consumer has not been informed about his or her right of withdrawal in accordance with Article 21(1), first subparagraph, point (p).
3. In the case of a linked credit agreement for the purchase of a good with a return policy that ensures a full refund for a certain period of time exceeding 14 calendar days, the right of withdrawal shall be extended to match the duration of such return policy.
4. Where, in the case of a linked credit agreement, national legislation applicable on 19 November 2023 already provides that funds cannot be made available to the consumer before the expiry of a specific period, Member States may, by way of derogation from paragraph 1, provide that the period referred to in that paragraph may be reduced to the same duration as that specific period at the explicit request of the consumer.
5. If the consumer exercises the right of withdrawal, he or she shall take the following measures:
(a)
notify the creditor in accordance with the information given by the creditor pursuant to Article 21(1), first subparagraph, point (p), on paper or another durable medium chosen by the consumer and specified in the credit agreement within the deadline set out in paragraph 1 of this Article;
(b)
pay to the creditor the capital and the interest accrued thereon from the date on which the credit was drawn down until the date on which the capital is repaid, without any undue delay and in any event no later than 30 calendar days after the dispatch of the notification referred to in point (a).
The interest referred to in the first subparagraph, point (b), shall be calculated on the basis of the agreed borrowing rate. The creditor shall not be entitled to any other compensation from the consumer in the event of withdrawal, except compensation for any non-refundable charges paid by the creditor to any public administrative body.
6. Where an ancillary service relating to the credit agreement is provided by the creditor, or by a third party on the basis of an agreement between that third party and the creditor, the consumer shall no longer be bound by the ancillary service contract if the consumer exercises the right of withdrawal from the credit agreement in accordance with this Article.
7. If the consumer has a right of withdrawal under paragraphs 1, 5 and 6 of this Article, Articles 6 and 7 of Directive 2002/65/EC shall not apply.
8. Member States may provide that paragraphs 1 to 6 of this Article shall not apply to credit agreements which are required under national law to be concluded through the services of a notary, provided that the notary confirms that the consumer is guaranteed the rights provided for under Articles 10, 11, 20 and 21.
9. This Article shall be without prejudice to any rule of national law establishing a period of time during which the performance of the contract may not begin.
Linked credit agreements
1. Member States shall ensure that a consumer who has exercised the right of withdrawal, based on Union law, concerning a contract for the supply of goods or the provision of services, is no longer bound by a linked credit agreement.
2. Where the goods or services covered by a linked credit agreement are not supplied or provided, or are supplied or provided only in part, or are not in conformity with the contract for the supply or provision thereof, the consumer shall have the right to pursue remedies against the creditor if the consumer has pursued remedies against the supplier or provider but has failed to obtain the satisfaction to which he is entitled according to the law or the contract for the supply of those goods or the provision of those services. Member States shall determine to what extent and under what conditions those remedies are exercisable.
3. This Article shall be without prejudice to national law rendering the creditor jointly and severally liable in respect of any claim which the consumer may have against the supplier or provider where the purchase of goods or services from the supplier or provider has been financed by a credit agreement.
Open-end credit agreements
1. Member States shall ensure that the consumer may effect standard termination of an open-end credit agreement free of charge at any time, unless the parties have agreed on a period of notice. Such a period shall not exceed one month.
Member States shall ensure that the creditor may, where agreed in the credit agreement, effect standard termination of an open-end credit agreement by giving the consumer at least two months’ notice on paper or another durable medium specified in the credit agreement.
2. Member States shall ensure that the creditor may, where agreed in the credit agreement, for objectively justified reasons, terminate the consumer’s right to draw down on an open-end credit agreement. The creditor shall inform the consumer of the termination and the reasons for it on paper or another durable medium specified in the credit agreement, where possible before the termination and at the latest immediately thereafter, unless the provision of such information is prohibited by Union or national law or is contrary to objectives of public policy or public security.
Early repayment
1. Member States shall ensure that the consumer is at any time entitled to early repayment. In such cases, the consumer shall be entitled to a reduction in the total cost of the credit to the consumer for the remaining duration of the contract. When calculating that reduction, all the costs imposed on the consumer by the creditor shall be taken into consideration.
2. Member States shall ensure that the creditor, in the event of early repayment, is entitled to fair and objectively justified compensation for possible costs directly linked to the early repayment, provided that the early repayment falls within a period of time for which the borrowing rate is fixed.
The compensation referred to in the first subparagraph shall not exceed 1 % of the amount of credit subject to early repayment where the period of time between the early repayment and the agreed date of termination of the credit agreement exceeds one year. Where that period does not exceed one year, the compensation shall not exceed 0,5 % of the amount of credit subject to early repayment.
3. Member States shall ensure that the creditor is not entitled to the compensation referred to in paragraph 2 where one of the following conditions is fulfilled:
(a)
the repayment has been made under an insurance contract intended to provide a credit repayment guarantee;
(b)
the credit is granted in the form of an overdraft facility;
(c)
the repayment falls within a period for which the borrowing rate is not fixed.
4. By way of derogation from paragraph 2, Member States may provide that:
(a)
the creditor is only entitled to the compensation referred to in paragraph 2 on the condition that the amount of the early repayment exceeds the threshold set out in national law, which shall not exceed EUR 10 000 within any period of 12 months;
(b)
the creditor may exceptionally claim higher compensation if the creditor can prove that the loss suffered due to early repayment exceeds the amount determined in accordance with paragraph 2.
Where the compensation claimed by the creditor exceeds the loss actually suffered due to the early repayment, the consumer shall be entitled to a corresponding reduction.
In that case, the loss shall consist of the difference between the initially agreed borrowing rate and the interest rate at which the creditor can lend out the amount subject to early repayment on the market at the time of that repayment, and shall take into account the impact of the early repayment on the administrative costs.
5. The compensation referred to in paragraph 2 and paragraph 4, point (b), shall not in any case exceed the amount of interest that the consumer would have paid during the period of time between the early repayment and the agreed date of termination of the credit agreement.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
