Consumer credit act, 1995

• Enactment Date: 31 July 1995
• Act Number: 24

Number 24 of 1995

CONSUMER CREDIT ACT, 1995

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

PART I

Preliminary and General

Section 1. Short title and commencement. 2. Interpretation. 3. Application. 4. Functions of Director. 5. Powers of Director in respect of investigations. 6. Direction of Director in respect of statements and notices. 7. Authorised officers. 8. Prohibition on unauthorised disclosure of information. 9. APR. 10. Criteria for calculation of APR. 11. Laying of regulations before Houses of Oireachtas. 12. Offences. 13. Penalties. 14. Prosecution of offences. 15. Cost of prosecutions. 16. Immunity of Director. 17. Transitional provision. 18. Expenses of Minister and Director. 19. Repeals.

PART II

Advertising and Offering of Financial Accommodation

20. Application of Part II. 21. Credit advertisements. 22. Advertising of financial accommodation related to goods or services. 23. Advertising of consumer-hire agreements. 24. Comparative advertising. 25. Advertising of credit as being without charge. 26. Advertising of financial accommodation to comply with this Part. 27. Obligation on provider of financial accommodation to ensure advertisements comply with Part. 28. Regulations relating to advertising of financial accommodation.

PART III

Requirements Relating to Credit Agreements and Form and Contents thereof

29. Application of Part III. 30. General requirements relating to contents of credit agreements. 31. Contents of credit agreements for cash loans. 32. Requirements relating to credit-sale agreements. 33. Avoidance of certain provisions in credit-sale agreements. 34. Requirements relating to contents of contracts for services. 35. Advances on current account. 36. Notice of important information to be included in credit agreements. 37. Regulations. 38. Enforceability. 39. Obligations on creditors to comply with Part III.

PART IV

Matters Arising During Currency of Agreements

40. Assignment of creditor's or owner's rights. 41. Use of bills of exchange, etc. 42. Liability regarding goods and services. 43. Duty to supply documents and information. 44. Appropriation of payments. 45. Restrictions on written communications. 46. Visits and telephone calls. 47. Excessive rates of charge for credit. 48. Power of court to re-open credit agreement where charge is excessive. 49. Making demands and threats in relation to unenforceable agreements. 50. Cooling-off period.

PART V

Matters Arising on Termination of Agreements or on Default

51. Application of Part V. 52. Indebtedness may be discharged before time fixed by agreement. 53. Reduction where amount owed becomes payable before time fixed by agreement. 54. Limitation on right of enforcement. 55. Unjustified enrichment.

PART VI

Hire-Purchase Agreements

56. Application of Part VI. 57. Requirement to state cash price. 58. Contents of hire-purchase agreements. 59. Enforceability. 60. Regulations. 61. Obligation on owners to comply with sections 58 and 60. 62. Avoidance of certain provisions in hire-purchase agreements. 63. Rights of hirer to determine hire-purchase agreement. 64. Restriction on right of owner to recover possession of goods otherwise than by proceedings. 65. Hire-purchase price. 66. Powers of court in actions for recovery of possession of goods. 67. Liability for failure to take reasonable care of goods. 68. Liability of guarantor where goods are returned to the owner. 69. Duty of hirer to give information as to whereabouts of goods. 70. Sale by dealer of goods let to him under a hire-purchase agreement. 71. Evidence of adverse detention in actions by owners to recover possession of the goods. 72. Successive hire-purchase agreements between the same parties. 73. Hirer's refusal to surrender goods not to be conversion in certain cases. 74. Implied terms as to title. 75. Letting by description. 76. Implied undertakings as to quality or fitness. 77. Samples. 78. Statements purporting to restrict rights of hirer. 79. Exclusion of implied terms and conditions. 80. Liability of persons conducting negotiations antecedent to hire-purchase agreements. 81. Application of sections 12 and 15 to 19 of Act of 1980 to hire-purchase agreements. 82. Application of section 13 of Act of 1980 to hire-purchase of motor vehicles. 83. Antecedent negotiations and representations.

PART VII

Consumer-Hire Agreements

84. Contents of consumer-hire agreements. 85. Enforceability. 86. Regulations. 87. Obligation on owners to comply with sections 84 and 86. 88. Application of sections 75 to 83 to consumer-hire agreements. 89. Right of hirer to determine consumer-hire agreement. 90. Hirer to take reasonable care of goods. 91. Duty of hirer to give information as to whereabouts of goods.

PART VIII

Provisions Relating to Moneylending

92. Application of Part VIII. 93. Moneylender's licence. 94. Obligation on moneylender to display licence. 95. “Moneylending agreement” to be stated in agreement. 96. Prohibition on alteration or falsification of moneylender's licence. 97. Moneylender to issue authorisation to persons engaging in moneylending on his behalf off business premises. 98. Prohibition on engaging in business of moneylending without licence. 99. Loan or other credit to be advanced in full. 100. Repayment book. 101. Records to be maintained by moneylender. 102. Prohibition on charges for expenses on loans by moneylenders. 103. Moneylending agreements which include a collection charge. 104. Presumption. 105. Powers of entry of Garda Síochána. 106. Search warrants. 107. Prohibition on possession of documents belonging to another person for moneylending. 108. Obligation to produce to member of Garda Síochána moneylender's licence or authorisation. 109. Powers of arrest. 110. Prohibition on collecting repayments at certain times. 111. Prohibition on selling goods while collecting repayments. 112. Prohibition on increased charges for credit on default. 113. Continuity of licences granted under Moneylenders Act, 1933. 114. Regulations.

PART IX

Housing Loans Made by Mortgage Lenders

115. Application of, definitions, Part IX. 116. Mortgage intermediaries. 117. Obligation to display copy of mortgage intermediaries authorisation. 118. Prohibition on alteration or falsification of mortgage intermediaries authorisation. 119. Amendment of mortgage intermediaries authorisation. 120. Regulations. 121. Redemption of housing loans. 122. Criteria for calculation of APR in relation to housing loans. 123. Valuation reports. 124. Insurance of mortgaged property. 125. Costs of legal investigation of title. 126. Mortgage protection insurance. 127. Prohibition on linking of services. 128. Warning on loss of home. 129. Notice of important information to be included in a housing loan agreement. 130. Duties of mortgage lender to supply documents and information. 131. Disclosure of charges, agency introduction fees, commissions and expenses. 132. Disclosure of other fees. 133. Endowment loans. 134. Disclosure of interest rate and penalties to be applied to arrears on housing loans. 135. Advertising of housing loans. 136. Protection of borrower on a winding-up.

PART X

Miscellaneous

137. Regulations in relation to duty to display information. 138. Restrictions as to use of inertia selling provisions in agreements. 139. Circulars to minors. 140. Prohibition on exclusion of obligations or rights in agreements. 141. Statements purporting to exclude or restrict liabilities or rights. 142. Duty to disclose information concerning financial standing of consumer. 143. Correction of incorrect information.

PART XI

Credit Intermediaries

144. Credit intermediaries. 145. Obligation to display copy of credit intermediaries authorisation. 146. Prohibition on alteration or falsification of credit intermediaries authorisation. 147. Amendment of credit intermediaries authorisation. 148. Nature of “finance arranged” to be explained to consumer.

PART XII

Obligation on Credit Institutions to Notify Director of all Customer Charges

149. Customer charges, etc., by credit institutions. 150. Disclosure of information by Director.

PART XIII

Moneylenders, Credit and Mortgage Intermediaries Registers

151. Moneylenders, credit intermediaries and mortgage intermediaries registers.

PART XIV

Amendment of Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act, 1980

152. Amendment of Act of 1980.

PART XV

Amendment of Pawnbrokers Act, 1964

153.

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