Consumer Credit Act
| Basic data | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Consumer Credit Act |
| Abbreviation: | VerbrKrG |
| Type: | Federal law |
| Scope: | Federal Republic of Germany |
| Legal matter: | Civil law , law of obligations |
| References : | 402-6 a. F. |
| Original version from: | December 17, 1990 ( BGBl. I p. 2840 ) |
| Entry into force on: | January 1, 1991 |
| New announcement from: | June 29, 2000 ( BGBl. I p. 940 ) |
| Last change by: |
Art. 16 G of July 13, 2001 ( Federal Law Gazette I p. 1542, 1546 ) |
| Effective date of the last change: |
August 1, 2001 (Art. 35 G of July 13, 2001) |
| Expiry: | January 1, 2002 (Art. 6 No. 3 G of November 26, 2001, Federal Law Gazette I p. 3138, 3187 ) |
| Please note the note on the applicable legal version. | |
The Consumer Credit Act (VerbrKrG) was one of the laws that primarily wanted to ensure consumer protection. In particular, it was intended to respond to modern developments in the banking industry. With the Law of Obligations Modernization Act of 2001, the Consumer Credit Act was repealed on January 1, 2002. The law of consumer loan contracts has since been regulated in the BGB. According to Art. 229 § 5 EGBGB, the Consumer Credit Act was applicable until January 1, 2003 to contracts that were concluded before January 1, 2002, provided that - as is usually the case - they are continuing obligations. Now only the provisions of the BGB are applicable.
In addition to the General Terms and Conditions Act , the Doorstep Cancellation Act , the Part-Time Right of Residence Act and the Distance Selling Act , the Consumer Credit Act was of particular importance as it regulated the consumer credit agreements that are common in modern legal transactions. The loan agreement regulated in the old civil code was too inflexible to meet the requirements. In addition, the German legislator had to react to an EC directive (87/102 / EEC of December 22, 1986). With the Law of Obligations Modernization Act, the Consumer Credit Act was incorporated into Sections 491–498 BGB (for consumer loans) and Sections 499–506 BGB (for other financial aids such as payment deferrals , finance leasing and installment transactions). Before that, the installment law from 1894 applied, which could not foresee the development of the financing options.
Because the ECJ issued a landmark decision in December 2001 with regard to the consumer loan agreement for real estate transactions (1st so-called “ scrap real estate ” judgment, C-481/99), a change in the regulations was necessary even before the Consumer Credit Act expired. The legislature allowed the new version with its regulatory content to apply from November 1, 2002.
For the transactions falling under the Consumer Credit Act, the written form was mandatory if the loan was substantial. A cancellation option was also provided.
