The Consumer Credit Agreements Law applies to a wide range of consumer credit agreements, except for the cases expressly established in the Law and indicated below.
Agreements not included under the CCA
The following agreements are not subject to the Consumer Credit Agreements Law:
- Credit agreements which are secured by a mortgage
- Credit agreements for the purpose of acquiring or retaining property rights in land or in an existing or projected building
- Credit agreements involving a total amount of credit lower than 200€
- Hiring or leasing agreements where an obligation to purchase the object of the agreement is not laid down either by the agreement itself or by any separate agreement (such an obligation shall be deemed to exist if it is so decided unilaterally by the creditor)
- Credit agreements in the form of an overdraft facility and where the credit must be repaid within one month
- Credit agreements where the credit is granted free of interest and without any other charges, and credit agreements where the credit has to be repaid within three months and only insignificant charges are payable
- Credit agreements where the credit is granted by an employer to his or her employee as a secondary activity free of interest or at annual percentage charge rates lower than those prevailing on the market and which are not offered to the public generally
- Credit agreements which are concluded with investment firms or with credit institutions (as defined pursuant to Spanish Law 24/1988, of 28 July 1988, on Security Markets) where the investment firm or credit institution granting the credit is involved in the transaction
- Credit agreements which are the outcome of a settlement reached in court or before another statutory authority
- Credit agreements which relate to the deferred payment, free of charge, of an existing debt
- Credit agreements upon the conclusion of which the consumer is requested to deposit an item as security in the creditor’s safekeeping and where the liability of the consumer is strictly limited to that pledged item.
An entity that is not considered a credit institution cannot request a permit or authorization to undertake Consumer Credit Activities.
Parties to a Credit Consumer Agreement
A consumer is understood to be a natural person who, in transactions covered under the CCA, is acting for purposes, which are outside of his or her trade, business or profession.
A creditor is understood to be a natural or legal person who grants or promises to grant credit in the course of his or her trade, business or profession.
In addition, the CCA regulates the role of finance agents and, in particular, imposes certain obligations on them. Finance agents are individuals or entities, which are not creditors and that, in the context of their commercial or professional activity and in exchange for economic consideration, introduce or offer credit agreements, assist consumers in pre-contracting processes or enter into credit agreements with consumers on behalf of a creditor.
For further information regarding the agreements not included under the CCA in Spain,
