The Ministry of Development has imposed administrative fines totaling €790.000 on three Loan and Credit Claims Management Companies for violation of the law, following an investigation of complaints to the General Directorate of Market and Consumer Protection of the General Secretariat of Commerce.

Specifically:

A. Fines totaling €330,000 were imposed on doValue Greece S.A., in accordance with Article 10(1) of Law 3758/2009, for informing borrowers about overdue claims because: It assigned debtors’ notification about their overdue debt to companies even though it had already been paid. It assigned debtors’ notification about their overdue debt while the debtors had applied for bankruptcy, which had been accepted by the court. It informed borrowers about the existence of overdue debt in cases where the borrower either properly paid their loan installments or was protected by the provisions of Law 3869/2010 following judicial regulation.

B. A fine of €280,000 was imposed on Cepal Hellas S.A., in accordance with Article 13a of Law 2251/1994, for unfair commercial practices against borrowers in the context of debt and credit management, including: Unjustified delays in verifying the authorization of legal representatives of debtors and the process of finding solutions to their debts. Unjustified delays in processing borrowers’ requests for debt settlement examination and issuing debt balance certificates. Difficulty in communicating with borrowers in the context of debt management.

C. A fine of €180,000 was imposed on Intrum Hellas S.A., in accordance with Article 13a of Law 2251/1994, for unfair commercial practices against borrowers in the context of debt and credit management, including: incorrect information about the borrower’s remaining debt amount aimed at full payment by the borrower, as well as unjustified delays in responding to the borrower’s request for a debt payment certificate. Unjustified delays in processing a borrower’s request for reconsideration of an inadvertently deposited amount. Unjustified delays in responding to a borrower’s request regarding the dispatch of the remaining loan amount are included in Law 3869/2010.