The establishment of a minimum period of time between the conclusion of a consumer credit agreement and the start of the payment of funds falls within the competence of the Member States, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in a judgment (Case C-50/22) on Thursday 9 March.
In France, the company Sogefinancement asked two natural persons to repay sums borrowed in the context of a consumer loan. Sogefinancement referred the case to the Raincy District Court, which ordered these people to repay. It also declared the contract null and void, arguing that French law (Article L. 311-14 of the Consumer Code) provides for a minimum period of 7 days between the conclusion of the contract and the availability of the borrowed funds. However, the money was made available less than 7 days after the contract was concluded. But Sogefinancement maintains that the nullity of the credit agreement could not be raised ex officio beyond the five-year limitation period to which the consumers themselves would be subject.
The Paris Court of Appeal has referred a question to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling on the interpretation of the Directive (2008/48/EC) governing consumer credit agreements. The Court held that national rules providing for a minimum period during which the performance of the credit agreement may not commence do not fall within the scope of EU law.
According to the European judge, in matters specifically covered by the harmonisation objective of the Directive, Member States are not allowed to maintain or introduce national provisions other than those laid down in European legislation. On the other hand, in the Court’s view, the adoption or maintenance of a national provision laying down a period during which performance of the contract may not begin (Article 14(7) of the Directive) is not likely to limit the effective exercise by the consumer of their right of withdrawal, or to undermine the consistency of the Directive or the objectives pursued.
See the Court’s judgment: https://aeur.eu/f/5px (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)