MZANSI’S struggle with debt is heart-wrenching but very real.
The National Credit Act, which aims to be fair and non-discriminatory, says all people have the right to apply for credit.
But credit providers and consumers are also obliged to do everything within their power to avoid reckless credit access.
The National Credit Regulator said the total outstanding consumer credit in South Africa was R1,73 trillion at the end of September last year. Credit bureaus have records for 25,08 million credit-using consumers – and 9,87 million have impaired records.
Dealing with reckless credit
- Credit providers should not deliberately or negligently enter into an agreement with a consumer knowing it could cause or aggravate over-indebtedness.
- Credit providers are protected by the National Credit Act if they followed the needed steps to determine if a consumer is eligible for any type of credit.
- For consumers who apply for debt review, the regulator needs every credit agreement included and investigated for reckless lending. The aim of debt review is to avoid uncontrolled debt.
DebtSafe offers debt review for people who are trapped in debt. Send a free SMS to 30898 with your name and the word INFO.
