Contract clauses that too vaguely indicate the possibilities for changing interest rates are prohibited, as are those used to establish the amount of mortgage loans indexed to the Swiss franc and the principal and interest payments. Such is the standpoint material to a case Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) submitted to the court hearing a consumer lawsuit against mBank.
Poland’s amended Act on competition and consumer protection gave Poland the ability to present a court with standpoint material to a case. Such opinions allow the Office to share its knowledge and assist the court in dispute settlement.
UOKIK has now twice presented the court with its standpoint. In the present case, consumers in a dispute with mBank filed a request for the Authority’s position. The mortgage holders questioned clauses found in agreements for credit pegged to the Swiss franc which they consider abusive. The loans are given in Polish zloty, but the capital is calculated in francs and functions as the basis for establishing the instalment amount and interest. The amount of the monthly payments is given in Swiss francs, but they are paid in Polish zloty after converting to CHF using the exchange rate established by the bank.
