Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 May 2020
101. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance the correspondence he has had with a bank (details supplied) regarding its refusal to offer full three month mortgage breaks for mortgage holders who are in mortgage arrears but have lost income as a result of Covid-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5290/20]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the BPFI announced late last month over 65,000 mortgage payment breaks had been granted since the cross-bank initiative was introduced. The members of the BPFI announced on 30 April, that a further three-month extension to the current payment break will be made available to customers that continue to be directly impacted by the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, it is for each financial institution to examine a customer’s individual circumstances to make sure the appropriate solution is put in place. In some cases this will be a mortgage payment break but perhaps if the account is already in arrears, the Central Bank’s statutory Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears (CCMA) and its Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process, more commonly known as the MARP, may be more appropriate.
If the financial institution has deemed that a payment break is not appropriate and that the MARP is more appropriate, the CCMA outlines very clear steps that have to be taken. The overriding objective of the CCMA is to ensure the fair and transparent treatment of consumers in mortgage arrears or pre-arrears, and that due regard is had to the fact that each case of mortgage arrears is unique and needs to be considered on its own merits.
The CCMA recognises that it is in the interests of borrowers and regulated firms to address financial difficulties as speedily, effectively and sympathetically as circumstances allow. It sets out a four-step process that regulated entities must follow.
The Central Bank has emphasised that the provisions of the existing consumer protection framework, which is designed to ensure that consumers’ best interests are protected, particularly in times of financial difficulties, are in place. People who may be experiencing particular vulnerabilities, as a result of the impact of COVID-19, for example, illness or loss of income, must be provided with whatever reasonable arrangements and/or assistance may be necessary in dealings with regulated entities.
If the customer is not happy with the way their financial institution is dealing with them, they can make a complaint to them and if they are not satisfied with the response received from them, the customer has the option to bring a complaint to the independent Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman.
