This section applies to a firm with respect to credit-related regulated activities.

A firm must not carry on a credit-related regulated activity under a name which is likely to mislead customers about the status of the firm or the nature of its business, or in any other way.

Any specific rule or piece of guidance in CONC is without prejudice to the application of PRIN, any other rules in the Handbooks, the CCA and secondary legislation made and things done under it, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, Part 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002 and any other applicable consumer protection legislation.

This section applies to a firm with respect to consumer credit lending.

A firm must explain the key features of a regulated credit agreement to enable the customer to make an informed choice as required by CONC 4.2.5 R (adequate explanations).

A firm must take reasonable steps to satisfy itself that any credit brokers with whom the firm deals are authorised persons or appointed representatives.

1. (1)

   A firm may provide credit card cheques only to a customer who has asked for them.

   [Note: section 51A(2) of CCA]

2. (2)

   A firm may provide credit card cheques only on a single occasion in respect of each request that is made.

   [Note: section 51A(3) of CCA]

3. (3)

   The number of credit card cheques provided in respect of a request must not exceed three (or, if less, the number requested).

   [Note: section 51A(4) of CCA]

4. (4)

   Where a single request is made for the provision of credit card cheques in connection with more than one credit-token agreement, (2) and (3) apply as if a separate request had been made for each agreement.

   [Note: section 51A(5) of CCA]

5. (5)

   Where more than one request for the provision of credit card cheques is made in the same document or at the same time:

   1. (a)

      they may be provided in respect of only one of the requests, but

   2. (b)

      if the requests relate to more than one credit-token agreement, in relation to each agreement they may be provided only in respect of one of the requests made in relation to that agreement.

   [Note: section 51A(6) of CCA]

6. (6)

   This rule does not apply to credit card cheques provided in connection with a credit-token agreement that is entered into by the customer wholly or predominantly for the purposes of a business carried on, or intended to be carried on, by the customer.

   [Note: section 51B(1) of CCA]

7. (7)

   If a credit-token agreement includes a declaration made by the customer to the effect that the agreement is entered into as mentioned in (6), the agreement is treated for the purposes of (6) as having been so entered into.

   [Note: section 51B(2) of CCA]

8. (8)

   The declaration in (7) must be in the form and content set out in CONC App 1 for the exemption relating to business.

9. (9)

   Paragraph (7) does not apply if, when the agreement is entered into

   1. (a)

      the lender; or

   2. (b)

      any person who has acted on behalf of the lender in connection with the entering into of the agreement;

   knows, or has reasonable cause to suspect, that the agreement is not entered into as mentioned in (6).

   [Note: section 51B(3) of CCA]

10. (10)

    Where an agreement has two or more lenders, references in (9) to the lender are to any one or more of them.

    [Note: section 51B(5) of CCA]

This section applies:

1. (1)

   to a firm with respect to consumer credit lending; or

2. (2)

   to a firm with respect to consumer hiring.

1. (1)

   Not later than the lender ("L") informs a credit broker that L is not willing to make a regulated credit agreement, L must, unless L informs the customer directly that L is not willing to make the agreement, inform the credit broker of the name and address (including an appropriate e-mail address) of any credit reference agency from which L has, during the negotiations relating to the proposed agreement, applied for information about the financial standing of the customer.

   [Note: regulation 2 of SI 1977/330]

2. (2)

   Not later than the owner ("O") informs a credit broker that O is not willing to make a regulated consumer hire agreement, O must, unless O informs the customer directly that O is not willing to make the agreement, inform the credit broker of the name and address (including an appropriate e-mail address) of any credit reference agency from which O has, during the negotiations relating to the proposed agreement, applied for information about the financial standing of the customer.

   [Note: regulation 2 of SI 1977/330]

This section applies to a firm with respect to credit broking.

A firm must:

1. (1)

   where it has responsibility for doing so, explain the key features of a regulated credit agreement to enable the customer to make an informed choice as required by CONC 4.2.5 R;

   [Note: paragraphs 4.27 to 4.30 of CBG and 2.2 of ILG]

2. (2)

   take reasonable steps to satisfy itself that a product it wishes to recommend to a customer is not unsuitable for the customer's needs and circumstances;

   [Note: paragraph 4.22 of CBG]

3. (3)

   advise a customer to read, and allow the customer sufficient opportunity to consider, the terms and conditions of a credit agreement or consumer hire agreement before entering into it;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9l of CBG]

4. (4)

   before referring the customer to a third party which carries on regulated activities or to a claims management service (within the meaning of section 4 of the Compensation Act 2006) or other services, obtain the customer's consent, after having explained why the customer's details are to be disclosed to that third party;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9r of CBG]

5. (5)

   before effecting an introduction of a customer to a lender or owner in relation to a credit agreement or consumer hire agreement, or before entering into such an agreement on behalf of the lender or owner, disclose (where applicable) the fact that the lender or owner is linked to the firm by being a member of the same group as the firm;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9y of CBG]

6. (6)

   bring to the attention of a customer how the firm uses the customer's personal data it collects, in a manner appropriate to the means of communication used;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9q of CBG]

7. (7)

   provide customers with a clear and simple method to cancel their consent for the processing of their personal data;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9u of CBG]

8. (8)

   at the request of a customer, disclose from where the customer's personal data was obtained;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9w of CBG]

9. (9)

   take reasonable steps not to pass a customer's personal data to a business which carries on a credit-related regulated activity for which the business has no permission1 .

   [Note: paragraph 3.9x of CBG]

   1

Where a credit broker ("B") is a negotiator (within the meaning of section 56(1) of the CCA), B must, at the same time as B gives notice to a customer, under section 157(1) of the CCA (which relates to the duty to disclose on request the name and address of any credit reference agency consulted by B) also give the customer notice of the name and address of any credit reference agency of which B has been informed under CONC 2.4.2 R.

Where a credit broker ("B") is not a negotiator (within the meaning of section 56(1) of the CCA), B must, within seven working days after receiving a request in writing for any such information, which is made by a customer within 28 days after the termination of any negotiations relating to a regulated credit agreement or a regulated consumer hire agreement whether on the making of the agreement or otherwise, give to the customer notice of:

1. (1)

   the name and address of any credit reference agency from which B has during those negotiations applied for information about the financial standing of the customer; and

2. (2)

   the name and address of any credit reference agency of which B has been informed under CONC 2.4.2 R.

   [Note: regulation 4 of SI 1977/ 330]

A firm must not:

1. (1)

   make or cause to be made unsolicited calls to numbers entered on the register kept under regulation 25 or 26 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 or to a customer who has notified the firm not to call the number being used to call;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9a of CBG]

2. (2)

   other than where:

   1. (a)

      the firm has obtained the contact details of a customer (C) in the course of the sale or negotiations for the sale of a product or service to C;

   2. (b)

      the direct marketing is in respect of the firm's similar products and services only;

   3. (c)

      C has been given a simple means of refusing (free of charge, except for the cost of the transmission of the refusal) the use of the contact details for the purposes of such direct marketing, at the time that the details were initially collected and, where C did not initially refuse the use of the details, at the time of each subsequent communication; and

   4. (d)

      the firm has previously explained that the following calls or electronic communications would be sent or made or caused to be sent or made by the firm and following that explanation C consented for the time being to such calls or communications;

   send or cause to be sent an electronic communication, for the purposes of marketing, to C, or make or cause to be made by means of an automated calling system (which is capable of automatically initiating a sequence of calls to more than one destination in accordance with instructions stored in that system, and transmitting sounds which are not live speech for reception by persons at some or all of the destinations so called) a call to C, for the purposes of marketing;

   [Note paragraph 3.9b of CBG]

3. (3)

   make or cause to be made by means of an automated calling system (see paragraph (2)) a call to a customer, for the purposes of marketing, after the firm has received a request from the customer to stop doing so;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9c of CBG]

4. (4)

   send, or cause to be sent, an electronic communication to a customer, for the purposes of marketing, after the firm has received a request from the customer to stop doing so;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9c of CBG]

5. (5)

   visit a customer at a time that is known to be, or reasonably likely to be, inconvenient or particularly undesirable to the customer;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9f of CBG]

6. (6)

   refuse to end a visit to a customer or to leave the customer's home, when requested to do so;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9g of CBG]

7. (7)

   unfairly request, suggest or direct a customer to make contact on a premium rate telephone number;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9h of CBG]

8. (8)

   conduct a telephone call with a customer who has called on a premium rate number for an unreasonable period;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9i of CBG]

9. (9)

   inappropriately offer a financial or other incentive or inducement to a customer to enter, immediately or quickly, into a credit agreement or consumer hire agreement to which this section applies;

   [Note: paragraph 3.9j of CBG]

10. (10)

    effect an introduction to a lender or an owner or to another credit broker, where the firm has considered whether the customer might meet the relevant lending or hiring criteria and it is or should be apparent to the firm that the customer does not meet those criteria;

    [Note: paragraph 3.9aa and 4.41i of CBG]

11. (11)

    suggest to a customer that an application for credit will be met in full when a lower amount may be offered;

    [Note: paragraph 4.26d of CBG]

12. (12)

    secure more credit for a customer than was requested where the object of doing so is for, or can reasonably be concluded as having been for, the personal gain of the firm or of a person acting on its behalf, rather than in the best interests of the customer;

    [Note: paragraph 4.26e of CBG]

13. (12A)

    secure credit for a customer at a higher rate of interest than was requested, where the object of doing so is for, or can reasonably be concluded as having been for, the personal gain of the firm or of a person acting on its behalf, rather than in the best interests of the customer;2

    [Note: paragraph 4.26e of CBG]

14. (13)

    give preference to the credit1 products of a particular lender where the object of doing so is for, or can reasonably be concluded as having been for, the personal gain of the firm or of a person acting on its behalf, rather than in the best interests of the customer;

    [Note: paragraph 4.41k of CBG]

    1
15. (14)

    in relation to a payment protection product (the meaning of which is set out in CONC 2.5.10 R) to the credit agreement or consumer hire agreement (whether the product is optional or required as a condition of the credit agreement or consumer hire agreement):

    1. (a)

       pressurise the customer to buy the product; or

       [Note: paragraph 2.62, 2nd bullet of JGPPI]

    2. (b)

       offer undue incentives to the customer to buy the product;

       [Note: paragraph 2.62, 2nd bullet of JGPPI]

16. (15)

    in relation to an insurance product or service or other linked product or service to the credit agreement or consumer hire agreement (whether the service or product is optional or required as a condition of the credit agreement or consumer hire agreement) discourage or prevent the customer from seeking or obtaining the product or service from another source;

    [Note: paragraph 4.26f of CBG]

17. (16)

    encourage a customer to enter into a credit agreement which is secured in any way, to which this section applies, to replace an unsecured credit agreement or to consolidate other debts where the firm knows, or ought reasonably to know, that it is not in the best interests of the customer;

    [Note: paragraph 4.26g of CBG]

18. (17)

    unfairly encourage a customer to increase, consolidate or refinance (which expression has the same meaning as in CONC 6.7.17 R) an existing debt to the extent that repayments under an agreement would be unsustainable for the customer;

    [Note: paragraph 4.26h of CBG]

19. (18)

    encourage a customer to take out additional credit or to extend the term of an existing credit agreement where to do so is, or is reasonably likely be, to the detriment of a customer;

    [Note: paragraph 4.41h of CBG]

20. (19)

    charge a fee to a customer for effecting an introduction (directly or indirectly) to a lender or owner that provides a type of credit or hire of a different type to that:

    1. (a)

       promised to the customer; or

    2. (b)

       promoted by the firm to the customer; or

    3. (c)

       which the firm is aware the customer is seeking;

    unless the customer, after the firm has explained the reason for the fee, consents to such an introduction;

    [Note: paragraph 4.17f of CBG]

21. (20)

    take a fee from a customer's bank account without the customer's express authorisation to do so;

    [Note: paragraph 4.17c of CBG]

22. (21)

    unfairly pass a customer's personal data to a third party without obtaining the customer's consent to do so after having explained the reason for disclosing the data;

    [Note: paragraph 3.9s of CBG]

23. (22)

    unfairly pass a customer's personal data to a third party for a purpose other than that for which consent was sought and given.

    [Note: paragraph 3.9t of CBG]

In CONC 2.5.8R (14):

1. (1)

   payment protection product means a product or feature of a product designed to offer customers short-term protection against potential loss of income, by providing the means for them to meet (or temporarily suspend) their financial obligations including repayments under a credit agreement. Payment protection products include, in particular, short term income protection, debt freeze or debt waiver;

2. (2)

   short-term income protection means a contract of insurance which provides a pre-agreed amount paid directly to the policyholder or the policyholder's nominee in the event that the policyholder experiences involuntary unemployment or incapacity as a result of accident or sickness and may be combined with other forms of insurance cover or include other benefits and which:

   1. (a)

      has a maximum time-limited benefit duration;

   2. (b)

      is written for a term which is less than 5 years and not predetermined by the term of any credit agreement; and

   3. (c)

      can be terminated by the insurer.

This section applies to a firm with respect to:

1. (1)

   debt counselling; or

2. (2)

   debt adjusting; or

3. (3)

   providing credit information services.

A firm must bring to the attention of a customer how the firm uses the customer's personal data it collects in a manner appropriate to the means of communication used.

A firm must not:

1. (1)

   by any means, including during a visit to a customer, coerce or use pressure to sell its services;

   [Note: paragraph 3.12o of DMG]

2. (2)

   take advantage of a customer's lack of knowledge or understanding of the law relating to consumer credit or to insolvency or to otherwise dealing with debts in order to sell its services;

   [Note: paragraph 3.12o of DMG]

3. (3)

   in relation to a visit to a customer:

   1. (a)

      make an appointment to visit or visit at a time which is unreasonable or inconvenient from the customer's point of view, unless the consumer expressly consents;

      [Note: paragraph 3.15a of DMG]

   2. (b)

      refuse to end the visit, refuse to leave the customer's home or ignore the customer's request not to return there;

      [Note: paragraph 3.15b of DMG]

   3. (c)

      make a visit which is unreasonably or unnecessarily long;

      [Note: paragraph 3.15c of DMG]

4. (4)

   conduct a telephone call with a customer who has called on a premium rate number for an unreasonable period.

   [Note: paragraph 3.18x of DMG]

1. (1)

   Subject to (2) and (3), this section applies to a firm that carries on any distance marketing activity from an establishment in the UK, with or for a consumer in the UK or another EEA State.

2. (2)

   This section does not apply to an authorised professional firm with respect to its non-mainstream regulated activities.

3. (3)

   This section does not apply to an activity in relation to a consumer hire agreement.

1. (1)

   Subject to (2), (3) and (4), a firm must provide a consumer with the distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 1R) in good time before the consumer is bound by a distance contract or offer.

   [Note: regulation 7(1) of SI 2004/2095]

[Note: articles 3(1) and 4(5) of the Distance Marketing Directive]

1. (2)

   Where a distance contract is also a contract for payment services to which the Payment Services Regulations apply, a firm is required to provide to the consumer only the information specified in rows 7 to 12, 15, 16 and 20 of CONC 2 Annex 1R.

2. (3)

   Paragraph (1) and the requirement to provide the abbreviated distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 2R) in CONC 2.7.11 R do not apply to a distance contract which is also a credit agreement (other than an authorised non-business overdraft agreement) in respect of which the firm has disclosed the pre-contract credit information required by regulations 3, 4 or 5, as the case may be, and 7, of the disclosure regulations (information to be disclosed to a debtor before a regulated consumer credit agreement is made) in accordance with the disclosure regulations.

   [Note: regulation 7(6) of SI 2004/2095]

3. (4)

   Paragraph (1) and the requirement to provide the abbreviated distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 2) in CONC 2.7.11 R do not apply to a distance contract which is also an authorised non-business overdraft agreement in respect of which:

   1. (a)

      the firm has disclosed the information required by regulation 10(2) of the disclosure regulations (authorised non-business overdraft agreements) by means of the European Consumer Credit Information form in accordance with the disclosure regulations and, unless CONC 2.7.12 R would otherwise apply, a copy of the contractual terms and conditions;

   2. (b)

      in the case of a voice telephony communication, the firm has:

      1. (i)

         disclosed the information required by regulation 10(5) of the disclosure regulations in accordance with the disclosure regulations; and

      2. (ii)

         provided a copy of the written agreement in accordance with section 61B(2)(b) of the CCA; or

   3. (c)

      in the case of an agreement made using a means of distance communication, other than voice telephony communication, where a firm is unable to provide the information required by regulation 10(2) of the disclosure regulations, the firm has:

      1. (i)

         provided a copy of the written agreement in accordance with section 61B(2)(c) of the CCA, and

      2. (ii)

         unless CONC 2.7.12 R would otherwise apply, in relation to the prospective distance contract, provided information which accurately reflects the contractual obligations which would arise under the law presumed to be applicable to that contract.

         [Note: regulation 7(6) of SI 2004/2095]

A firm must ensure that the distance marketing information, the commercial purpose of which must be made clear, is provided in a clear and comprehensible manner in a way appropriate to the means of distance communication used with due regard, in particular, to the principles of good faith in commercial transactions and the legal principles governing the protection of those who are unable to give their consent.

When a firm makes a voice telephony communication to a consumer, it must make its identity and the purposes of its call explicitly clear at the beginning of the conversation.

A firm must ensure that information on contractual obligations to be communicated to a consumer during the pre-contractual phase accurately reflects the contractual obligations which would result from the law presumed to be applicable to the distance contract if that contract is concluded.

A firm must communicate to the consumer all the contractual terms and conditions and the information referred to in the distance marketing disclosure rules (CONC 2.7.2 R to CONC 2.7.5 R) in a durable medium1. That information must be made available and accessible to the consumer in good time before the consumer is bound by any distance contract or offer.

The performance of the distance contract may only begin after the consumer has given approval.

In the case of a distance contract comprising an initial service agreement, followed by successive operations or a series of separate operations of the same nature performed over time, the rules in this chapter only apply to the initial agreement.

1. (1)

   If there is no initial service agreement but the successive or separate operations of the same nature performed over time are performed between the same contractual parties, the distance marketing disclosure rules (CONC 2.7.2 R to CONC 2.7.5 R) will only apply:

   1. (a)

      when the first operation is performed; and

   2. (b)

      if no operation of the same nature is performed for more than a year, when the next operation is performed (the next operation being deemed the first in a new series of operations).

      [Note: regulation 5(2) of SI 2004/2095]

   [Note: recital 16 and article 1(2) of the Distance Marketing Directive]

2. (2)

   In this section:

   1. (a)

      "initial service agreement" includes the opening of a bank account or the making of a credit-token agreement;

   2. (b)

      "operations" includes the deposit or withdrawal of funds to or from a bank account and payments by a credit card or a store card; and

   3. (c)

      adding new elements to an initial service agreement, such as the ability to use an electronic payment instrument together with an existing retail banking service, does not constitute an "operation" but an additional contract to which the rules in this chapter apply.

      [Note: regulation 5 of SI 2004/2095]

   [Note: recital 17 of the Distance Marketing Directive]

In the case of voice telephony communication, and subject to the explicit consent of the consumer, only the abbreviated distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 2R) needs to be provided during that communication. However, unless another exception applies (such as the exemption for means of distance communication not enabling disclosure), a firm must still provide the distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 1R) in a durable medium that is available and accessible to the consumer in good time before the consumer is bound by any distance contract or offer.

A firm may provide the distance marketing information (CONC 2 Annex 1R) and the contractual terms and conditions in a durable medium immediately after the conclusion of a distance contract, if the contract has been concluded at a consumer's request using a means of distance communication that does not enable the provision of that information in that form in good time before the consumer is bound by any distance contract or offer.

At any time during the contractual relationship, the consumer is entitled, at request, to receive the contractual terms and conditions on paper. The consumer is also entitled to change the means of distance communication used unless this is incompatible with the contract concluded or the nature of the service provided.

1. (1)

   A firm must not enforce, or seek to enforce, any obligations under a distance contract against a consumer in the event of an unsolicited supply of services. The absence of a reply does not constitute consent.

2. (2)

   This rule does not apply to the tacit renewal of a distance contract.

   [Note: regulation 15 of SI 2004/2095]

If a consumer purports to waive any of the consumer's rights created or implied by the rules in this section, a firm must not accept that waiver, nor seek to rely on or enforce it against the consumer.

If a firm proposes to enter into a distance contract with a consumer that will be governed by the law of a country outside the EEA, the firm must ensure that the consumer will not lose the protection created by the rules in this section if the distance contract has a close link with the territory of one or more EEA States.

This section applies to a firm carrying on an electronic commerce activity from an establishment in the UK with or for a person in the UK or another EEA State.

A firm must make at least the following information easily, directly and permanently accessible to the recipients of the information society services it provides:

1. (1)

   its name;

2. (2)

   the geographic address at which it is established;

3. (3)

   the details of the firm, including its e-mail address, which allow it to be contacted rapidly and communicated with in a direct and effective manner;

4. (4)

   an appropriate statutory status disclosure statement (GEN 4 Annex 1 R), together with a statement which explains that it is on the Financial Services Register and includes its firm reference number;

5. (5)

   if it is a professional firm, or a person regulated by the equivalent of a designated professional body in another EEA State:

   1. (a)

      the name of the professional body (including any designated professional body) or similar institution with which it is registered;

   2. (b)

      the professional title and the EEA State where it was granted;

   3. (c)

      a reference to the applicable professional rules in the EEA State of establishment and the means to access them; and

   4. (d)

      where the firm undertakes an activity that is subject to VAT, its VAT number.

If a firm refers to price, it must do so clearly and unambiguously, indicating whether the price is inclusive of tax and delivery costs.

A firm must ensure that commercial communications which are part of, or constitute, an information society service, comply with the following conditions:

1. (1)

   the commercial communication must be clearly identifiable as such;

2. (2)

   the person on whose behalf the commercial communication is made must be clearly identifiable;

3. (3)

   promotional offers must be clearly identifiable as such, and the conditions that must be met to qualify for them must be easily accessible and presented clearly and unambiguously; and

4. (4)

   promotional competitions or games must be clearly identifiable as such, and the conditions for participation must be easily accessible and presented clearly and unambiguously.

An unsolicited commercial communication sent by e-mail by a firm established in the UK must be identifiable clearly and unambiguously as an unsolicited commercial communication as soon as it is received by the recipient.

A firm must (except when otherwise agreed by parties who are not consumers):

1. (1)

   give an ECA recipient at least the following information, clearly, comprehensibly and unambiguously, and prior to the order being placed by the recipient of the service:

   1. (a)

      the different technical steps to follow to conclude the contract;

   2. (b)

      whether or not the concluded contract will be filed1by the firm and whether it will be accessible;

      1
   3. (c)

      the technical means for identifying and correcting input errors prior to the placing of the order; and

   4. (d)

      the languages offered for the conclusion of the contract;

2. (2)

   indicate any relevant codes of conduct to which it subscribes and information on how those codes can be consulted electronically;

3. (3)

   (when an ECA recipient places an order through technological means) acknowledge the receipt of the recipient's order without undue delay and by electronic means; and

4. (4)

   make available to the ECA recipient appropriate, effective and accessible technical means allowing the recipient to identify and correct input errors prior to the placing of an order.

For the purposes of CONC 2.8.6R (3), an order and an acknowledgement of receipt are deemed to be received when the parties to whom they are addressed are able to access them.

Contractual terms and conditions provided by a firm to an ECA recipient must be made available in a way that allows the recipient to store and reproduce them.

The requirements relating to the placing and receipt of orders (CONC 2.8.6 R) do not apply to contracts concluded exclusively by exchange of e-mail or by equivalent individual communications.

This section applies to any firm.

1. (1)

   A firm must not give a person a credit token if he has not asked for it.

   [Note: section 51 of CCA]

2. (2)

   A request in (1) must be in a document signed by the person making the request, unless the credit-token agreement is a small borrower-lender-supplier agreement.

3. (3)

   Paragraph (1) does not apply to the giving of a credit token to a person:

   1. (a)

      for use under a credit-token agreement already made; or

   2. (b)

      in renewal or replacement of a credit token previously accepted by that person under a credit-token agreement which continues in force, whether or not varied.