FCA secures contract changes for BNPL customers

On 31 October 2023, the UK Financial Conduct Authority published a press release setting out the contract changes to buy-now pay-later products it had secured from both PayPal and QVC.

The FCA’s view was the follow terms were potentially unfair or unclear for customers:

– (for both) the terms dealing with continuous payment authorities; and

– PayPal’s terms on what happens when a consumer cancels their purchase funded by the BNPL agreement.

The FCA also published:

– the undertaking given by PayPal (Europe) S.à.r.l. et Cie, S.C.A.; and

– the undertaking given by QVC UK.

The FCA used its powers under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to secure the changes.

New EU Consumer Credit Directive published

On 30 October 2023, the new EU Consumer Credit Directive (CCD2) was published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The timeline is:

– CCD2 will come into force on 19 November 2023.

– EU member states must adopt, and publish, the regulatory framework to implement CCD2 by 20 November 2025.

– CCD2 will come into force on 20 November 2026 (and it will repeal the EU Consumer Credit Directive from 2008).

Because the United Kingdom is no longer an EU member state, it will not need to implement it. However, it remains to be seen to what extent any of CCD2 is implemented into UK law to ensure parity with EU law.

Land Registry updates Practice Guide on discharges of charges

On 18 September 2023, the Land Registry published an updated Practice Guide 31 on the discharge of charges.

There are two main changes:

– Section 6.7 (headed ‘What Land Registry issue on completion of an electronic discharge’) and Section 7.8 (headed ‘What Land Registry will issue on completion of registration of an e-DS1’) are deleted; and

– Section 7.5 (headed ‘What you should do if you act for a borrower’) has been changed.

These changes have been made because the Land Registry no longer sends redemption letters to borrowers.

The FCA is making forms easier to complete

On 12 October 2023, the UK Financial Conduct Authority published a blog setting out the improvements it is making to the application process (including the publication of new forms).

The FCA says:

– it’s “making improvements to the process to make it quicker and easier for firms and people to apply for authorisation“;

– it’s making changes so it can “collect higher quality data and applications, while responding quickly to protect consumers from emerging harms“;

– the changes will mean that “duplicative requests for information are being removed and some of the data we already hold will be prepopulated to save time and effort“.

The first form the FCA is looking to update is Form A (which is one of the longest and most-used forms).