Where is the national credit regulator?
Critics say the national credit regulator isn’t doing its job properly and want changes to the law to fix it — including levelling the playing field between lenders and consumers
Regulation of consumer credit providers and the debt review process both fall under the ambit of the national credit regulator (NCR) — which can refer instances to the national credit tribunal (NCT). This is based on the provisions of the National Credit Act. One question that frequently crops up is whether "reckless lending" is sufficiently defined in the act to curtail such practices, and to enable the NCR to act against lenders that flout the rules. "The challenge with the reckless lending laws is that they are difficult for the man in the street to enforce," says Summit Financial Partners CEO Clark Gardner. "[They] leave much to interpretation, and thus require complex court intervention that will set one back significant legal fees, and much more in the event of a loss." Given this, he says, consumers find themselves "up against lenders with deep pockets to hire the best counsel". He adds: "The litigant takes all the risk in challenging reckless lending or any similar unscrupul...
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