Article 17
Obligations of credit purchasers
1. Member States shall ensure that:
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(a) |
a credit purchaser domiciled in the Union, or that has its registered office or, if under its national law it has no registered office, its head office in the Union appoints an entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), or a credit servicer, to perform credit servicing activities in respect of a creditor’s rights under a non-performing credit agreement, or of the non-performing credit agreement itself, concluded with consumers; |
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(b) |
where a credit purchaser is not domiciled in the Union, or does not have its registered office or, if under its national law it has no registered office, its head office in the Union, its representative designated in accordance with Article 19(1) appoints an entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), or a credit servicer, except in cases where the representative is itself an entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), or a credit servicer, to perform credit servicing activities in respect of a creditor’s rights under a non-performing credit agreement, or of the non-performing credit agreement itself, concluded with:
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Host Member States may extend the requirement provided for in the first subparagraph to other credit agreements.
2. Member States shall ensure that a credit purchaser is not subject to any additional requirements for the purchase of a creditor’s rights under a non-performing credit agreement, or of the non-performing credit agreement itself, other than as provided for by the national provisions transposing this Directive, or by provisions of applicable consumer protection law, contract law, civil law or criminal law. Member States shall ensure that relevant Union and national law concerning in particular the enforcement of contracts, consumer protection, borrowers’ rights, credit origination, bank secrecy rules and criminal law continues to apply to the credit purchaser upon the transfer of the creditor’s rights under the credit agreement, or of the credit agreement itself, to the credit purchaser. The level of protection provided under Union and national law to consumers and other borrowers, as well as insolvency rules, shall not be affected by the transfer of the creditor’s rights under the credit agreement, or of the credit agreement itself, to the credit purchaser, without prejudice to national and international rules on promissory notes and bills of exchange.
3. This Directive is without prejudice to national powers regarding credit registers, including the power to require information from credit purchasers regarding a creditor’s rights under a credit agreement, or the credit agreement itself, and its performance.
4. Member States may allow credit purchasers to engage natural persons to service the credit agreements that they have acquired. Those natural persons shall be subject to a national regulation and supervision regime and shall not benefit from the freedom provided for in this Directive to perform credit servicing activities in another Member State.
5. Member States shall ensure that the appointed credit servicer, or entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), complies, on behalf of the credit purchaser, with the obligations imposed on the credit purchaser pursuant to paragraph 2 of this Article and Articles 18 and 20. In cases where no credit servicer or entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), is appointed, the credit purchaser or its representative shall remain subject to those obligations.
Member States may require that the appointed credit servicer, or entity referred to in Article 2(5), point (a)(i) or (iii), complies, on behalf of the credit purchaser, with the obligations imposed on the credit purchaser in accordance with national law including in relation to paragraph 3 of this Article.
(23) Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36).