Two years after the Federal Court of Justice’s ruling on account fees, the topic continues to be the subject of discussion. A majority of people in Germany (68 percent) are in favor of keeping the current rules, according to a survey commissioned by the comparison portal Verivox. Since the BGH decision of April 27, 2021, credit institutions have required the express consent of customers to introduce or increase account fees. Banking associations and the Union are calling for at least a partial return to the previous model of tacit approval.
“The current regulation is complicated for the banks: as long as their customers do not expressly agree to an increase in fees, the new conditions will not come into force,” explained Oliver Maier, Managing Director of Verivox Finanzvergleich GmbH. “But in the population there is a clear two-thirds majority against legal facilitation of price adjustments.”
According to the information, another 19 percent of the more than 1,000 respondents believe that new fees should only be introduced with the express consent of customers. On the other hand, it is enough for the existing fees to be increased if the customers are informed and do not object. Only 13 percent favor a complete return to the old practice. After that, changed conditions came into effect automatically if the affected customers did not actively object to them.
BGH: Customers unreasonably disadvantaged
The BGH had decided that banks must obtain the consent of their customers when changing general terms and conditions (GTC). The clause, according to which the institutions can assume tacit approval if customers do not object to a change within two months, puts customers at an unreasonable disadvantage. Money houses therefore had to ask for approval of the current fees afterwards.
The implementation of the judgment also caused resentment last year. According to the Bafin, consumers mainly complained to the financial supervisory authority about the procedure for agreeing new contract terms. The issue also caused work for the arbitration boards and ombudsmen of the banks and savings banks, who try to settle disputes between customers and financial institutions out of court. The Savings Banks, for example, received significantly fewer, but still 1,369 (previous year: 3,380) arbitration requests on this subject in 2022.
