The National Consumer Tribunal has found that the “club fee” attached to Edcon’s credit customers is unlawful and against the National Credit Act (NCA).<\/p>\n
According to the Tribunal, the NCA does not allow for any other fees, charges or costs to be included in credit agreements. The ruling came after an investigation by the National Credit Regulator on the matter.<\/p>\n
The specific fee in question was the R34.00 ‘club fee’ Edcon charges on top of its monthly service fee charges on its credit accounts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is now settled that the charging of a club fee on credit agreements is not permitted by the NCA\u201a\u201d said Jacqueline Peters\u201a manager of investigations and enforcement at the NCR.<\/p>\n
The regulator said it will now request an independent audit of Edcon’s loan book, to determine how many consumers must be refunded, and how much should be refunded dating back to 2007.<\/p>\n
Edcon will also face a fine, which is still to be determined.<\/p>\n