Mr. Paul Joyce:

There is one particular credit servicing firm that is saying it does not have to provide specific copies and that the information should have already been provided from the original lender. Complaints have been made to the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner in that regard but it is another illustration of difficulties which arise when dealing with credit servicing funds. I have seen some correspondence where, to be fair, the firm has indicated that it does not have the information and that it did not receive it when the loan was sold.

Indeed, I have seen correspondence in which a firm has pointed out that it is a common misconception that when a loan is bought the full suite of information transfers from the originator to the buyer. There is a certain element of speed in the sale of loans and we are in a race against time. There are more than 3,000 personal insolvency arrangements in place but, at the last count, approximately 27,500 accounts of principal dwelling houses had been in arrears for more than two years. One third of those are already in the hands of unregulated loan owners and retail credit firms. While it is a finite problem, these firms are already moving to bring legal proceedings or to continue proceedings that have already commenced.