Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

155. To ask the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the fact that an equity fund (details supplied) is offering significant debt write-offs to mortgage holders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7183/17]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I was not formally made aware of the issue to which the Deputy refers, but of course I had seen reports in the media about it.  The Deputy will be aware that the Consumer Protection (Regulation of Credit Servicing Firms) Act, 2015 introduced a regulatory regime for a new type of entity called a 'credit servicing firm'.  Under the Act, purchasers of loan books must either be regulated by the Central Bank themselves or else the loans must be serviced by a credit servicing firm that is regulated by the Central Bank. The significant point is that that the focus of regulation is directly at the point of contact with the customer. Therefore relevant borrowers, whose loans are sold to third parties, maintain the same regulatory protections they had prior to the sale, including under the various statutory codes (such as the Consumer Protection Code, Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears) issued by the Central Bank of Ireland and the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013 (Section 48) (Lending to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises) Regulations 2015 which came into operation in July 2016.

I would refer the Deputy to the Central Bank report on mortgage arrears, which was prepared following my request to the Governor.  This report provides a detailed assessment of mortgage arrears in banks and non-bank entities and includes analysis on mortgage restructuring activity and the range of solutions offered.  This report was published on 16th December 2016 and is available on http://www.finance.gov.ie/what-we-do/banking-financial-services/publications/reports-research/report-mortgage-arrears-2016.  The report found that the range of mortgage debt solutions offered by banks and non-banks is broadly similar. 

Finally, I would strongly advise any individual availing of the scheme in question to ensure they seek independent financial/legal advice on the terms and conditions of the offer made and all of its implications for them, prior to the acceptance of such offer.