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- Pension reversal: The Central Bank plans to introduce a cooling-off period for the long-term savings program
Pension reversal: The Central Bank plans to introduce a cooling-off period for the long-term savings program
In Russia, it is planned to introduce a cooling-off period for contracts under the long-term savings program (CDS). The Central Bank supports this initiative to protect consumers of financial services, the regulator's press service told Izvestia. They clarified that specific parameters of the cooling period, including its duration, are currently being discussed. Experts believe that the period during which citizens can refuse to join the program should be at least 30 days.
New product using old methods
The financial commissioner's service (which has received the right to handle such disputes since the beginning of this year) has already received consumer complaints about the PDS, the head of the structure, Yuri Voronin, told Izvestia. According to him, most often citizens complain that they were misled — people were told that they were signing a contract for a certain contribution with flexible conditions. He said that according to the results of the review of the first disputes, several problems have been identified that relate to long-term savings agreements. In particular, the lack of a cooling period.
Izvestia reference
PDS is a voluntary savings product that lasts for 15 years and can be issued through NPFs. Citizens make contributions to their own account, and the state co-finances investments of up to 36 thousand rubles (depending on the income level). In addition, the program provides for a tax deduction of up to 52 thousand per year.
The financial officer gave examples of specific requests. So, a married couple applied to the bank, wanting to issue a product similar to a deposit, but with more flexible conditions (refund of funds at any time without loss of income). As a result, they were persuaded to sign contracts for a long-term savings program with a contribution of 1 million rubles for each. The couple realized that they had been misled when they came to collect the money. They were not satisfied with the option of an urgent payment for five years (16.7 thousand rubles per month) proposed during disputes with NPFs. Another bank customer in a similar situation was refused a refund altogether. The funds were agreed to be returned only after the dispute was reviewed by the financial officer.
Izvestia reference
According to the law, a consumer can apply to a financial officer with property claims against NPFs if they are related to the conclusion, execution or termination of a long-term savings agreement. For example, with demands for the recovery of funds, if the contract was imposed, including if the consumer was incorrectly informed about this product. If it is established that the contract has indeed been imposed, the financial commissioner will collect from the NPFs in favor of the consumer all the contributions made by the latter.
— Based on the requests we receive, in most cases consumers are offered to conclude a PDS agreement at the offices of banks (credit organizations act as agents of NPFs for a commission fee. — Izvestia), — explained Yuri Voronin. — At the same time, citizens do not always understand what kind of contract is being concluded, they do not realize its nature, relying on a financial product similar to a bank deposit.
The "for" regulator
It is worth noting that the situation repeats the classic manifestation of misseling (misleading the consumer, imposing services. — Izvestia) with investment (ILI) and cumulative (NSJ) life insurance. The same banks imposed these products under the guise of alternative deposits. The regulator had to scare the wards with negotiable fines. And in the case of PDS, Yuri Voronin believes, urgent measures must be taken. So, he is sure, it is necessary to introduce a "cooling—off period" by analogy with insurance, as well as imposed products - 30 calendar days.
The Bank of Russia supports the initiative to introduce a cooling-off period for long-term savings contracts, the Central Bank's press service told Izvestia. They believe that it should start from the moment the contract is concluded. Other parameters, including the deadline, are currently being discussed. "It is also necessary to work out the issue of the tax consequences of termination of the contract, so that in this case the right to receive a tax deduction is not lost," the Central Bank explained.
Time to think
Experts do not see anything surprising in the fact that misselling has spread to a new product.
— As soon as the Central Bank tightened the screws due to the unfair sale of ILI and NWF, the main channel of which has always been banks, the CDS came, the market reacted. "There is no harp, take a tambourine!" — this quote from the great Soviet film perfectly illustrates the communication of bank managers with clients, commented Evgenia Lazareva, project manager of the Popular Front for Borrowers' Rights.
According to her, now employees of credit institutions assure that the PDS is the same contribution, only better. At the same time, people do not understand that they are giving money for a long time and without a guaranteed percentage of return.
Banks in conditions of high key interest rates and the Central Bank's strict lending policy are increasingly facing a drop in interest income, said Elman Mehdiyev, deputy chairman of the Central Bank's Expert Council on consumer protection of financial services.
— In this situation, the salvation for them looks like the sale of additional services, in which they, as agents, receive significant commission income, — the expert explained.
In his opinion, the best way to protect consumers in this case is a mandatory period during which a person can think "coolly" about which product he has purchased.
The cooling period should be introduced, Evgenia Lazareva agreed. However, 30 days is not enough, since we are talking about a long-term product.
"Based on our experience with collective appeals on ILI and NSJ, we have seen that claims arise from a year to three years when a consumer discovers that the conditions stated in the bank, to put it mildly, do not correspond to reality," she explained.
Therefore, for long-term savings contracts, it probably makes sense to introduce a cooling-off period not for 30 days, but immediately for 12 months from the moment of signing the contract, the human rights activist suggested.
"By analogy, we can introduce the possibility to change your mind and terminate the contract within the framework of the PDS, but we need to analyze how to avoid possible losses, since this is an investment product," Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma Committee on the financial market, told Izvestia.
Aksakov, however, does not believe that it makes sense to set the deadline for more than 30 days. "They should be enough to understand the essence of the product and understand that this is a long—term investment in your future, and not a short-term tool," the legislator is sure.
A period of 30 days looks like the right measure, during this period the client will already have time to assess the need for such an investment tool and painlessly, and, most importantly, to return his funds without loss, Gennady Fofanov, CEO of the Invoicafe investment platform, supported.
He explained that it was problematic to set a longer period, as this could create operational uncertainty for NPFs.
— Funds are required to invest the funds received, rather than keep them in limbo due to the risk of outflow. This will have a negative impact on profitability for all participants in the program," the expert said.
The cooling-off period is important for any long-term instruments, as agreed by the relevant association of non-governmental pension funds.
— People feel more comfortable knowing that they have the opportunity to terminate the contract without any losses. When a person has time to think about their actions, they can carefully evaluate all aspects of their choice, weigh the pros and cons, and take into account their financial goals and needs," said Sergey Belyakov, President of the NAPF.
He has no doubt that this approach contributes to the formation of a more stable and long-term relationship between the client and the fund. After all, it helps to avoid impulsive decisions that can lead to negative consequences in the future, suggested the head of the association.
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