‘Shoprite fined R1m for reckless lending’ 14 January 2020

Retail giant Shoprite was fined R1m by the National Consumer Tribunal for breaching the credit act after it was found to have lent recklessly to vulnerable consumers. The judgment was handed down  in the Pretoria high court on December 18 and publicised on Tuesday by the National Credit Regulator. The regulator  investigated  Shoprite’s lending practices in 2014 after media reports  of retailers lending to people who could not afford debt. The matter  was referred to the tribunal, which  found against the retailer in 2017.

…On Tuesday, Shoprite said it noted the judgment and had already “processed the payment of the fine ... for extending credit to some of its customers too easily”… A judgment penned by Judge Nomonde Mngqibisa-Thusi detailed examples  of how Shoprite extended credit to consumers whose monthly debt repayments exceeded their salaries. One consumer had monthly debt of R9,888 after pay day and his loan from Shoprite increased that to R10,113.77.  Shoprite said the fact he was married and his wife could assist was taken into account when approving their loan. The court ruled that the “assumption that the spouse will stand in is speculative to say the least”.

The high court found it “astonishing”  that even after “adjusting” customers’ data, consumers “still had negative affordability figures” yet Shoprite granted them credit. Shoprite was also ordered to provide debt counselling and payment restructuring to vulnerable debtors. The group said in a statement that the “matter relates to credit agreements concluded in June 2013 and June 2014 with nine consumers from among thousands”. It said all nine paid their debt in full, and its affordability assessment processes had been replaced in September 2015 with a new system aligned with the National Credit Amendment Act.