Creating consumer protection law vs. responsible borrowing on the consumer loan market

Abstract

Responsible borrowing means a thorough reflection on the need to become indebted, full transfer of true information affecting creditworthiness, comprehensive analysis of the credit agreement, and refraining from avoiding the repayment of loan obligations. The main purpose of the article is to verify the hypothesis that Polish legislators make only the lenders fully responsible for excessive borrowing on the consumer loan market. The following research methods were used: critical analysis of the subject literature and economic analysis of the respective legal provisions. On the basis of the analyses conducted, areas were identified in which the legislator should use the appropriate legal instruments stimulating responsible borrowing. Among them the following were listed: the consumer’s obligation to prove the absence of overdue payments and the consumer’s notifiation of becoming acquainted with the terms of the loan agreement.