HL Deb 06 March 1992 vol 536 cc37-8WA
Lord Mountevans

asked Her Majesty's Government:

When they expect to publish the Government's proposals for implementing the tying-in provisions of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990.

Viscount Astor

The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has today issued a consultative document setting out the Government's revised proposals for the subordinate legislation required to bring into force the provisions in the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990 on the tying-in of services to residential property loans. Following suggestions made during the earlier consultation, we propose to supplement legislation under the Courts and Legal Services Act by also making regulations under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Our proposals have two parts:

First, lenders and brokers will have to make clear to their customers if there is a link between a loan and the sale of some other service. This information would have to be provided to every customer enquiring about the availability of a loan secured on a home, regardless of the purpose of the loan.

Second, lenders will have to give borrowers a comprehensive statement of the impact on the terms and conditions of the loan of the decision whether or not to take any other service with it. This information would have to be provided with the lender's offer of a loan to buy a home. We want to ensure that borrowers are not coerced or misled into buying services from mortgage lenders that they either do not want or would prefer to buy elsewhere.