{"id":7346,"date":"2025-06-02T21:00:45","date_gmt":"2025-06-02T19:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/atb.law\/?post_type=blog-post&p=7346"},"modified":"2025-07-29T09:19:02","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T07:19:02","slug":"ogh-credit-fee-inadmissible","status":"publish","type":"blog-post","link":"https:\/\/atb.law\/en\/blog-post\/ogh-kreditgebuehr-unzulaessig\/","title":{"rendered":"Loan processing fees unlawful: Austrian Supreme Court ruling enables refunds"},"content":{"rendered":"

The trigger case: Opaque clauses in the loan agreement <\/strong><\/h2>\n

At the heart of the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling was a clause in WSK Bank\u2019s terms and conditions that provided for an administrative fee of 4\u202f% as well as additional charges such as collection fees, transfer fees, and printing and postage costs. These amounts were charged to the loan account or deducted from the disbursement amount.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court clarified that such bundled fee structuring is not transparent. The bank charges multiple times for services that are part of its duties in granting a loan anyway. From the court's perspective, such a regulation unfairly disadvantages borrowers.<\/p>\n

What does this mean for consumers?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Many loan agreements contain comparable wording or clauses. Particularly affected are contracts in which flat-rate processing fees were charged, for example in the form of a percentage of the loan amount or a flat fee for loan processing and contract conclusion.<\/p>\n

Consumers now have the opportunity to have these fees reviewed. If clauses are invalid, previously paid amounts can be reclaimed\u2014even for loans that have already been paid off. This is because the claims\u2014which typically amount to several thousand euros\u2014only become time-barred 30 years after payment and accrue annual interest of four percent.<\/p>\n

What should borrowers pay attention to?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Check your loan agreement in particular for the following terms:<\/p>\n