12 Sep 2019

Finance company repays $350,000 in settlement

12:09 pm on 12 September 2019

A finance company will repay 900 borrowers a total of $350,000 after reaching a settlement with the Commerce Commission over problems in its contracts.

Generic money.

Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King

Linsa Finance has offices in Manurewa and Tauranga, and it offers people secured and unsecured personal loans of up to $4000.

The Commerce Commission said it became aware of problems with the lender's contracts when it undertook a review in 2016.

Linsa Finance accepted that between June 2015 and March 2016 its contracts were missing key information required by the law.

That information included: an accurate statement of the borrower's cancellations rights; any statement of the borrower's right to apply for relief on grounds of unforseen hardship, and how to do so; and the name and contact details of Linsa's dispute resolution scheme.

The commission said Linsa corrected its contracts after concerns were raised.

The commission has withdrawn its High Court proceedings now that a settlement has been reached.