This book analyses the dichotomy between the goal of social inclusion and the effect of social exclusion through over-indebtedness since 2008 in Europe. Filling a vital gap in the current literature on the effects of the financial and economic crisis, this volume puts into context academic discussion with the real-life dimension of over-indebtedness. Reports from six European countries provide socio-economic and legal information on over-indebtedness as well as the regulatory and judicial responses to the problems entailed by over-indebtedness. They form the empirical background for five analyses of different aspects of the inclusion-exclusion dichotomy. It becomes clear that in the context of credit expansion, individual over-indebtedness has turned into a social issue, which the current design of the consumer credit and mortgage system in Europe has helped to produce while disregarding the consequential danger of social exclusion.

Exploring the relationship between fundamental rights and consumer law in the EU, this book provides the first comprehensive analysis of the joint implications of the Lisbon Treaty and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. It examines the potential tensions that may emerge between consumer protection objectives and economic, market-oriented goals.

The over-indebtedness of consumers and their inability to repay their debts is the focus of this timely study. With a large number of people having excessive debt levels across Europe, this not only impacts badly on the lives of those who are affected, but it also carries great social and economic costs. Therefore, it has become a concern for both national and EU policy-makers and it requires adequate legal responses for the prevention of the problem and the alleviation of its effects. Responsible credit and personal insolvency are the main solutions discussed, alongside other practical aspects. This collection of edited multidisciplinary essays is a selection of papers emanating from a range of presentations delivered by recognised national academic and non-academic experts representing a diversity of interests in the UK, Germany, Greece and Italy. Written by academics, representatives of consumer organizations, practitioners, debt advisors, and industry representatives, this is an important resource, not only for their equivalents but also for policy makers, the judiciary, and everyone involved in the understanding of the problem. (Series: European and International Insolvency Law Studies, Vol. 3) [Subject: Commercial Law, International Law]

In Rethinking EU Consumer Law, the authors analyse the development of EU consumer law on the basis of a number of clear themes, which are then traced through specific areas. Recurring themes include the artificiality of the EU’s consumer image, the problems created by the drive towards maximum harmonisation, and the unexpected effects EU Consumer Law has had on national law. The book argues that EU Consumer Law has the potential of enhancing the protecting of consumers throughout the EU and could offer a model for consumer law elsewhere in the world, but in order to unlock this potential, there needs to be a rethink with regard to the EU’s approach to consumer law and policy.

This topical volume provides detailed analyses of European consumer protection law in both its theoretical and practical dimensions. Part I casts a critical light over consumer protection strategies and mechanisms in the EU, Part II critically explores responses to vulnerability and Part III contextualises aspects of European consumer protection law.

Six years into the global economic and financial crisis, many European countries have suffered profound economic, political, and social repercussions. Governmental and constitutional crises, high levels of public debt, the adoption of austerity measures, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and the spreading of poverty have marked many European societies. While the EU is in the process of re-examining the whole design of the banking system with far-reaching political and institutional consequences, the impact of the economic crisis on indebted consumers, and specifically those with mortgages, has been much less discussed. The Working Paper presents the result of a research on the effects of the financial and EURO crisis in six European countries within and outside the Eurozone (Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Portugal, Romania, and Spain) having in common that they received international bailout loans under the condition of implementing intrusive austerity measures. In those countries consumers are still facing increasing levels of (over-)indebtedness and struggle with the effects of the crisis, both in financial and social terms. In this light, the studies pay attention to both the social reality and the legal change which is undergoing as triggered by legislative reforms and judicial decisions. The studies also lay open the shortcomings of a EU consumer policy which is largely based on the image of the reasonably circumspect consumer who is supposed to be autonomous, self-reliant, and reasonably well informed. In this regard, the EU suffers from a clear internal market bias that promotes and requires easy access to consumer and mortgage credit, without paying sufficient attention to the possible drawbacks in terms of social exclusion.