Banking continues to suffer from a high volume of litigation despite the fact that some of the most controversial issues, such as preferences or floor clauses, have been practically resolved. According to the Asufin consumer association, which manages a database of 11,650 sentences, 539 resolutions were issued last year, a level very similar to the 543 in 2021.
Of what happened in 2022, the sentences related to the ‘revolving’ cards and mortgage expenses stand out, which between the two accounted for almost half of the procedures. However, there are regional differences, since in Catalonia what predominates are the litigation related to the Banco Popular.
The ‘revolving’ cards monopolized 126 sentences in 2022, 0.8% more than the previous year and 23% of the total. Recently, the Supreme Court established the threshold from which this type of product can be considered usury: six points of difference compared to the market average, that is, a current percentage of 23.9%. Consumers are waiting for a second ruling, referring to the transparency of these products.
Mortgage expenses constitute the second largest category of litigation, with 117, compared to 73 a year earlier. The rise is 60% and contrasts with what happened with multi-currency mortgages, which have gone from 114 cases in 2021 to 98 in 2022, 14% less. Those related to the IRPH mortgage index have gone from 22 to 14.
In fourth position in the ranking of litigation, after revolving, mortgage expenses and multi-currency mortgages, are litigation related to Popular’s shares, which last year generated 54 procedures, most of which come from Catalonia and Madrid.
The success rate for the consumer in the case of Popular’s actions is low, barely 77.8% of the cases, when in general terms clients usually win 80% of the lawsuits. In mortgage expenses, 98.3% of the sentences are ruled in favor of the client.
By autonomous community, the litigation profile varies greatly. Madrid is by far the one that registers the most conflicts, with 307, of which 101 correspond to ‘revolving’, compared to 73 for multi-currency mortgages, 49 for mortgage expenses and 14 for Popular shares.
Catalonia is in second position, but far behind, with 53 cases, mainly due to the low number of procedures related to ‘revolving’. The actions of Popular, with 13 files, are the ones that generate the most litigation, compared to the seven of the IRPH, the five of the multi-currency mortgages and the three of the ‘revolving’.
Comunidad de Madrid, Islas Baleares and Castilla y León have the highest ratios of litigation per inhabitant. In Madrid, there were 45 sentences for every million inhabitants, compared to 27 in the Balearic Islands and 11 in Castilla y León.
By banks, Santander accumulated 22% of the judgments, despite having a market share of 17%, mainly due to cases associated with Popular. CaixaBank, on the other hand, is in second position despite being the first bank: with a market share of 23%, it registered 15% of the rulings. Bankinter, with a 3.7% share, accounted for 14% of the rulings. Asufin draws attention to Wizink, which with a market share of 0.6% concentrates on 3.7% of the sentences.
