1.1 The Lender may not, without the express consent of the Borrower, disclose any confidential information obtained in the course of a micro loan transaction.
1.2 If the lender wishes to obtain from or to disclose to a third party the Borrower’s credit record and payment history, the Lender must obtain the Borrower’s consent through specific and prominent clauses contained in the application for the relevant micro loan transaction or other documentation signed by the Borrower.
2.1 The lender must, at every premises where the Lender conducts business in respect of micro loan transactions keep available a copy of the Rules set by the Minister in Annexure “A”, which must be made available to the Borrower for perusal prior to entering into a micro loan transaction; and display prominently a copy of the Lenders registration certificate issued by the Registrar.
2.2 The Lender must use standard written agreements, as approved by the Registrar, containing all the terms and conditions of a micro loan transaction and clearly reflecting the rights and obligations of the Borrower and Lender.
2.3 The Lender must, before the conclusion of a micro loan transaction and at the conclusion of the agreement, provide the Borrower with a schedule settling out-
2.3.1 The loan amount in Namibian Dollars and cents;
2.3.2 The total amount repayable in Namibian Dollars and cents, at the then current interest rate, over the repayment period;
2.3.3 The amount of finance charges in Namibia Dollars and cents, at the then current interest rate, over the repayment period and the elements compromising the finance charges;
2.3.4 The annual fiancé charge rate, whether this is fixed or variable, and, if variables, how it may vary;
2.3.5 The nature and amount of any insurance, including the name of the insurer and the amount of premiums payable;
2.3.6 The penalty interest and any additional costs that would become payable in the case of default by the Borrower or how that would be calculated;
2.3.7 The instalment amount in Namibian Dollars and cents, at the then current interest rate, and the number of instalments; and
2.3.8 The repayment period in respect of the micro loan transaction.
2.4 The Lender must before the conclusion of a micro loan agreement –
2.4.1 Explain to the Borrower in a language which the Borrower understands (if necessary with the assistance of an interpreter) the essential terms of the micro loan agreement so as to ensure that the meaning and consequences of the agreement are understood, and
2.4.2 Allow the borrower within an opportunity to read the agreement, or have it read to the Borrower in the case where the borrower is illiterate; and
2.4.3 Provide the Borrower with a copy of the signed micro loan agreement before or at the time of advancing the loan amount and, if applicable, a copy of the insurance contract pertaining to the micro loan transaction.
2.5 The lender must, at the request of the Borrower, provide the Borrower with a statement setting out all the charges levied, all the payments made and the balance outstanding, and may levy a charge for the provision of a duplicate copy of the statement but in no case may the charge exceed N$ 2.00 per page of the statement.
2.6 The Lender must maintain a proper set of accounting records reflecting full details of all money advanced, interest and other charges raised, repayment received and the amounts outstanding.
2.7 If the Lender refuses to grant an application for a micro loan application, the Lender must, at the request of the Borrower, provide the reasons for the refusal. If the reasons include an adverse credit recorded with a credit bureau, provide the name and details of that credit bureau to the Borrower so as to enable the Borrower to check the accuracy of the credit information held by the credit bureau, or to obtain advice from the credit bureau on how to improve the record.
2.8 The lender must, at least 28 calendar days before the lender forwards any adverse information on the Borrower to a credit bureau which will be capable of being accessed by subscribers to the credit bureau, inform the Borrower, by way of a notice addressed to the chosen domicilium of the Borrower of the Lender’s intention to do so. If any amount owing by the Borrower is disputed by the Borrower, that fact must be communicated by the Lender to the bureau when providing information to it.
3.1 Subject to subclause (3.2), a Lender may not change any fee to be paid by the Borrower in circumstances where a micro loan transaction is not granted or money is not paid out to the Borrower in respect of the micro loan transaction.
3.2 This provision does apply to fees reasonably charged for evaluating or preparing business plans.
3.3 If the repayment period provided in a micro loan agreement does not exceed twelve months, the borrower may make additional payments or settle the outstanding amount in one payment. If the repayment period exceeds 12 months, and if the Borrower wishes to settle the outstanding amount in one payment, the Lender may, if written notice is required in terms of the agreement, require up to 60 days written notice of the Borrower’s intention to settle the outstanding amount in one payment.
3.4 The Lender may not stipulate, demand or receive finance charges which are in excess of the annual finance charge rate determined by the Registrar in terms of section 2 of the Act.
4.1 The Lender must, in terms of the provisions of the agreement with the Borrower, allow the Borrower to terminate the micro loan agreement within a period of three business days after the date of signing the agreement, and, if the loan amount has been advanced, simultaneously to repay the loan amount advanced, to the Lender.
4.2 If the Borrower terminates the micro loan agreement within the period referred to in subclause (1) after having receivedthe money in respect of the loan amount, the Lender is entitled, upon the Borrower offering simultaneously to repay the total amount advanced to the borrower, only to stipulate for demand or receive from the Borrower, pro rata charges at the annual finance rate applicable to the agreement.
5.1 The Lender may not, as security or for collection arrangement purposes, keep in possession, or make use of any bank cards or personal information such as pin codes of the Borrower.
5.2 The Lender may not use any process documents signed in blank by the Borrower.
5.3 The Lender may not collect or attempt to collect any amount in respect of costs exceeding costs allowed in terms of the Magistrate’s Court Act, 1994 (Act No. 32 of 1994) or make use of any collection methods not authorised by Law.