CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT (CPA): This act was implemented on 1 April 2011 and affects virtually every business that trades in South Africa. The intention of the act is to promote fair business practices between experienced businesses and their clients. In our field of expertise, the CPA only comes into effect when this transaction falls into the sphere of the sellers ordinary course of business, for example, developers or property speculators. Thus, "normal" transactions between individuals are not subject to the CPA. FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE CENTRE ACT (FICA): This Act was established to prevent the financial system from being used to hide the financial proceeds of crime (money laundering). Criminals try to launder "dirty" money made from selling drugs, robberies, fraud and theft to "clean" money by using the identities of innocent people. FICA creates an obligation on accountable institutions to report activities to the relevant authority. Failure to comply to this Act means the institution can face severe penalties from 5 - 15 years imprisonment or an extensive fine. One of the major elements of this act is for accountable institutions to "know" their clients - they need to be identified using their ID book and they have to provide valid proof of residence. Please be patient when being asked to provide this information; we are required by Law to ask for it, and the penalties if we fail to do so are severe. NATIONAL CREDIT ACT (NCA): This Act was promulgated to prohibit reckless lending and to prevent over-indebtedness of consumers. The Act regulates credit bureaus, credit providers and debt counselors. Credit Providers now have to perform an affordability assessment before granting credit, and consumers have to prove their financial standing. Thus the 30% of gross income rule no longer applies - banks have to do an in-depth assessment of your total credit exposure, domestic expenditure and asset value. The bank must also ensure that the lender understands and appreciates the cost and risk of the proposed credit, along with the lenders rights and obligations under the credit agreement. THE FINANCIAL ADVISORY AND INTERMEDIARY SERVICES ACT (FAIS): This Act was established to regulate the conduct of financial institutions who offer credit or other financial services to clients, to supply accurate and informative financial advise. The Act stipulates that the client must have all the necessary information to make an informed decision. The service provider must provide this accurate information and assist the client with any information he may require timeously.

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