Woźniak Legal has successfully represented a British borrower in the injunction proceedings regarding Swiss franc loan

Woźniak Legal has successfully represented a British FX mortgage borrower over validity of the Swiss franc loan taken by him and his wife from Getin Bank to purchase the apartment in Poland.
 
In January 2025, the Civil Court in Warsaw granted a freezing injunction in favour of a British FX mortgage borrower who took the loan to purchase the apartment in Poland acting as a consumer. The Court decided that the Swiss franc loan taken by a borrower (who is a consumer) contains prohibited clauses and suspended the obligation to pay instalments for the duration of the court proceedings. According the judge, a consumer should be under special protection of the law when taking a loan or making purchases which means that businesses should operate fairly and transparently so that consumers are protected from harm or deception. Agreements with consumers may not violate material interest of consumers or be against good business practice.

The freezing injunction given of the Civil Court in Warsaw is an important decision on the highly controversial topic of the Swiss franc loans. Hundreds of thousands of people took out mortgages in foreign currencies, mainly in Swiss francs, attracted by lower interest rates in the 2000s. They are now paying far bigger instalments than expected after the Swiss franc soared against the zloty and following interest rate hikes in Switzerland.
 
Consumer law is a vital aspect of legal regulation designed to safeguard the rights and interests of consumers. It provides a framework that holds businesses accountable and ensures that consumers are protected from harm or deception. In this particular case, the Civil Court in Warsaw has concluded that when a financial institution grants a loan denominated in a foreign currency, it should be clear how the amount of the loan is paid out and repaid and most importantly - the bank should not be allowed to choose the exchange rate unilaterally by reference to its own table of exchange rates. In the loan agreement with Getin Bank, there were no clauses on what would be the exchange rate for the amount of the loan to be paid out in PLN and for the repayment installments (except for the clause that the bank will use exchange rate for foreign currencies set out in the bank’s table of exchange rates) and thus the bank had not been limited in any way on how to calculate the amount of the loan to be paid out in PLN and the installments.
 
The verdict in this case is expected in 2026.