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Rates are rising, pensions are not: 71-year-old pensioner asked the bank for a 100 thousand credit card - he was refused even in court
Old age is not synonymous with financial irresponsibility, but banks don't seem to think so. Novosibirsk resident Mikhail Vyrvich wanted to apply for a credit card, but was refused. He is 71 years old. Why do banks refuse to issue loans and credit cards to pensioners? Our colleagues from NGS.RU asked banks this question directly and turned to experts to sort out the situation.
73-year-old pensioner Mikhail Vyrvich, as he himself says, always led an active lifestyle. He loved sports, traveling and discovering new horizons. At some point, he decided to apply for a VTB bank credit card with a limit of 100,000 rubles, but, to his surprise, he was denied. The bank told me that a credit card can only be issued to people aged 21 to 69. Mikhail was 71 at the time.
The pensioners, unwilling to put up with this situation, decided to take matters into their own hands. He relied on judicial practice and the recommendations of the central bank, and the results confirmed his rightness. The banker's refusal was discriminatory. Having fully substantiated his demands, Mikhail appealed to the Central Court of Novosibirsk and took his side. VTB Bank was obliged to issue a credit card and pay Mikhail 5,000 rubles as compensation for moral damages.
The bank's press service explained to NGS.RU that the main criterion for approving a loan is the client's solvency, but admitted that age is also taken into account. Requirements for the minimum and maximum age of borrowers may vary depending on the type of loan, and each decision is made individually, VTB added.
— When making a decision to issue funds, we always analyze personal and financial information about our clients and individually assess their solvency in order to avoid unjustified burden. That is why all decisions are made individually for each consumer. Currently, more than 600 thousand pensioners use VTB credit cards,” the organization’s representative answered the NGS.RU correspondent.
— The average life expectancy of men in the country is 66 years, in the Novosibirsk region — 69 years. Mathematically, pensioners are at risk. The problem can be solved by offering the borrower to insure life and health through an insurance company, but this may entail significant additional expenses," the expert explained.
— Interest rates on loans have increased due to the high base interest rate, but pensions have not increased as much. As a result, the share of loans in the total expenses of pensioners will increase significantly. And this could lead to poverty and bankruptcy of an entire class of pensioners, experts warn.
What about mortgages?
"I do not want to say that banks discriminate against pensioners in any way. On the contrary, there is an observation that this category of citizens are the most responsible and reliable borrowers," emphasized Alexander Evdokimov. "But each bank has a different policy. There are organizations that issue loans to pensioners up to 85 years old.