Bill No. 675/20, approved by the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies on April 9, inserts a transitional provision in Law No. 12,414/11 to prohibit the recording of credit history information of individuals or companies in a database during the covid-19 pandemic.
Authored by Denis Bezerra (PSB-CE) and Vilson da Fetaemg (PSB-MG), Bill 675/20 aims to prevent consumer credit reviews from being hampered by cash flow problems caused by the coronavirus crisis, which would lead to the rejection of applications for credit.
The Bill proposes the suspension of recording of negative consumer information and the effects of such information on records maintained by credit bureaus, which are responsible for conducting financial analysis and providing information for decisions on the granting of financing. However, recordings done after the decree of the state of public calamity may only be suspended through Legislative Decree No. 6 of March 20, 2020.
Due to the new scenario brought about by the covid-19 pandemic, which restricted the circulation of people, changed the functioning of various sectors of the economy, and affected workers and business owners, the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies considered the proposal advisable and timely. In this sense, the Bill prevents the history of "good payers" (those who have a positive credit score) from being harmed by any defaults occurring during the crisis period.
The Bill also provides that breach of the new measures by credit bureaus will be subject to the sanctions provided for in the Consumer Protection Code. The amounts collected with any fines will be allocated to combatting covid-19.
If the President of Brazil signs the Bill, the suspension of new records and the effects of records will be valid for 90 days, from March 20, 2020, and may be extended by an act of the National Bureau of the Consumer (Senacon), of the Ministry of Justice.
