Central Bank of Ireland
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Reporting rules on loan guarantees coming into force
A requirement for lenders to provide information on loan guarantees to the Central Bank’s Central Credit Register comes into effect on 1 February.
Lenders must submit personal and credit information on guarantees for loans entered into on or after 1 February 2025.
As a result, credit-information providers have a right to request a copy of a credit report from anyone who has provided a guarantee for a loan to another person, or is in the process of doing so.
Existing agreements
Lawyers at McCann FitzGerald highlight Central Bank guidance that the new reporting requirements apply only to guarantees entered into on or after 1 February, in respect of credit agreements entered into on or after 1 February.
“Consequently, credit information providers do not need to report guarantor information in relation to back-books of existing credit agreements,” the lawyers state.
They add that, while not explicitly stated in the guidance, guarantor data should be needed only in relation to credit agreements that are required to be reported to the Central Credit Register in the first place.
The information that needs to be reported includes details identifying the guarantor, such as name and address, tax number or company registration number.
Pre-contract processes
Lenders must also provide details on the type and scope of the guarantee.
“In addition to reporting, credit information providers should also ensure that pre-contract processes that are in place for borrowers are extended to guarantors,” McCann FitzGerald says.
“This includes obligations in relation to the verification and identity of guarantors and the provision of the section 24 statutory notice in relation to the submission of data to the Central Credit Register,” the firm adds.
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