Harju Maakohus tegi 22.11.2023 olulise lahendi

Janne-Liisa 23 November, 2023
On 22.11.2023, the Harju County Court rendered an important decision, in which it analysed whether the regular termination of the payment service agreement concluded by the credit institution with the company was lawful. The credit institution had cancelled the contract on an ordinary basis on the grounds that the customer no longer met the bank's risk requirements.

Harju Maakohus leidis, et makseteenuse pakkuja poolt lepingu korraliseks ülesütlemise aluseks olevad asjaolud saavad tuleneda eelkõige makseteenuse pakkujast endast, nt olukorras, kus on muutunud makseteenuse pakkuja lepingutingimused ja isik uutele tingimustele enam ei vasta. Makseteenuse korralisel ülesütlemisel saab arvestada üksnes nende asjaoludega, mis esinevad lepingu ülesütlemisel, mitte nende asjaoludega, mis võivad tekkida tulevikus. Kohus viitas ka varasemale Riigikohtu praktikale, mille kohaselt arvelduskonto lepingu korraline ülesütlemine ei saa toimuda ilma põhjendatusteta, sest hea usu põhimõttega ja toimetu võib olla lepingu ülesütlemine sellise isikuga, kellega makseteenuse pakkujal on seadusest tulenev kohustus sõlmida makseteenuse leping.

The termination of a payment service contract cannot be subject to ex post justification. In addition, it cannot be done in legal proceedings on new grounds. The Court of Justice stated that the statement in the application for termination of the contract that the customer was not covered by the risks set out in the general conditions of the credit institution should be justified. This means that the credit institution must already indicate in the termination notice the reasons for which risks it considers to be uncovered and in what way. The Court also noted that, although the application of the rules relating to the avoidance of international sanctions is based on doubt and need not be based solely on irrefutable facts, the credit institution has the obligation to give sufficient and reasonable reasons and evidence for its doubts.

Hopefully, this and similar litigation will result in a clear case law that credit institutions may not terminate contracts so lightly as there is no alternative for a legal entity - it cannot continue to do business without a payment services contract.

Klienti esindas kohtumenetluses vandeadvokaat Kristel Viru.

N.B. The judgment has not yet entered into force.

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