A man has paid off his loan, but PrivatBank demands he pay a debt of 47,253 hryvnias. What was the court's decision on this matter?

PrivatBank is requesting that a man pay a debt of 47,253 hryvnias. However, he refuses, claiming he has already settled the loan. This was stated in the decision of the Slavyansk District Court in Donetsk region, published on January 1, 2025.

The man approached JSC "PrivatBank" to obtain banking services, for which he signed application form No. b/n dated October 8, 2018, and agreed to the terms and conditions of the banking services. A card account was opened for him, and he was issued a credit card with an initial credit limit that later increased to 40,000 hryvnias. Due to breaches of the loan agreement and considering the payments made towards the debt, as of November 19, 2024, he has an outstanding debt of 47,253 hryvnias, which consists of the following: 39,473 hryvnias - principal debt; 7,779 hryvnias - overdue interest.

The man's representative submitted a response to the lawsuit, stating that the man does not fully acknowledge the claims. He did not read the text of the contract nor was he familiar with its terms. He believes that he has paid the bank the entire amount owed on the loan. The application form he signed when entering into the loan agreement does not include terms regarding the interest rate for using the loan, and he did not sign the terms and conditions of the banking services, which are part of the loan agreement. Therefore, he does not recognize them and believes they cannot be deemed by the court as part of the aforementioned loan agreement concluded through the signing of the application form. The relationship may be subject to force majeure – an irresistible force in the context of martial law, characterized by emergency and inevitability (Article 14-1 of the Law of Ukraine "On Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Ukraine"), as well as an objective causal link to the failure to fulfill an obligation. For contractual obligations, force majeure is a prerequisite for release from liability for improper performance or breach of obligation. His life is constantly at risk, as he resides in the city of Slavyansk, which is under shelling. His housing has been damaged. At the time the aforementioned contract was in effect, he was completely unemployed and had no income. Currently, he has minimal irregular income, which only allows him to survive at the last poverty line.

What did the court decide?

The court partially granted the claim. The man is to pay JSC "PrivatBank" the debt under loan agreement No. b/n dated October 8, 2018, in the amount of 11,409 hryvnias.

"Examining the provided statement for the agreement b/n concluded with the man for the period from October 8, 2018, to November 26, 2024, the court established that the defendant began using the card on October 8, 2018, and utilized the credit funds while fully repaying the accrued debt. However, starting from May 27, 2020, a negative balance was formed on the card after transactions, which increased until January 1, 2023. The defendant continued to use the credit funds (by withdrawing cash, making purchases) from May 27, 2020, to January 1, 2023, and partially paid the debt. During the period of the negative balance on the defendant's card, from May 27, 2020, to January 1, 2023, the defendant spent a total of 78,513 hryvnias, as calculated by the court based on the amounts indicated in the statement for that period, excluding the bank's accrued interest. Meanwhile, during the same period, the defendant made partial payments on the debt under the agreement totaling 67,104 hryvnias, calculated by the court based on the amounts indicated in the statement for that period. Thus, the remaining unpaid debt on the principal amount is 11,409 hryvnias. The court, considering that there is no evidence of complete repayment of the loan funds in the case materials, concludes that the claim of JSC "PrivatBank" is partially satisfied and that the defendant owes the plaintiff a debt of 11,409 hryvnias on the principal amount," the court emphasized.