Issue 377 (Week ending 08/10/2019)

The value of Consumer Judgments down 51% from €234m to €114m compared to this time last year, while the count of judgments has increased 24%.

Data collected over the last twelve months by CRIF Vision-net shows that smaller value judgments are being taken against consumers. The Collector General, like last year taking the top spot for the most number of these judgments at 1,030 individual cases worth over €31m. In addition to this a considerable amount more judgments are being taken against consumers - up 24% on the same period last year.

This analysis shows that the amount of smaller judgments against consumers has increased by 24% from 1,441 in 2018 to 1,794 in 2019. Although the amount of judgments against consumers has increased, the combined value of these cases has reduced drastically from €234m in the period from 1st January 2018 to 30th September 2018 to €114m compared to the same period in 2019. A dramatic 51% decrease.

Significant decreases in the value of consumer judgments occurred month on month this year. August, the month with the highest total of judgments by value in 2019, at €20,843,082 pales in comparison to 2018's highest month which totalled €49,869,754. This is in stark contrast to the actual 'count' or number of cases against consumers.

Each quarter this year has seen increases in the number of cases versus the first three quarters of 2018, proven by the average value of each case, which has decreased by just under €100,000.

Average Value of Consumer Judgment (Q1-Q3):

2018 = €162,847

2019 = €63,769

As the number of bad debt judgments against consumers grows it's always prudent to background any non-corporate customer before extending credit. This can be done through your CRIF Vision-net account using our 'Credit Check Individuals' feature, one of the most popular tools on our system.

To find out more about our Credit Check services, simply contact us today on Tel: +353 1 903 2660 or email helpdesk.vision-net@crif.com.