Treating customers fairly

We recognise that the long-term success of the company depends on putting our customers first.

Offering credit, sensibly and responsibly, to those who are able to repay, is good for economic health. Due to the nature of emerging markets, many of our customers are excluded from financial services due to having no credit history. We believe people should not be excluded from credit for this reason.

Customer treatment and responsible lending is an increasingly important issue for financial services companies. As one of the larger providers of home credit in emerging markets, we acknowledge our responsibility to set an example to others in the way we operate.

In 2007, we decided to align our business to the principles of the FSA's initiative, Treating Customers Fairly (TCF). We believe these principles are essentially good business practice.

Our Customer Principles

• We aim to provide simple and transparent financial products and services. We treat customers with respect and are straightforward, always following fair, responsible lending practices
• We are committed to giving consumers access to simple financial products and services that are designed to meet their needs
• We aim to provide a good quality, friendly, flexible and convenient service
• We keep our customers informed and believe frequent, regular contact with our customers is an integral part of the appeal of our product and services
• We will provide customers with clear and balanced information that allows them to properly understand the key features of our products and services and to reach an informed decision as to the appropriateness of the product and their ability to meet the repayment obligations. We will not pressurise a customer to take a higher value of loan than they want or we believe they can afford to repay
• We will lend responsibly. We use the close relationship we have with our customers and our knowledge of their circumstances to establish, as far as we can, their ability to repay the loan to term
• We treat customers who have difficulty in meeting contracted repayments with respect and understanding, and are flexible in agreeing revised repayment terms
• The feedback of our customers is important to us, whether it is positive or negative. We have measures in place to obtain regular customer feedback to ensure we are adhering to our stated principles, and to manage and act on consumer enquiries