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Johannesburg - The National Credit Regulator is intensifying its fight against credit providers not complying with the National Credit Act, CEO Nomsa Motshegare said on Thursday.
"The exploitation of vulnerable and unsuspecting consumers by credit providers will not be tolerated," she said in a statement.
"The operation dubbed 'Blitzkrieg' primarily focuses on credit providers who are unlawfully garnishing, retaining pension cards, bank cards, identity documents and personal identity numbers of their clients as surety."
She said in a statement it was a criminal offence for lenders to retain documents from their clients, as it was a contravention of the National Credit Act (NCA).
The regulator conducted 16 joint on-site investigations as part of its "Blitzkrieg" with the police and Hawks in Venda, Limpopo, during the week. Nine people were arrested and charged with contravention of the law. Nine pension cards, 75 ID books and 142 bank cards were found in possession of the lenders.
"This operation was definitely not the last of its kind. Such operations are conducted nationally in different parts of the country," Motshegare said.
"Credit providers should be warned that the National Credit Regulator will not condone any contraventions by credit providers."
Similar operations were conducted in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and the North West. Forty-seven people were arrested and 2562 bank cards, 1220 pension cards and 401 ID books recovered.
