• "Money from car rental repays the loan, at the same time allow you to earn 600 PLN net monthly", "57.600 PLN salary throughout the entire contract", "Just ID required" - that's how Praebeo and Auto Rentier tempt customers.
• UOKiK notified the National Public Prosecutor’s Office of suspected crime committed by Praebeo and Auto Rentier.
• Be careful, you bear all the risk - if the company stops paying off instalments at the bank, you can be left with credit, interest and without a car.
• UOKiK may punish both companies for unfair practices with a penalty in the amount of up to 10% of turnover.

UOKiK notified the National Public Prosecutor’s Office about the suspicion of committing a crime by Praebeo and Auto Rentier. This notification was attached to the ongoing proceedings of the District Public Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw. The case reference number: PO III Ds. 129.2018. The notification concerned the suspicion of committing a crime prosecuted ex officio, i.e. a crime under Art. 286 § 1 of the Penal Code consisting in causing an indefinite number of persons to disadvantageously dispose of their own property.

At the same time, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection initiated proceedings against Praebeo and Auto Rentier from Warsaw. The first one was registered in June 2016, the second - in November 2018. Auto Rentier informs on Facebook that its former name is Praebeo. Both companies sell cars to customers, promising the payment of loan and profit from car rental.

- We suspect that Praebeo and Auto Rentier are using unfair practices. We want to warn consumers not to be tempted by the promises of quick and easy profit. The companies promise that they will pay back the loan taken by the customer, but now we have signals that Praebeo stops transferring money to the bank after some time. Meanwhile, the whole risk rests with the consumer and he will be left with the debt - says Marek Niechciał, president of UOKiK.

Here is an example of a complaint: PRAEBEO Sp. z o. o. [limited liability company] for the first three months fulfilled its obligations under 600+ rent a car agreement. From January 2019, the company stopped paying loan instalments. At the moment I am indebted at the Bank and I am facing a bailiff enforcement.

UOKiK brought 4 charges against Praebeo and 2 against Auto Rentier. 

Consumer risk

According to the office, both companies mislead customers. They advertise their services with slogans such as: "The highest level of financial security", "0.00 PLN for start, you earn from the first month," "600 PLN goes to your account every month, without leaving your home. And so for up to 96 months!" They suggest easy and safe profit, but they do not inform you about the risk.

The mechanism is like this. The customer buys a car from Praebeo or Auto Rentier for around 70,000 PLN. Mostly on credit, the costs of which reach up to additional 30-40 thousand PLN. The company undertakes that it will rent a car for a maximum of 8 years. The rent is to be used to repay the customer's loan, who will also receive 600 PLN a month or 7,200 PLN a year. All formalities are handled by the company - the consumer has no influence on the choice of car or bank. However, the loan is taken in his name and he is responsible for the repayment. If the company stopped paying instalments, the customer is even threatened by bailiff enforcement.

Another allegation against both companies concerns limiting their liability through establishing low penalty for illegal termination of the agreement by them. - Praebeo and Auto Rentier have passed all risk related with this transaction to the consumer who may not even be aware of it at the initial stage. The companies provided for a contractual penalty for early termination of the contract by them, which is only 6,000. PLN. It is disproportionate to the costs associated with repayment of the loan and interest, which the consumer must bear in such a situation - says Tomasz Chróstny, vice president of UOKiK.

In statutory terms, the contractual penalty is exclusive, which means that the creditor may not claim damages above its amount. To be able to do that, the agreement with the company would have to include a provision allowing such possibility. It is not included in the agreements proposed by Praebeo and Auto Rentier, so in the light of Art. 484 § 1 of the Civil Code, the consumer will not be able to claim higher compensation from these companies.  In this way, companies have protected themselves against liability beyond payment of penalty stipulated in the agreement.

Hidden car data

Moreover, some consumers do not even know what car they bought - this is the third allegation against Praebeo. In the agreement with this company or in other documents provided to customers, there is no information about the brand, model, registration number, year of manufacture or VIN. Instead, there is a general wording that the subject of the agreement is the car designated by Praebeo. Lack of this information prevented consumers from assessing the value of the car and determining whether the purchase is profitable. In the future, it may also make it difficult for them to pursue claims related to returning the vehicle after the rental period. 

In addition, Praebeo did not inform consumers that within 14 days they may withdraw from the agreement concluded off-premises of the company without any consequences.

Help for consumers:

Tel. 801 440 220 or 22 290 89 16 - Consumer helpline
E-mail: porady@dlakonsumentow.pl
Consumer ombudsmen - in your city or poviat
Regional Consumer Centers: 22 299 60 90 - Dlakonsumenta.pl

Additional information for the media:

UOKiK Press Office
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warszawa, Poland
Phone +48 695 902 088, +48 22 55 60 246
E-mail: biuroprasowe@uokik.gov.pl
Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL