The chit-chat area

NEW LAWS TRANSFERING MONEY ACROSS EUROPE

Single Euro Payments Area comes into operation today

As from today all European businesses and citizens will be able to benefit from the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), a payment system designed to make electronic banking operations easier amongst EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
 
A financial infrastructure has been created in which all electronic payments are considered domestic, and where differencs between national and intra-European cross border payments does not exist.
 
The project aims to improve the efficiency of cross border payments and turn the fragmented national markets for euro payments into a single domestic one. SEPA will enable customers to make cashless euro payments to anyone located anywhere in the area using only a single bank account and a single set of payment instruments.

The project includes the development of common financial instruments, standards, procedures, and infrastructure to enable economies of scale. This should in turn reduce the overall cost to the European economy of moving capital around the region.

Some 4,500 banks already offer SEPA integrated services and by 2010, the majority should be on the SEPA framework. As a result, banks throughout the SEPA area (not just the Eurozone) will need to invest heavily in technology with the capacity to support SEPA payment instruments. They have just three years, until November 2012 to adapt to the new measures.

The introduction of SEPA will increase the intensity of competition among banks and corporates for customers across borders within Europe. It also provides a business opportunity for a range of other organisations, including payment processors such as VocaLink and Equens and SIA-SSB, to help banks reduce costs and develop new payment services.

Multi-national businesses and banks have the opportunity to consolidate their payments processing onto common platforms across the Eurozone. They will benefit from substantial efficiencies by choosing among competing suppliers offering a range of solutions and operating across borders.

For consumers and organizations, SEPA should mean cheaper, more efficient and faster payments transfer when moving Euro from one Eurozone country to another, by making the best use of internet and mobile telephone technology.

SEPA consists of 32 countries:

• the 16 members of European Economic Area (EEA) and EU that are in the Eurozone
• the 11 members of EEA and EU that are not in the Eurozone
• the 3 members of the EEA that are not in the EU: Liechtenstein, Iceland and Norway
• the non EU countries that use the Euro by agreement with the EU, but are not officially part of the Eurozone: Monaco, Switzerland
• the following territories that are considered to be part of the EU in accordance with Article 299 of the Treaty of Rome: Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Réunion, Gibraltar, Azores, Madeira, Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla and Åland Islands
• Vatican City and San Marino which use the Euro by agreement with the EU will be part of SEPA.

The principality of Andorra will not, despite its de facto adoption of the euro as its currency, because it does not have an official currency.

Montenegro and Kosovo that use the Euro as their official currency without an agreement with the EU are not part of SEPA.

I have asked my Abagado to write a letter to Caixia Galicia re the article below. With the Euro interest rates as low as they are they are making a fortune of those of us that took over the mortgage from the developer which had a clause with a 3.25% "collar" min interest rate built in. Has anyone managed to get this collar clause removed from their mortgage?

Rgds Andy

Call for ban on minimum interest clauses in mortgages

‘Abusive' clauses mean loan holders don't reap benefits of plummeting rates

By Oliver McIntyre

The banking consumer group Ausbanc last week called on the government to take action against the minimum-interest clauses that are included in many variable-rate mortgage loans and that have resulted in thousands of homeowners failing to benefit from dropping interest rates.

"On September 23 the senate unanimously approved a motion presented by the Partido Popular stating that the minimum-interest clauses abusive and demanding that the dropping Euribor rate be effectively translated to the mortgage loans," said Ausbanc in a press release.  "Now it is time for the government to take the measures necessary to apply this motion in the real world."

For months consumer groups have been complaining about the minimum-interest clauses, saying many banks hid them in fine print. Unwitting loan holders were hit with the surprise when the Euribor - the most commonly used interest rate index for Spanish mortgage loans - began dropping drastically but their rate adjustments reflected only a modest reduction.

While the Euribor has dropped from its historic high of 5.393 per cent last June to a historic low of 1.243  per cent this October, many homeowners have found they are stuck with a minimum interest rate of 3.5 or four per cent.

Complaint letter

In addition to calling on the government to force the banks to remove the ‘abusive' clauses, Ausbanc has posted on its webpage (www.ausbanc.com) a template letter for consumers to individually address their own bank demanding that the minimum-interest clause be dropped from their mortgage. 

A lot of people in Don Juan have used Bert's taxi service. Due to other work commitments he is rarely available these days. There is another guy Steve who does airport runs for 25€ and is bookable at good rates for evenings etc over Christmas and New Year. If anyone would like his number send me a PM or e-mail.

Steve has a (fairly elderly) 5 series estate so is good for 4 pasengers and luggage.

Flooding again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  there has been torrential rain over the last few days (feels like a week) and the bottom road at the train station is again flooded.  It would be neigh on impossible to walk there without wellies on.  The top road has a little bit of a pond at one of the roundabouts and driving through this is possible but take it easy because it is deceiving how deep it is.  The sun has shone today and it has been a bit windy so that has helped things to dry out slightly.  Hoping the sun will shine tomorrow or hoping that it wont rain that would help.  Its not too cold though!!!

See above reply.  Gremlins
 

Hello Irene.

That is a concern as we always fly from Liverpool with Easyjet and need to book for summer. 

We used Ryanair once but it was like flying on a Corporation bus.  Thankfully though it is only for a short time. Ryanair are notorious apparently for saving fuel by using short landings (hence the bumpy and not very pleasant landings).

I trust you are now well.

Regards

SRS

Happy New Year. Lets us wish that 2010 is a better year for everyone in Don Juan. Peace on earth and goodwill to all men ( and women)

Happy New Year to one and all.  I was wondering what the weather has been like recently and has the "flood water" receeded down at the train station!  I saw the photo that Irene put up and you would cretainly need your "wellies" rather than flip flops to get up from the train station!. We are going out in February so  hopefully the sun will be shining by then!

We have had some heavy rain since New Year and the resultant floods in garages, lift shafts and on the roads. At the moment it is dry but cold - about 10C was as high as it got today. The water does drain away from the road by the railway quite quickly and if you walk close to the wall it is dry but there are lots of water filled potholes and mud as well.

The excuse the water company has given for not putting the road back to at least the condition it was in before they dug it up was that it is going to be tarmaced soon but I'll believe that when they start doing it.

It has rained most of today. A large rut has developed just after the end of the tarmac at the bottom of the hill and we've just seen a car go into it and loose its front spoiler. There are potholes and overflowing drains all over Fuengirola.

There has been more rain here than at any time for 50 years! All the resevoirs are full to overflowing and they have shut down the desalination plant. It it keeps going Stronge you may bring your wellies but at least there will be no water shortages for the next few years!

 Their are finally direct flights from Dubrovnik to Malaga. They are by Vueling. Is that a good company?

Hans Kirchner. 

Hi Hans,

Vueling is a Spanish low cost airline part owned by Iberia. We flew with them last September from Malaga to Barcelona. The flight was on time. The aircraft was comfortable. There was more legroom than on Ryanair or easyjet.

I know having flown with them once does not make me an expert on Vueling but we would certainly be happy to use them again.

Hi all

I have just found an article on the internet about our area in Carvajal. I did not understand the article completely when using automatic translation, but as far as I understand the Townhall is planning to build a Golfschool in the area between El Higueron and our apartments. This might increase the value of our apartments though it will take some years. I have copied the text  for you to translate into your own language.

Maybe this has something to do with the slowly work to complete the accesroad from the new roundabout.