Are Borrowers Guided by the APRC (RRSO) Level When Taking a Loan? Survey Results

Magdalena Redo

The Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń , Poland
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1274-3181

Piotr Prewysz-Kwinto

WSB Merito University in Toruń , Poland
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4151-7335

Abstract

A lure in the form of RRSO (APRC) = 0% or even RSO = 0% works like a magnet and can break common sense of the most rational consumers, but is the APRC indicator, apart from the magic number 0%, the main determinant of the choice of a loan offer by Poles? Do consumers, in line with the idea of ​​this indicator, actually always choose the form of debt repayment for which its value is the lowest? And do consumers follow the suggestions of the APRC formula, according to which the loan is more advantageous when it can be repaid in possibly rare installments, and preferably once at the end of the loan period? As the results of the survey conducted by the authors show – definitely not. Despite this, so far the only indicator of the cost of a loan in the Polish financial space for over two decades, respondents are guided in their loan decisions largely by the amount of interest and non-interest costs expressed in zlotys. They intuitively (and rightly) choose offers with lower interest amounts and prefer to distribute the repayment burden into smaller and more frequent installments than postponing cumulative payments – despite the higher APRC level. This additionally confirms the correctness of the authors' thesis on the erroneous assumption adopted when constructing the APRC formula (Prewysz-Kwinto & Redo, 2022a). A loan for the borrower is not an investment – as the authors of the APRC assumed. Borrowers analyze the cost of the loan in a different way than the profitability of the investment. As a consequence, the APRC does not fulfill its role, because it does not show the cost of the loan in the way borrowers understand this cost. Fortunately, Poles do not seem to trust the level of the misleading and distorting cost of credit APRC ratio and subconsciously feel that, contrary to official information, it does not show the real cost of the loan, nor allows for the comparison of loan offers and the choice of the cheapest in the borrower's opinion. Unfortunately, allowing for the continued operation of the APRC in the European financial space increases the number of incorrect credit decisions and the risk of falling into a debt spiral, because the APRC always suggests postponing and accumulating repayment, despite the higher amount of interest. This problem especially concerns the less educated and less wealthy part of society, in particular, which legal regulations should protect. The APRC thus threatens the financial security of poorer EU citizens – especially from countries with a higher market cost of capital, where the distortions of the cost of debt by the APRC are strong. To see this, policymakers must finally think outside the box.

Keywords:

Loan cost, annual percentage rate of charge, interest, non-interest loan costs, loan repayment methods