Consumers will borrow 20% less cash next year because of new rules on credit, Maasbert Schouten, chairman of the Dutch financial advisors’ association NVF, says in Friday’s Volkskrant.

‘A married carpenter who earns €1,500 take home a month and lives in a terraced house will not be eligible for a loan under the new rules,’ Schouten told the paper.
At the moment, banks and loan companies lend some €10bn to consumers a year and more households are running into difficulties with repayments.
The new code of conduct requires financial services groups to assess the amount of money a household needs to keep running before deciding how much to lend, the FD reported in June. In addition, loan companies will be able to check the amount of debt people already have with landlords, energy firms and the social services.
Schouten said he did not expect loan companies to suffer too much. ‘The least profitable sector will disappear. But I expect car sellers and home improvement firms to notice a decline in demand,’ he said.