[2024] KEHC 8589 (KLR)

[2024] KEHC 8589 (KLR)

The court found that the respondent bank failed to notify the appellant of any change in interest rates as required by law and the loan contract. The purported application of commercial and default interest rates of 20% and 36% was therefore illegal, unconscionable, and unenforceable. The only lawful rate was the...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
[2024] KEHC 8589 (KLR)
Parties
Appellant: John Maluki Ngoru; Respondent: African Banking Corporation Ltd
Court
High Court
Court Station
High Court at Nairobi (Milimani Law Courts)
Jurisdiction
Kenya
Case Number
Civil Appeal E018 of 2023
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Judgment on Consolidated Appeals From Milimani CMCC No. 856 of 2017
Outcome
Appeal partly allowed; cross-appeal dismissed; matter remitted for taking of accounts applying only contractual interest rate.
Judges
DKN Magare
Legal Topics
Loan Interest Variation, Notice of Interest Rate Change, Unconscionable Contract Terms, Bank Customer Relationship, Pleadings and Evidence, Remittal for Accounting
Source Language
en
Banking and Finance Civil Procedure Loan Interest Variation Notice of Interest Rate Change Unconscionable Contract Terms Bank Customer Relationship Pleadings and Evidence Remittal for Accounting

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Parties

John Maluki Ngoru

Appellant

African Banking Corporation Ltd

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Judgment on Consolidated Appeals From Milimani CMCC No. 856 of 2017

  1. 1 Whether the respondent lawfully applied commercial and default interest rates of 20% and 36% to the appellant's loans after termination of employment.
  2. 2 Whether the appellant was properly notified of any change in interest rates as required by law and contract.
  3. 3 Whether the sums claimed by the respondent included illegal or uncontractual charges and interest.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the respondent bank failed to notify the appellant of any change in interest rates as required by law and the loan contract. The purported application of commercial and default interest rates of 20% and 36% was therefore illegal, unconscionable, and unenforceable. The only lawful rate was the original contractual rate of 13%. The sums claimed by the respondent included illegal charges and uncontractual interest, and the trial court erred in upholding these amounts. The court set aside the lower court's judgment, declared that the loan had been fully settled under the contractual rate, and restrained the respondent from demanding amounts based on the varied rates....

Court Disposition

Appeal partly allowed; cross-appeal dismissed; matter remitted for taking of accounts applying only contractual interest rate.

Orders

  • The claim for commercial interest rate at 20% and default interest rate at 36% is dismissed.
  • The sums of Ksh. 12,360,888.30 and Ksh. 11,484,117.88 are declared to include illegal charges and uncontractual interest rates.