Mooney fined EUR 2.5 million by the Antitrust Office for unfair commercial practices

Competition and Market Authority (Antitrust) imposed a fine Mooney S.p.A and its parent company Mooney Group SpA. in total approx 2.5 million euros Down unfair commercial practice. This decision was made after a series of studies that showed serious shortcomings in the control and management of Mooney prepaid cards, which led to misleading payment claims involving a number of micro-enterprises.

Antitrust charges against Mooney

Both companies were subsequently indicted failed to conduct an effective and timely inspection regarding the issuance and use of their cards, thereby facilitating unfair trading practices. It is worth noting that these practices included misleading payment applications which seemed to come from chambers of commerce. Mooney SpA did not carry out necessary checks identifying and correcting information and management gaps in card blocking and unblocking procedures, further aggravating the situation.

An investigation was initiated after the Office received numerous reports by the micro-enterprises involved, which highlighted the frequent use of Mooney prepaid cards for fraudulent payment requests. During the proceedings, it was established that Mooney SpA “although it became aware of the appellant’s use of its cards for these illegal purposes, did not take initiatives in a timely manner deal with this phenomenon.”

Violation of the Consumer Code

The conduct of Mooney SpA was deemed to be such violation of Article 20paragraph 2 section Consumer Code, which imposes an obligation on entities to maintain an appropriate level of professional diligence. The seriousness of the phenomenon and the industry in which Mooney SpA operates made even more evident the lack of appropriate measures to prevent this type of illegal practices.

Problems with card blocking and unblocking procedures

In addition to fraudulent practices, Mooney SpA is accused provide misleading information and ineffective management procedures for blocking and unblocking cards. In some cases, this prevented cardholders from using their cards for an indefinite period of time, which unduly impaired consumers’ freedom of choice and hampered the exercise of their contractual rights. This behavior violates subsequent articles of the Consumer Code, including Art. 21, 22, 24 and 25, worsening the position of Mooney SpA and its group.