Spanish Supreme Court Rules for First Time in Collective Revolving Card Case

The Spanish judiciary has set an important precedent for consumer protection in the financial services market. The Supreme Court in Madrid has for the first time upheld a collective complaint against Carrefour regarding revolving credit cards, branded as Carrefour Pass. The ruling from February 17, 2026, is final, as the Supreme Court did not allow a further appeal by the retail giant's financial subsidiary. The complaint, filed by the Association of Financial Users (ASUFIN), concerned practices deemed unfair. These included, among other things, the way the product was presented and sold – the cards were offered to customers directly at supermarket checkout lines, often as part of a loyalty program. The court found that such actions could mislead customers about the nature of the commitment. Revolving cards, also known as charge cards, emerged as a banking product in the 1970s, becoming widespread globally in subsequent decades. Their mechanism involves granting an open line of credit, which the customer uses and then repays in installments, often with a very high effective annual interest rate (APR). In many countries, including Poland, they have been the subject of criticism from consumer advocates and competition protection authorities. In its reasoning, the Supreme Court cited its own earlier doctrine, which had already defined some conditions of such cards as abusive. Specifically, it challenged clauses regarding payment methods, interest rates, and the mechanism for terminating the contract upon full repayment of the debt. „Estas cantidades (intereses) dependerán de lo que cada uno de los clientes hayan contraído en crédito, que puede llegar a multiplicar por dos o tres el capital dispuesto”, explains ASUFIN in a statement, noting that interest can be two or three times higher than the capital used. The ruling opens the door to mass claims. The association now intends to collect data from all affected parties to seek a refund of the interest charged on their behalf. 1,5 mln — Carrefour Pass cards in circulation in 2019 According to estimates by the consumer organization, around 1.5 million such cards were in circulation in 2019, and the total value of loans granted using them could reach 3 billion euros. This case is groundbreaking for the Spanish financial services market, where revolving cards have been controversial for years due to their apparent accessibility and conditions unfavorable to customers, which often lead to a debt spiral. The Supreme Court's decision sends a clear signal to other financial institutions that practices assessed as non-transparent and potentially misleading can be subjected to effective judicial review within collective proceedings.