Thu, 01 Jan 1970 01:00:00 +0100Thu, 23 Jul 2026 17:44:57 +0200https://english.radio.cz/czech-loan-sharks-increase-activity-christmas-approaches-8578258© 2026 Radio Prague International With Christmas fast approaching, many Czech consumers are tempted to take out loans. Legislation on loan conditions in the Czech Republic is still vague and unlicensed lending companies take advantage of these holes in the constitution, preying on ill-informed consumers. Often, penalties for not paying installments on time are 700 percent of the original installment. David Šmejkal, director of the debt advice center Poradna při finanční tísni helps customers who have fallen prey to the companies who offer these loans. encr@radio.cz (Cesky Rozhlas)webmaster@radio.cz (CRo Webmaster) https://english.radio.cz/sites/default/files/images/uplatek2.jpg?timestamp=1739271983 https://english.radio.cz/czech-loan-sharks-increase-activity-christmas-approaches-8578258 Radio Prague International Radio Prague International radio.prague.int@gmail.com clean 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9