Mooney fined €2.5 million by Antitrust for unfair trading practices

The Competition and Markets Authority (Antitrust) imposed a fine on Mooney SpA and its parent company Mooney Group SpA. for a total of approximately 2.5 million euros For unfair trade practice. This decision was taken following a series of investigations which highlighted serious shortcomings in the control and management of Mooney prepaid cards, leading to misleading payment requests involving numerous micro-businesses.

The antitrust charge against Mooney

The two companies were then accused of failing to carry out effective and timely control on the issuance and use of their cards, thereby facilitating unfair commercial practices. These practices included misleading payment requests which seemed to come from the Chambers of Commerce. Mooney SpA has not carried out due diligence to identify and correct information and management gaps in card blocking and unblocking procedures, which further aggravates the situation.

The investigations began after the Authority received numerous reports by the micro-businesses involved, who indicated the frequent use of Mooney prepaid cards for misleading payment requests. During the procedure, it was found that Mooney SpA, “although it was aware of the applicant’s use of its cards for these illicit purposes, failed to take timely initiatives to deal with the phenomenon. »

Violation of the consumer code

The behavior of Mooney SpA was considered to be violation of article 20paragraph 2, of Consumer Code, which requires operators to maintain an adequate level of professional diligence. The seriousness of the phenomenon and the sector of activity of Mooney SpA have made even more evident the lack of appropriate actions to prevent such illicit practices.

Problems with card blocking and unblocking procedures

In addition to deceptive practices, Mooney SpA has been accused of provide misleading information and manage ineffectively procedures for blocking and unblocking your cards. In some cases, this has prevented cardholders from using them for indefinite periods, unduly affecting consumers’ freedom of choice and hindering the exercise of their contractual rights. This behavior violates other articles of the Consumer Code, notably 21, 22, 24 and 25, worsening the situation of Mooney SpA and its group.