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Unaf Study Finds Banks Charge Heavy Fees for Account Seizures

The report could trigger calls for legal caps on seizure fees to stop banks from deepening debt for financially fragile households.

L’Union nationale des associations familiales publie une étude qui appelle à davantage encadrer les montants prélevés par les banques lors des remboursements de dettes.
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Overview

  • Unaf published its study on Wednesday reporting more than 20 million account seizure acts in 2025 and a sharp rise in administrative recoveries since 2019.
  • The survey of 101 banks found most charge more than €100 for a saisie‑attribution and some levy up to €250 for a single seizure.
  • Unaf says four out of five banks apply the same fee even when a seizure is inoperative, which allows repeated attempts to generate fees that can exceed the original debt.
  • The group recommends measures including an annual cap on seizure fees, limits on fees for failed seizures, and stronger protection for clients registered under the Offre Client Fragile; Unaf also estimates these fees bring retail banks several hundred million euros a year.
  • The Fédération bancaire française contends the charges cover real staff, IT and operational risks and no regulatory change has been announced, but the study has opened a public policy debate that could prompt scrutiny or legislative proposals.