§ 4-10. Reserving money in your account for card payments
Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська
In brief
- The bank can reserve money only for card payments initiated by the payee (betalingsmottaker), with the specific consent of the payer (betaler).
- The exact amount must have been unknown when the payer gave consent.
- The reserved amount must be released as soon as the exact amount is known.
The text of the law (unofficial translation)
§ 4-10. Consent to reserving an amount in the payer's account
- the payment transaction (betalingstransaksjon) is initiated by or through the payee in connection with a card-based payment transaction
- the payer has given consent to the payment transaction, cf. § 4-2
- the exact amount to be paid was not known at the time the payer consented to the payment transaction, and
- the payer has given specific consent to an exact amount being reserved in the account.
What does this mean?
This section is about money being set aside (reserved) in the payer's account before the final amount is known. It applies to card payments where the amount is not final when the payer gives approval. The payer's service provider (tjenesteyter) can reserve funds only when all four conditions are met. The payee must have initiated the payment, directly or indirectly, and it must be a card payment. The payer must have consented to the payment, cf. § 4-2. The exact amount must have been unknown when consent was given, and the payer must also have given specific consent to a particular amount being reserved.
The second subsection sets a deadline for release. The reserved funds must be released as soon as the payer's service provider has learned the exact amount, and at the latest immediately after the payment order has been received. In other words, the reservation must not remain longer than necessary.
§ 4-8 covers a different situation involving card payments. At the request of the card issuer, the account provider (kontotilbyder) must immediately state whether there are sufficient funds, but only if the payer has consented, has initiated the payment and the account is accessible online. § 4-9 lets the payer and the bank agree on spending limits when a payment instrument (betalingsinstrument) is used to give consent. § 4-6 and § 4-7 deal with refusing and cancelling payment orders. § 4-11 sets the deadlines for how quickly the payment must be carried out after the order has been received.
Reservation must not be confused with a right of retention or set-off (motregning). § 4-13 first subsection prohibits the bank from withholding or setting off against the account balance, except for overdue claims under the account agreement (kontoavtale) and claims arising from a criminal act. Reservation under § 4-10 instead requires the payer's specific consent.
Example: A payer approves a card payment to a payee who does not yet know the final amount. The payer has also given specific consent to an amount being set aside. The bank can set aside the amount, but must release it at the latest immediately after the payment order has been received.
- § 4-8The card issuer can ask whether there are sufficient funds in the account
- § 4-9Spending limits for payment cards and other payment instruments
- § 4-6Can the bank refuse to carry out a payment?
- § 4-7Stopping a payment: deadlines for cancelling payment orders
- § 4-11How long a payment can take between banks