March 25, Bucharest. This month marks 10 years since the first negotiation between a consumer and a bank in Romania, carried out through CSALB. Since then, more than 6,000 negotiations have taken place within the Alternative Dispute Resolution Center for the Banking Sector (CSALB). Here is what the first consumers requested—and what they obtained.

March 2016. The first two bank negotiation cases

Case no. 1: Mariana R. from Bucharest was the first consumer to negotiate with a bank in Romania, in March 2016. Assigned conciliator: Mihaela Budișteanu.

What the consumer wrote in her request: On May 19, 2015, I asked the bank to modify my loan agreement concluded in 2007, in accordance with GEO 50/2010. The bank sent an addendum to amend the contract, but maintained a management fee of RON 5/month going forward. I request the reimbursement of this fee charged from 2010 to the present (amounting to RON 47.5/month) and its removal from the contract until the loan is fully repaid.

Decision: The bank agreed to reimburse 50% of the amount representing the management fee charged between 2010–2016, and the loan management fee was reduced to RON 2/month until the end of the loan agreement.

Case no. 2: Valentin N. from Bucharest submitted the second request that was turned into a negotiation case with the bank within CSALB, in March 2016. Assigned conciliator: Valentin Cocean.

What the consumer wrote in his request: In 2006, I took out a mortgage loan, and in 2010, following the publication of GEO 50, the bank initiated the signing of an addendum to eliminate abusive fees. However, several fees remained in the contract. Some have a zero value, but others—such as the Monitoring Fee—were retained. This fee amounts to EUR 74/month, and I request the bank to remove it from the addendum and reimburse all amounts collected, including penalty interest, from the loan’s inception until now. The compensation requested amounts to EUR 2,664.

Decision: The bank agreed to stop charging the EUR 74/month fee starting from the signing date of the addendum reflecting this change (as a result of the conciliation procedure) and to reimburse Mr. Valentin N. the total monitoring fee collected under the 2006 loan agreement, amounting to EUR 2,664.

The evolution of negotiations, as seen by conciliators from the first cases

Mihaela Budișteanu, CSALB conciliator: „I observe two main changes over the ten years of conciliation within CSALB: today, more requests are submitted by lawyers, and banks’ attitudes have improved compared to the early years. We can speak of a new trend in which lawyers advise their clients to seek an amicable settlement with the bank before going to court. In most cases, matters no longer reach a judge, as the parties accept the solutions proposed by us, the conciliators.

The advantages compared to court proceedings are significant: conciliations have the force of a court ruling, the amicable procedure lasts only a few days, and it is free for consumers. In practice, everyone benefits: consumers, banks, lawyers, conciliators, and even judges, who are relieved of lengthy cases that overcrowd the courts.

If in court the parties take opposing positions and banks tend to defend themselves by dismantling consumers’ arguments, within CSALB it is in the parties’ interest to make certain concessions, as the amicable procedure encourages cooperation. While at the beginning banks approached CSALB as if appearing before a judge focused on the letter of the law, they now understand that our role places fairness above strict legal interpretation. Thus, banks no longer come to CSALB to defend themselves, but to offer solutions to consumers’ difficulties.”

Valentin Cocean, CSALB conciliator: „We still receive requests invoking Ordinance 50/2010 for the elimination of fees considered abusive. However, I notice a shift in consumers’ approach: while initially they believed all fees in contracts were abusive and had to be removed, they now have a more realistic perspective, reflecting a higher level of financial education and less of the previous rigidity.

Today, consumers come to CSALB more confident that their issues can be resolved through dialogue, even though we now see more negotiations over smaller amounts. Ten years ago, many applicants faced severe financial situations and were unable to repay their loans. Now, we see negotiations on principled matters, where people approach banks in standard situations or when anticipating payment difficulties. Another evolution concerns the conciliation procedure itself, which has become more streamlined and simplified thanks to an IT application that significantly reduced resolution time. The accumulated experience has ‘oiled the wheels’ between conciliators and banks, and the latter have greatly improved their approach. Since human interaction is essential in our procedure, it is important that bank teams remain stable. There are banks where we have collaborated with the same people for 10 years, and that experience greatly contributes to smoother negotiations.”

What did negotiating with the bank mean for two consumers from Bucharest?

Marian Vlad, 44, Bucharest: „For my family, the solution offered through CSALB in 2025 was like a fresh start. Our monthly installment was cut in half (from RON 500 to RON 260) after the bank wrote off RON 60,000 from the outstanding balance. The bank and the CSALB team worked together to reach a solution we couldn’t have imagined when we submitted our request.

Fortunately, the procedure was simple and lasted only three weeks—from submitting the application online to receiving the bank’s proposal. We communicated only by phone and email with the Center’s staff and the conciliator, Mr. Septimiu Stoica. The loan we renegotiated had been taken out in 2014, after moving to Bucharest in 2013 due to one of our children’s medical issues, which still require specialized treatment. Although we had no delays in payments, rising expenses in recent years led us to request a contract review. Fortunately, the solution significantly eased our financial burden”  

Ioana Rusu, 45, Bucharest: „We turned to CSALB in 2022, when installments increased significantly due to the ROBOR index, and we became worried about our family’s future. At that time, our children were 2 and 6 years old, our salaries had stagnated for years, and besides the mortgage, we also had a personal loan for a car. The 25-year mortgage was for our two-room apartment, and the solution obtained through CSALB felt like turning back the clock by 10 years—the exact period we still had left to pay. The bank wrote off a balance of over EUR 20,000, which allowed us to repay the car loan early.

Nearly four years after receiving the decision, we remain grateful to both the CSALB team and the bank, which understood our situation and accepted both the negotiation and the conciliator’s proposed solution.”

Alexandru Păunescu, representative of the National Bank of Romania in CSALB’s Coordination Board:

„The first consumers and banks involved in CSALB negotiations deserve great credit for trusting that this mechanism would work, at a time when distrust in the banking system was very high.

The establishment of CSALB (September 2015, under GO 38/2015), just months before the first negotiations (March 2016), opened a path that was both new and challenging, as well as unfamiliar within Romania’s institutional framework.

Looking back, both the requests and the solutions proposed in the first cases seem modest compared to those today. Initially, people addressed CSALB as if it were a court, presenting legal arguments and expecting ‘verdicts’ to compensate their dissatisfaction with banks.

Today, consumers of financial products and services have, through CSALB, an accessible negotiation tool, refined year after year, and above all, a bridge for dialogue with banks.

The only disappointment of these years is that the CSALB model has not been replicated in other sectors—such as utilities, communications, or transport—where consumers should also have platforms for amicable dispute resolution.

As CSALB enters its 11th year of operational activity, it continues the trend of previous years. The resolution time remains under two weeks on average, compared to the 90 days recommended in GO 38/2015, and most banks in Romania consistently agree to enter conciliation with consumers.

By the end of the first quarter, we will exceed 900 registered requests (670 addressed to banks), of which around 200 have already become negotiation cases, and 35 of these originated in court but were later settled amicably through CSALB.”

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About CSALB: CSALB is an entity established following a European Directive and provides free-of-charge mediation, within less than three months, between consumers and banks or non-banking financial institutions for ongoing contracts. Consumers from any county in Romania can submit requests to the Center for the Alternative Resolution of Banking Disputes (CSALB) by completing an online form directly on www.csalb.ro. If the bank accepts the conciliation/negotiation procedure, a conciliator is appointed. CSALB works with 16 conciliators, among the best legal specialists with expertise in financial-banking matters. Everything is resolved amicably, and the agreement reached by the parties has the legal force of a court ruling. More information about the Center’s activity is also available by phone at 021 9414 (standard tariff).