Credit life insurance (desgravamen), insurance tied to a loan, and refinancing vs. rescheduling in Peru: what is the difference?

You can choose the insurance the bank requires

Many loans come with insurance the bank sets as a condition, usually seguro de desgravamen (credit life insurance, which pays off the loan if the borrower dies or becomes disabled). A required policy does not mean you must buy the bank’s. Article 27 of the financial-system Market Conduct Regulation (Res. SBS 3274-2017) says the bank:

“Deben informar a los usuarios que tienen el derecho a elegir entre la contratación del seguro ofrecido por las empresas; o un seguro contratado directamente por el usuario o a través de la designación de un corredor de seguros; siempre que cumpla, a satisfacción de las empresas, con las condiciones previamente informadas.”

(Banks must tell customers they may choose the bank’s policy, one they buy directly, or one through an insurance broker, as long as it meets, to the bank’s satisfaction, the conditions disclosed beforehand.)

So you have three routes. The limit is at the end: your policy must meet conditions the bank told you about in advance. The bank may set conditions, but they must be the ones it disclosed.

The endorsement: how your own policy is used

When you bring your own policy, you endorse it (endoso) to the bank. Literal a) of the same article:

“En el caso de que el usuario acredite la contratación, por su cuenta, de un seguro que cumpla con las condiciones establecidas por la empresa, no está obligado a tomar el seguro ofrecido y puede sustituirlo por el que hubiera contratado. En este supuesto, el seguro debe ser endosado a favor de la empresa hasta por el monto del saldo adeudado; sin que ello genere una comisión o gasto adicional al usuario, siempre que se trate del seguro de desgravamen.”

(If you prove you bought a compliant policy yourself, you need not take the bank’s. The policy is endorsed to the bank up to the outstanding balance, with no fee or extra charge to you, in the case of credit life insurance.)

Three points follow:

• The endorsement covers what you owe, “hasta por el monto del saldo adeudado”.
• No fee for credit life insurance. The bank cannot charge a fee or extra cost for accepting the endorsement of a desgravamen policy. The text limits that rule to desgravamen.
• A life policy can replace credit life insurance. Article 27.2 of the insurance Market Conduct Regulation (Res. SBS 4143-2019) covers this and asks for more: the endorsement “debe presentarse con una copia de la póliza de seguro correspondiente, incluyendo las condiciones generales, particulares y especiales que forman parte del contrato” (must come with a copy of the policy, including all its conditions).

What credit life insurance must cover

The insurance regulation sets a minimum in its Fifth Final Complementary Provision:

“El seguro de desgravamen, indistintamente si es o no condición para contratar, debe considerar las coberturas de fallecimiento e invalidez total y permanente.”

(Credit life insurance, whether or not it is a loan condition, must cover death and total and permanent disability.)

Extra coverage bundled in must be optional, bought “de manera independiente a la contratación del producto de crédito” (separately from the loan), and with your express consent.

On price:

“Las empresas deben determinar el cobro del seguro de desgravamen de manera proporcional al monto del saldo insoluto de la deuda.”

(The charge must be proportional to the outstanding balance of the debt.)

The premium follows what you still owe. Note the scope: the First Transitional Complementary Provision applies these rules to “las nuevas contrataciones y renovaciones” (new policies and renewals) after the adjustment period of Res. SBS 1147-2021 ended. An older policy that was never renewed may have other terms.

If you pay early, you can ask for part of the premium back

Some credit life policies are paid once, upfront, on the full loan amount (single premium). If you then prepay, article 33.1 of the insurance regulation applies:

“En caso el usuario realice el pago anticipado total o parcial de una operación crediticia, en la que se cuenta con un seguro de desgravamen con prima única por el importe inicial del crédito, tiene derecho a solicitar a la empresa o al comercializador, en caso corresponda, la devolución de la prima de dicho seguro por el período de cobertura no devengado.”

(If you prepay all or part of a loan with single-premium credit life insurance on the original amount, you may ask the bank or seller to refund the premium for the unused coverage period.)

The rule says “solicitar”, to request. Ask in writing; do not wait for it to happen on its own.

When the insurer pays: settling the loan

If the borrower dies or becomes totally and permanently disabled, the insurer pays the bank. Article 27, numeral 2, of the financial-system regulation says how the loan is closed:

“La fecha de pago de indemnizaciones a las empresas es la que debe considerarse para realizar la liquidación de la operación activa. Las empresas tienen un plazo máximo de treinta (30) días de recibida la indemnización para efectuar la liquidación.”

(The date the insurer pays the bank is the date used to settle the loan. The bank has at most thirty days from receiving the payout to settle.)

For the family of someone who died, that date matters: it is the one that counts for settling the debt. If the bank takes more than thirty days from receiving the payout, it is late. What the bank can do with the deceased’s accounts meanwhile is in a deceased person’s bank accounts, and whether debts pass to heirs is in do you inherit debt?.

Refinancing, restructuring and «reprogramación»

The confusion here is about words. The Debtor Evaluation and Classification Regulation (Res. SBS 11356-2008) defines two things.

Refinancing (refinanciación):

“Se considera como “OPERACIÓN REFINANCIADA” al crédito o financiamiento directo, cualquiera sea su modalidad, respecto del cual se producen variaciones de plazo y/o monto del contrato original que obedecen a dificultades en la capacidad de pago del deudor.”

(A loan is refinanced when its original term and/or amount change because the debtor has trouble paying.)

Restructuring (reestructuración) is something else: a payment rescheduling approved inside an insolvency proceeding.

“Se considera como “OPERACIÓN REESTRUCTURADA” al crédito o financiamiento directo, cualquiera sea su modalidad, sujeto a la reprogramación de pagos aprobada en el proceso de reestructuración, de concurso ordinario o preventivo, según sea el caso, conforme a la Ley General del Sistema Concursal aprobada mediante la Ley Nº 27809.”

(A restructured loan is one subject to a payment rescheduling approved in an insolvency proceeding under the General Insolvency Law, Ley 27809.)

What about the «reprogramación» banks offer their customers? In that regulation the word shows up for insolvency proceedings and for loans rescheduled during COVID-19, not as a general category of its own. Our reading: what decides whether your loan is refinanced is not the label the bank uses but the reason. If the term or amount changes because you have trouble paying, it fits the definition of refinanced. If the change has another reason, it does not. This is an inference from the definition, not a rule written in those words.

What happens to your rating if you refinance

Numeral 2.3 of the same regulation:

“Al momento de firmarse el contrato de refinanciación o de aprobarse la reprogramación de pagos, según corresponda a un crédito refinanciado o reestructurado, la clasificación de riesgo de los deudores deberá mantenerse en sus categorías originales, con excepción de los deudores clasificados como Normal que deberán ser reclasificados como Con Problemas Potenciales.”

(When the refinancing is signed, debtors keep their rating, except those rated Normal, who must be moved to Con Problemas Potenciales, “potential problems”.)

If you were current and rated Normal, refinancing drops you a step. If you were already in a worse category, you stay there. To move back up:

“Posteriormente, la clasificación crediticia de los deudores refinanciados o reestructurados podrá ser mejorada en una categoría, cada dos (2) trimestres, siempre que el deudor haya efectuado pagos puntuales de las cuotas pactadas, y se encuentre cumpliendo las metas del plan de refinanciación.”

(The rating may improve one category every two quarters, provided you pay on time and meet the refinancing plan.)

So ask before signing whether the change will be recorded as refinancing. If the bank breaks these rules, you can complain to the bank.

What this page does not cover

We did not review specific policies or what happens to the balance if the insurer rejects the claim. We do not cover the special rules for loans rescheduled during COVID-19, insurance on collateral beyond what is quoted, or SBS or Indecopi decisions on credit life insurance. Nor do we explain how your rating is reported to credit bureaus.