Sweden's Finansinspektionen issues consumer guidance on invoice shopping, insurance cover and loan and fund costs

Sweden's Finansinspektionen published consumer-facing guidance from its consumer protection economist, Moa Langemark, setting out three New Year’s resolutions intended to improve household finances in 2025, focusing on payment habits, insurance needs and the costs of loans and savings. The guidance urges consumers to avoid shopping on invoice unless they already have the money to pay, warning that missed payments can quickly become more expensive once reminder and debt collection fees are added. It also recommends ensuring essential cover, particularly home insurance with all-risk protection, while questioning the value of product insurance that is often costly and may duplicate existing home insurance. On borrowing and saving, it highlights that banks’ gross margins on mortgages increased over the past year, suggesting borrowers consider negotiating their mortgage rate or switching lenders, and illustrates the long-term impact of fund fees by comparing median fees for actively managed global funds (1.3%) versus global index funds (0.35%), using an example of investing SEK 2,000 per month for 30 years leading to total fees of SEK 313,599 versus SEK 72,369.