Collectors will not be able to begin collecting debts immediately from the New Year due to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin on December 15. The order transfers the activities of collectors under the supervision of bailiffs.
However, how long the necessary bureaucratic procedures will take is still unclear.
According to the decree signed by the president, the Ministry of Justice was appointed as the body responsible for regulating the recovery of overdue debts of individuals, and the Federal Bailiff Service should oversee the activities of collectors.
That is, according to the law, from January 1, 2017, collectors not registered in a special register will not be able to collect debts. To carry out new activities, the decree allocated a new FSSP department with a staff of 25 people, as well as 375 additional employees in territorial bodies.
It is assumed that the presidential decree should speed up the creation of a debt collector registry. It appeared after debt collectors turned to Prime Minister Medvedev with a request to facilitate the process. However, in reality it turned out that the FSSP in order to begin supervising collectors and forming a register, one decree is not enough. In addition to bureaucratic delays, there are also financial reasons why the registration of debt collectors may be delayed, namely the lack of a budget to finance such activities. Pursuant to the decree, the president instructed the government to review the budget allocations of the FSSP and adjust the federal budget accordingly. However, the size of these allocations has not yet been determined.
Thus, from the New Year, the activities of collectors not included in the register will be considered illegal. Representatives of the collection business expect that the procedure will be completed at least by the end of January. But no one can give exact dates yet.
In the new law, which will come into force in 2017, the debtor will have the right not to communicate with the collector. Administrative liability is established for violation: fines from 500 thousand to 2 million rubles. Only major players were left on the market. Collection companies must have net assets of at least 10 million rubles, as well as liability insurance contracts for possible losses to debtors in the amount of at least 10 million rubles. The company must operate openly and have its own website on the Internet.
The activities of collection agencies have become the focus of attention of legislators after a series of high-profile scandals involving their employees. The most egregious case was the arson of a house in the Ulyanovsk region, as a result of which a two-year-old child was seriously injured from burns. In Moscow, “bouncers” threatened a woman to burn her child for a debt to the bank. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, from January to June 2015, Russians filed about 22 thousand complaints about the illegal actions of persons calling themselves debt collectors.
What do famous people of Russia and Karelia think?
Alexey Savatyugin, President of the National Association of Professional Collection Agencies:
– From a bureaucratic point of view, a resolution really should be issued, since according to the law, supervision of collectors should be carried out by a federal executive body authorized by the government. However, there is little time until January 1, 2017, when the main parts of the relevant law will come into force and work outside the register will be prohibited. The FSSP must develop a number of regulations, as well as create a register itself and include market participants there. In this situation, it would be possible to move away from formalism and begin work before the resolution appears. Even if the resolution is signed in the coming days and collectors submit applications to the FSSP for inclusion in the register (20 working days are allotted for this procedure), then at least during January the collection market will be stopped.
Garegin Tosunyan, President of the Association of Russian Banks:
– In Russia there are collection organizations that, even in the absence of strict regulation, work in a civilized manner and do not violate any law. They try to collect debts through the courts, without in any way coming to houses, without hanging leaflets, without pouring tar on the doors. But there are people who only call themselves such, and they absolutely need to be prosecuted under criminal law. Without going deeper into the issue, society begins to perceive the words “collector” and “bandit” as synonyms. This is where I would like us to move away from.
Andrey Vlass, vice-president of the Russian Human Rights Association of Anti-Collection Communities:
– Collection activities today are outright banditry. The activities of these collectors are not regulated by any laws. When a bank assigns the right to claim a debt to a collector, this does not mean that a person should be called from morning to evening and threatened with his family. You can go to court and prove your right to collect the debt, but we don’t see debt collectors in the courts; they prefer to intimidate.
Valentina Matvienko, Chairman of the Federation Council:
– Today this type of business has actually turned into a criminal one. More and more often we hear about absolutely outrageous cases of debt collection. Considering that the amount of overdue loans is growing, the tangle of problems in this area will grow like a snowball. The new law on collection activities should force the “bouncers” who terrorized debtors to leave this market. The law provides legal grounds for law enforcement agencies to strictly control the activities of collection organizations.
Elena Dokuchaeva, President of Sequoia Credit Consolidation:
– There are grounds for the lawful work of collectors: this is the law and the presidential decree, and by-laws are a matter for the regulator. To violate the requirements of the regulator, they must first be formed.
Andrey Rogalevich, deputy of the Karelian parliament:
– I have long been in favor of a complete ban on the activities of collection agencies. Moreover, I know cases where the illegal methods of work of collectors also affected the residents of the republic. I think that the restrictions specified in the bill will be legislative half-measures in regulating the activities of such organizations, which will not lead to proper legal regulation. In my opinion, only the court, having examined all the necessary documents, can determine the degree of guilt and the amount of debt. And the bailiff, having the right to initiate enforcement proceedings, can collect this debt. The remaining intermediate links in the form of collection agencies should be prohibited by law.
Collection agencies appeared in Russia almost 15 years ago, but for a long time their activities were not supported by legislation.
Debt collectors often acted outside the legal framework. Debtors had to deal with rudeness, threats and damage to property.
In 2016, the question of whether debt collectors were legal was closed. Government officials set boundaries for them. Federal Law 230 was adopted, which spelled out point by point the methods by which agencies can collect debts.
Interaction with defaulters was limited to calls within a specified period of time, correspondence and personal meetings (with some reservations).
In 2018, creditors are not allowed to call from hidden numbers or write SMS. The debtor now has the opportunity to refuse overly intrusive debt collectors.
Rights of collectors under the new law
After the bill was passed, debt collection agencies had to cut back on their appetites. Previously, they could call and write to debtors (as well as their relatives) whenever they wanted. The rights of collectors under the new law are limited.
Officially, companies are allowed to take actions to collect debts from citizens of the Russian Federation. However, the methods used must not contradict existing legislation.
That is, any threats are prohibited, and even more so, damage to property (this also applies to offensive inscriptions, which collectors often use as a way to influence non-payers).
Agencies cannot contact a bank client who is behind on payments if the loan agreement does not contain a corresponding clause allowing the involvement of third parties. In addition, the financial institution is obliged to notify the debtor that his debt has been transferred to a collection company.
When communicating with a defaulter, a company employee must provide his personal information and name the organization he represents. If a debt collector attempts to contact you during a no-call period, you can file a complaint against them.
How many times can collectors call by law?
The new law on collectors established the main rule that people who encountered their activities had been waiting for. Now debt collectors have no right to call at night.
On weekdays, telephone call times begin at 8 a.m. and end at 10 p.m. On weekends and holidays, calls are allowed from 9.00 to 20.00.
The law does not limit the number of calls, but you can use a legal loophole. If you receive calls more than 20 times a day, this is considered an invasion of privacy and you have the right to take legal action. Also, employees of organizations are prohibited from calling relatives or friends of the debtor.
In addition, the number of personal meetings has been legally limited. The collector has the right to meet with the defaulter no more than once a day, 2 times a week and 8 times a month.
When and who can collectors call under the new law.
Do debt collectors sue?
Many people are concerned about whether debt collectors can sue if they do not get their money back. This argument is often used as a way to influence debtors.
Indeed, the company can appeal to a higher authority, but a person does not face a prison sentence for non-payment of a loan. The only decision that the court can make is to oblige the defaulter to repay the loan amount (for example, through monthly deductions).
Companies that have not been accredited and have not entered into an official agreement with the bank cannot apply to the highest authority.
If an appeal to the court occurs, the debtor will answer to the bank, and not to the collectors. Accordingly, there can be no talk of any repayment of exorbitant interest rates (which debt collectors often try to impose). They can only assign payment of penalties in accordance with the loan agreement.
You cannot sue if the statute of limitations on the loan document has expired (3 years).
Debtors' rights under the new law
Remember that collectors can call or write to you only within 4 months from the date the loan is in arrears.
After this period, you have the right to refuse to communicate with employees of collection organizations.
To do this, you need to write a written application and send it to the bank to which you owe money. The document must include the details of a lawyer authorized to communicate with debt collectors.
If an employee of a company violates the established rules (fails to introduce himself, makes threats, or calls at night), you can file a complaint against him. However, before going to court, it is worth stocking up on evidence of violation of the law.
What to do if collectors call
If you are not in the mood to communicate with creditors, you can simply not pick up the phone. There is no criminal or administrative liability for this.
You can also write to the bank that your phone is blocked and communication is only possible by email.
Another way is to blacklist collector numbers or change your phone number. However, in the latter case, you need to issue a new SIM card for another person.
Collectors are prohibited from calling certain categories of persons:
- pregnant women and women who have a child under one and a half years old;
- people who are undergoing treatment in medical institutions;
- disabled people of group 1.
If you don't mind communicating with creditors, speak politely and without insults. Harsh statements can be used against you if the case goes to court.
What to do if debt collectors threaten you in 2018
If your life, health or property is threatened, you need to collect evidence to go to court.
If threats come over the phone or in a personal conversation, use a voice recorder. The recording is subsequently provided to the police along with a statement about the threats received.
If they are trying to intimidate you via SMS, save the messages in your phone memory. In the future, they will also be used in court as evidence. You can simply ignore the threats if you do not plan to start a lawsuit.
List of prohibitions for collectors.
Where to complain if debt collectors call about someone else's loan
The biggest inconvenience is calls about other people's loans. This usually happens in several cases:
- your number was indicated by the person who took out the loan;
- the number previously belonged to the debtor;
- you are the guarantor for the loan.
The official text of the law prohibits collection agencies from contacting people who are not debtors. Therefore, you have the right to appeal to higher authorities. However, this process is long and you can go another way.
First, you should find out from the employee who called who the loan agreement was issued for and how your number is known.
If you are a guarantor or someone you know has provided your phone number, contact this person to clarify the circumstances.
In any case, you have nothing to do with repaying the loan, so you can simply refuse to communicate with debt collectors. If you receive threats, make a voice recorder and contact the police.
If you do not know the defaulter, you should contact the bank for a statement of no debt. The document is provided to the collection company explaining the situation. After this, the calls should stop.
How can a debtor sue debt collectors?
If you are being harassed by debt collectors, and even threatened, you should go to court. First, collect evidence of violations (audio, video recordings), which you will provide to law enforcement agencies. Initially, you should contact the police or prosecutor's office with a description of the conflict situation.
If you continue to be harassed, take legal action. Before doing this, conduct an independent examination of the loan agreement and send a complaint to the Central Bank. You can submit an application to the court in person, or you can entrust this to your legal representative.
After the law came into effect, there were fewer conflict situations. However, unaccredited organizations that violate all legal norms continue to operate. Government officials plan to toughen penalties for this category of agencies.
Every day the new law on collectors raises more and more questions. For debtors, the confusion lies in the methods of legal protection, and the collectors themselves do not understand how to work within the law without violating it, so as not to incur large fines.
The editors of the portal site have collected the most frequently asked questions regarding Federal Law No. 230 and addressed them to the general director of the collection agency "TsZ Invest" Vladislav Lysenko:
Can collection agencies that are part of the state registry, but not from my region, call me?
“All collection agencies included in the state register have the right to engage in debt collection throughout the entire territory of the Russian Federation; the law does not provide for any restrictions in this regard, nor is there any need for a collection agency to somehow additionally register in each individual subject of the Russian Federation.”
"Those. if in your region the territorial department of the FSSP reported that only one collection agency (or none at all) contacted them and submitted documents to the state register, this does not mean that other participants in the state register cannot call you.
The law stipulates no more than 1 contact with the debtor per day. Does this mean that I can just hang up and the debt collector has no right to call me back?
“The concept of “telephone conversations” is not defined in 230-FZ, and it is not found in other legislative acts of the Russian Federation. Therefore, the law does not give a direct answer to the question of what a completed contact is - the very fact of a call or dialogue between a lender and a borrower, and how long it should be. Again, it is not clear whether the collector can call back if the connection is lost, or if the debtor is not very comfortable talking now, and he himself asks to call back later.”
“However, the regulator of the collection market - the Federal Bailiff Service (FSSP of Russia) has already begun examining complaints against collectors, and is examining them very carefully, listening to call recordings. And the position voiced by representatives of the FSSP in communication with market participants at the moment is as follows: “collectors should not abuse their right to inform the debtor, they should not come up with various tricks, allegedly they are not calling for the purpose of collection. But debtors should not abuse their rights, avoid communication and, at the same time, unlawfully complain about creditors.” That is, if the law gives the collector the right to talk with the debtor only twice a week, a full-fledged dialogue between them will most likely be considered a contact. As a result of the analysis of complaints against collection agencies received by the FSSP, out of more than 1.5 thousand complaints, 25 protocols of violations have been drawn up so far.”
“The number of interactions is taken into account separately for each credit/loan agreement. If you have 5 loans, creditors have the right to remind you about them 5 times a day, each for their own loan.”
“Formally, the law limits the number of contacts with the debtor, but not with third parties, so quantitative restrictions do not apply to them. Interesting oddities even arise when a debtor complains about a violation in the number of calls, but when listening to recordings of conversations it turns out that the debtor was hiding from creditors and when answering calls he introduced himself under someone else’s name. Considering that the collectors were misled and were sure that they were never able to talk with the debtor, it is unlikely that they will be “counted” for a violation of the number of contacts.”
“You shouldn’t be tricky with complaints. Firstly, collection agencies now keep records of all negotiations (those included in NAPCA previously did, but now, according to the new law, they are required to keep all companies included in the state register for 3 years), and it is enough for the regulator and the court to check the facts stated in the complaint easily. Secondly, the FSSP, in its main area of work, has extensive experience in interacting with debtors, including unscrupulous ones, so it will be difficult for professional complainants to deceive them.”
How can I write a refusal to communicate with debt collectors and how long will it be valid?
“The refusal form can be found on the FSSP website and in the Consultant and Guarantor systems; you can fill it out and send it to the creditor (bank, microfinance organization, collection agency) 4 months after the overdue payment. The enforcement of this rule is also not very clear. For example, should the debtor somehow notarize this statement or not? Does this waiver terminate if the debtor repays the debt and then defaults again? The law only says that the waiver is terminated for 2 months, after a court decision is made on the case - the creditor is given a little more time to communicate with the debtor and persuade him to repay the debt without the intervention of bailiffs. Practice will show how the regulator will interpret this norm.”
“One thing is for sure - if the collection agency communicates with you quite correctly, you should not rush to sign a refusal to communicate. You will lose the opportunity to receive information about your debt, about possible restructuring actions, writing off part of the debt, and about the subsequent actions of the creditor - transferring the case to court, for example. It’s more profitable to have feedback from the creditor and try to come to an agreement with him than to pay legal costs and wait for the visit of the bailiffs - you won’t be able to come to an agreement with them.”
The creditor is now obliged to warn the debtor in writing that he has transferred the debt to collectors. And if I was not warned, then I can not communicate and not pay the debt to the collection agency?
“This requirement applies only to new agency and assignment agreements concluded after January 1, 2017. If your debt was transferred to a collection agency before this date, the requirement for the creditor to warn the debtor does not apply to your case - the law does not have retroactive effect. However, you can contact the collection agency with questions about the debt, its structure and where it originated from. The agency is obliged to respond to you in writing, and the new law sets strict deadlines for responses to debtors’ requests - 30 days. And for failure to comply with the law, quite significant liability is provided - disqualification for officials and up to 200 thousand rubles. fine for legal entities."
Under the new law, do debt collectors have the right to communicate with my relatives, work colleagues, and neighbors?
“Yes, the law gives the creditor the opportunity to interact with third parties, but under two conditions: the debtor must agree to this, and the third parties themselves must not express disagreement. The collection agency can call the debtor’s work phone number indicated in the credit/loan agreement and left by him for communication.”
“Thus, if your loan agreement specifies a standard clause on consent to interact with third parties, and your colleagues, neighbors and relatives do not express (verbally or in writing) a refusal to communicate, the creditor has the right to ask them about the debtor’s contact information or ask them to transfer information for him, for example, a request to contact a collection agency. At the same time, the personal data of the debtor, for example, the amount of the debt and the reason for its occurrence, should not be disclosed.”
“It is clear that situations often arise here when third parties are aware of information that the debtor would not like to disclose. The very fact of a collection agency calling your work or relatives with a request to call the debtor on the phone can become an unpleasant surprise, even if the amount of the debt is not specified. A husband can guess that his wife has debts, and parents can guess that their adult children have debts. But it is unlikely that the law will be able to regulate these issues completely. In the end, a person in a special suit can follow the debtor, as was practiced by some collection agencies abroad, and everyone will understand that this is the debtor and the collector following him. Hiding the fact of financial problems in itself is quite difficult, and the creditor is not obliged to make his calls to the debtor in secret.”
What should you now pay attention to when concluding credit or loan agreements, because creditors can include new conditions for communication with the debtor?
“The creditor may provide in the agreement for a change in the number of contacts with the debtor provided for by Federal Law-230, the law gives him this opportunity. The debtor’s consent to interact with third parties and transfer information to third parties may also be included, but now these must be executed in the form of separate documents, and not just as clauses in the contract.”
Sergey Kuzminok spoke with the resident
I personally know who collectors are. And that’s why I’m not surprised by all these terrible stories that are associated with them. No, I am not a habitual loan defaulter. There's nothing wrong with that. But then somehow my phone buzzed. And a female voice said that I owed the Tyr-Pyr-Tyr company 100 rubles. 11 kopecks Yes, that’s right: 100 rubles and 11 kopecks. All attempts to find out how and where it came from were stopped.
It is your problem to find out who you owe and for what. If you don’t return the money, we’ll ruin your credit history,” the receiver squealed and fell silent.
The new law on debt collectors, which will take effect on January 1, seems to protect borrowers. But how to use this protection correctly?
The main innovations are:
1. Now collectors cannot just call the borrower. The bank must first inform the debtor about this. And not anyhow - but notify by special registered letter with acknowledgment of delivery.
2. Collectors can still meet with borrowers, call and write to them. But only at certain times. On weekdays, the debtor must not be disturbed from 10 pm to 8 am; on weekends and holidays - from 8 pm to 9 am. You cannot call more than once a day or twice a week. Personal meetings are possible once a week.
3. Stories from the series “X is calling you” should, in theory, sink into oblivion. Now the collector must fully introduce himself and say who transferred your debt to him for work.
4. It will also be impossible to spread gossip. Collectors do not have the right to tell anyone about the borrower's debt. Before this, it was normal to disgrace debtors. Call at work, talk about his financial problems to relatives, friends, acquaintances, neighbors.
5. Any kind of psychological pressure - blackmail, threats, and even more so the use of physical force - is prohibited.
6. Well, and most importantly. The borrower may refuse to communicate with debt collectors. True, just say: “Sorry and goodbye!” - will not be enough. You must send the creditor (the one who sent your debt for collection) a written notice of your decision. This can be done no earlier than 4 months after the delay occurs. That is, in most cases you will still have to experience the delights of communicating with debt collectors for some time.
7. There will also be certain requirements for collection companies. They must be included in a special state register. It will probably be conducted by the Ministry of Justice and the Federal Bailiff Service.
The capital of collection agencies must be at least 10 million rubles. Apparently, it is assumed that sharashka’s offices will not reach such indicators and will not be able to work in such a sensitive area.
A big plus for borrowers is that the law sets restrictions on the methods of work of collectors. The downside is that the current lawlessness of collectors in Russia is a consequence of the fact that the authorities did not limit usury, moreover, they made it legal - with rates of up to 800% per annum, taking into account imposed insurance and hidden commissions. Collections are a consequence of the problem of debt overload of the poor, and it has not yet been solved in any way,” Dmitry Yanin, Chairman of the Board of the International Confederation of Consumer Societies, comments on the innovations.
SPECIFICALLY
How to protect yourself?
To communicate with debt collectors, have a phone with a voice recorder function and record all conversations. Try to extract as much information as possible from the collectors. Ask them to introduce themselves, ask where they found out your address or phone number where they can call them back. Even if you don’t have a voice recorder or you didn’t have time to turn it on, this data will help the police rein in debt collectors if they break the law, recommends Mikhail Korchagin, adviser to the law firm “Kazakov and Partners.”
A complaint against debt collectors can be filed with the market regulator (presumably this will be the Federal Bailiff Service), and also with the police.
When contacting the police, be sure to take a notification coupon indicating that your application has been accepted. The next time you call or meet with debt collectors, inform them that you are contacting law enforcement agencies. You can show them or send them a scan of the coupon by email. In some cases, this is enough for collectors to retreat, says Mikhail Korchagin.
True, you still need to ensure that your application is accepted. There are so many stories like this when people in uniform turned debtors away. They say it’s your own fault, get out of it yourself as you wish.
There is another way to solve the problem. Contact the same bank. After all, he was the one who submitted your debt for collection.
If you can’t repay the debt, try not to hide from the creditor, but call the bank and try to negotiate a recalculation. Offer to renew the relationship in exchange for the withdrawal of your case from the collectors, advises the head of Dolgi.ru Pavel Dashevsky.
As before, the borrower must take care of himself. To prove that debt collectors are breaking the law when communicating with him, you will need to present specific facts.
This is how overdue* loans grew, % of total loans
I quarter 2014 - 8.7
I quarter 2015 - 13
I quarter 2016 - 15
III quarter 2016 - 16
*from 30 days
(Data from the National Credit Bureau).
BY THE WAY
So far, according to the National Association of Professional Collection Agencies (NAPCA), in 10 months of this year, borrowers have complained about debt collectors more than 3,000 times. These are only official statistics, and we are talking about literate people who know how to at least try to protect their rights.
Don't get in, otherwise you won't be able to pull it...
The best way to avoid dealing with debt collectors is to avoid getting into unaffordable debt. What advice can you give to potential borrowers?
Do not apply for money to microfinance organizations (MFOs). They seduce financially inexperienced people with their availability. But the interest there is hundreds per annum. For a trifling 5 - 10 thousand rubles you have to pay many times more. And if you don’t make the payment on time, the penalties can become astronomical. You can accuse banks and microfinance organizations of irresponsible lending as much as you like (often this is true), but still they are not standing over you with a gun, forcing you to sign a loan agreement at all costs. Is it true?
Before getting a loan from a bank, think about whether you really need the thing you want to buy on credit. Use a “cooling off period.” Think it over, and if the desire remains, come back the next day. Or maybe after a couple of hours you’ll cool down and realize that you don’t really need this purchase.
If you still decide that you need a loan, calculate how much money you can then give to the bank. Monthly payments should not be more than half of your income (preferably less).
Compare loan terms from different banks. You need to find out the full cost of the loan (which also includes the fees charged by the bank).
Follow the payment schedule strictly. Avoid delays. Even a minor one can cost you a damaged credit history, and a significant one can cost you communication with debt collectors.
AND THERE WAS ANOTHER CASE
Unarmed but dangerous
I once took out a mini-loan of 7 thousand rubles for medicine. The pension is small and there is not enough money. Once I didn’t make a payment on time. And there were terrible penalties. Now the debt has grown to 25 thousand rubles. And collectors started calling me. They threaten that they will kill me and sell the apartment,” pensioner Tatyana Pavlovna cries.
I opened the mail and shuddered. They sent a photo of his wife with a mourning ribbon. And below is the signature: “This will happen if you don’t repay the debt,” says the borrower Vitaly.
He took out a loan (he urgently needed to repair his car), and then the man was laid off at work.
Debtors can be accused of carelessness. Loans still need to be repaid. But in the 21st century, such stories look, to put it mildly, a little outlandish. They pushed for the adoption of a special law on collectors.
But in fact, credit histories do have happy endings.
Within six months, a collection agency called me and assigned the debt of another woman, with the same last name, first name and patronymic. Then I called the bank, wrote letters to the prosecutor's office, the police and the Central Bank. I took one letter personally to the police station with a record of calls. After 5 days the calls stopped, Elena recalls.
Despite the fact that the concept of “collector” is firmly entrenched in the system of legal relations related to debt collection, the current Russian legislation does not regulate collection activities in any way. Currently, the Law on Collection Activities exists only in the form of a draft, with an unclear prospect of consideration and adoption.
Examining the rights, obligations and activities of collectors and collection agencies, today we can only talk about those provisions of the law that are applicable to the relationship between the creditor and the debtor regarding the latter’s failure to fulfill its loan obligations. Yes, exactly like that, and only like that. The legislation does not provide for any participation of collectors in such relationships. But this does not mean that absolutely all collectors work illegally. It’s just that their de jure status is completely different, although many debtors don’t even know about it.
Collectors - who are they?
The legal status of a collector (agency) is determined by three factors:
- The organizational and legal form chosen during registration is an entrepreneur (IP) or a legal entity.
- Special status - a financial organization (credit or non-credit), controlled by the Central Bank, or another, often a legal company. It is extremely rare, but sometimes lawyers take on collection functions.
- The powers that the collector has in the system of legal relations between the creditor and the debtor in accordance with the provisions of civil law.
The third factor is of greatest interest - it plays a major role in determining the rights of collectors:
- The collector acts within the framework of an agency agreement concluded with the creditor and a power of attorney, which must contain a list of rights and obligations.
- The collector entered into an agreement with the creditor on the assignment of rights of claim (in common parlance - the sale of debt). In this case, the collector’s status is virtually no different from a bank, microfinance organization or other primary creditor.
Rights of a debt collector acting as an agent
Acting as an agent, the debt collector is nothing more than an intermediary whose entire role is to provide debt collection services to the creditor. If we turn to the provisions of the Law on Consumer Credit (Loan), then all the rights of the collector in relation to the borrower can be reduced to a short but succinct definition - he can only politely and politely ask to repay the debt.
The mentioned law reduces the permissible actions of a collector to two directions:
- Direct interaction - telephone conversations and (or) personal meetings.
- Sending postal letters, telegraphic, text, voice and other messages transmitted via network telecommunications, including mobile radiotelephone.
It is important to note that all of the above actions can only be performed in relation to the borrower or the person who provided the security - the guarantor, guarantor, etc. Any other actions are illegal unless the borrower or the person providing the security has expressed their written consent to them.
Due to recent changes to the Law, collectors are expressly prohibited from:
- Require fulfillment of obligations earlier than the period established by the loan agreement or law.
- Call, conduct personal meetings, send SMS in the period from 22 to 08 o'clock on weekdays and from 20 to 09 o'clock on non-working holidays and weekends.
- Perform any action with the intent to cause any harm.
- Abuse the right in any form.
Rights of a collector under an agreement for the assignment of the right to claim a debt
By concluding a debt assignment agreement, the debt collector receives all rights regarding debt collection that previously belonged to the creditor. This means that the collector actually becomes a creditor in relation to a specific borrower.
With regard to the rights of the creditor and the person repaying the debt on behalf of the latter, the Consumer Credit Law does not make any special distinctions. Thus, the rights and obligations of a debt collector and a debt collector acting as an agent when interacting with a borrower regarding debt collection are identical.
At the same time, having the status of a creditor, the collector receives a number of rights that are unique to the creditor and directly follow from the provisions of the loan agreement and legislation. In particular, the creditor, acting on his own behalf, has the right to file a claim in court. As an agent, the debt collector can only provide legal services to the creditor. This is the approach often taken by debt collectors who are law firms and attorneys when acting as representatives of the creditor.
What Every Borrower Should Know
Whatever the status of the collector, he is not vested with the powers of law enforcement agencies and debt enforcement agencies (bailiffs).
The actions of a collector will be illegal in any case if he:
- Trying to get into the apartment without your consent. You generally have the right not to open the door to collectors.
- Takes actions to retain your property without a court order, or to draw up an inventory of property for the purpose of seizure. The latter is often used more as a threat: “we will come, we will describe and sell all your property for debts.” Such a threat can be regarded as extortion, and actions to illegally retain property can be regarded as arbitrariness.
- Cause damage to your property, the property of third parties or public property, for example, damaging your doors, locks, painting the walls in the entrance, not to mention the deliberate destruction of property.
- Threaten, insult, humiliate.
- Violate the confidentiality of legally protected data by any means and forms, in particular, disseminate personal information.
The legislation reserves the borrower the right to appeal and challenge any actions that he considers illegal and (or) unfounded. If the collector belongs to financial credit or non-credit organizations, applications (complaints) can be sent to the local office of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. This does not limit the right to judicial protection. You can also report illegal actions of debt collectors to the police, investigative authorities or prosecutor's office.