Currently, consumer loans are popular. More and more people prefer to conclude an agreement with a bank than to raise money for a purchase for a long time. Repaying the loan, the borrower can already use the car, TV or housing. There are no problems if payments are made regularly. However, unforeseen situations may arise, due to which the borrower becomes insolvent.
There are many similar factors. For example, a person who has taken out a loan loses his job or his salary is reduced. Naturally, this leads to the formation of late payments. At first, the bank employees will call the “unscrupulous” borrower, take an interest in the reasons and offer ways to repay the loan. However, if it is not possible to find a compromise solution, then collectors will take up the matter, many have heard about the methods of work.
Most often, they do not stand on ceremony with the borrower, begin to fill up with messages and calls. Many people even complain about the threats that they sound. And how many times a day can collectors call according to the law adopted in 2016? Do they have the right to disturb at night or on holidays? How to protect yourself from the actions of collectors? The reader will find answers to these questions in this article.
Collection Agency Activities: 2017 Changes
Ordinary people (in legal language - individuals) were not previously protected by law from the activities of collection agencies. To prove the fact of threats and other illegal actions is quite difficult even for an experienced lawyer. Thanks to the new law, in 2017 everything should radically change. The latest edition of Federal Law 230 was adopted on January 1. It says not only how many times collectors can call, but also how often to visit the borrower.
Let's take a closer look at the credentials of employees of such agencies.
- Notifications in various forms (letters to e-mail and address, SMS messages) are allowed to be sent no more than 16 times a month. On the day, their number cannot exceed two.
- Clear time limits for communication. On weekdays, collectors have the right to contact the borrower in the morning from eight o'clock until ten in the evening, and on holidays and weekends from 9:00 to 20:00.
- Personal meetings of employees of agencies involved in repaying an overdue loan may be appointed no more than 1 time per week.
- The law clearly spells out a limit on the number of calls that collectors can make. Norma - one call within 24 hours.
Let's consider innovations
In addition to the number of times collectors have the right to call borrowers, the new law also refers to streamlining the activities of these agencies.
- In order to be able to engage in debt collection, a legal entity must be registered.
- Assets of agencies (legal entities) cannot be less than 10 million rubles.
- A prerequisite is the registration of the official site.
- Insurance for more than 10 million rubles (risk of possible losses).
- All communication with the borrower (recording telephone calls, copies of written notifications and SMS messages) must be kept in the archive.
Weekends and holidays
Continuing to understand the question of how many times a day collectors should call, it is necessary to consider their activities in more detail. Often defaulters complain about calls on holidays and weekends.As a rule, Call-center operators work seven days a week, and many of them even around the clock, so they are always ready for a conversation. But for the borrower, this is what becomes a real problem. If at night you can turn off the sound in your phone in order to get enough sleep, then it is extremely inconvenient to remain without communication all day.
Unfortunately, the new law was on the side of the lender. They can choose any day of the week for communication, the only employees of collection agencies must adhere to a certain time period.
It is difficult to call such a decision reassuring for the borrower. It is important to remember that obstructing the activities of agencies is punishable by law, so defaulters are advised to take calls philosophically. You can completely refuse to communicate with collectors only after four months.
How many times a week can collectors ring?
Earlier, we figured out how many collectors under the new law can communicate by phone with the borrower per day. Now consider the allowable number of calls per week. Until January 2017, employees of debt collection agencies could disturb the borrower without any restrictions. Now everything has changed dramatically. Under the new law, the activities of collectors are clearly defined. Violation of these standards is unacceptable. Even with the fact that one call to a deadbeat is allowed per day, but their number should not exceed two per week.
Talk about the details
It is important for non-payers to know not only how many times a day they can call collectors, but also whether they have the right to disturb friends, relatives, neighbors, work colleagues. By law, collection agencies must have written permission to process personal data. In this case, communication can be not only with the non-payer, but also with third parties. Consent to data processing, as a rule, is obtained by banks when issuing a loan or a loan. At present, a deal cannot be concluded without him.
If the loan was issued under the guarantee of a certain citizen, then in case of untimely repayment of the debt, the bank has every right to collect the debt from it. How many times a day collectors can call in this case is determined by the same rules prescribed in the law for the borrower.
Relatives who live with the debtor cannot completely get rid of communication. The only thing that can be advised in such a situation is to remind callers about their rights. According to the law, they cannot demand loan repayments from relatives of the borrower, so you just need to remind collectors to call the deadbeat directly. However, there are some nuances in this matter. For example, the spouse of the borrower is responsible for the loan taken. In addition, after the death of the non-payer, his heirs, who entered into the rights, will also be obliged to return the debt, so the calls of the collectors are quite legitimate.
Time frame. How to protect yourself?
The law clearly spells out not only how many times a day collectors can call, but also how much communication time is limited. The interval varies depending on the day of the week. On weekdays, you can only bother the borrower with calls from eight in the morning until ten in the evening. This time frame is also reserved for personal meetings and sending messages.
If the collectors violate the law, the borrower has the right to file a request to verify their actions. To do this, you need to record late calls or SIM-messages and contact the law enforcement authorities.
What is forbidden?
The law prohibits not only how many times a day collectors can call, but also other actions. Let's look at them.
- In no case is it permitted to harm the health of the borrower.
- Collectors do not have the authority to spoil or take away the property of the debtor.
- It is forbidden to threaten, be rude when talking on the phone or in meetings.
- Under the new law, collectors cannot exert psychological pressure.
- It is not allowed to humiliate the borrower.
- It is unacceptable to use weapons or other objects for threats.
- Information about the borrower should not be shared with third parties.
- Demanding the return of debt from the relatives of the non-payer (if they are not guarantors or heirs), applying threats to them is strictly prohibited.
Who do not have the right to call collectors?
If employees involved in collecting a problem loan cannot contact the debtor, then they begin to call his relatives. The Federal Law 230 clearly defines the list of people whom collectors do not have the right to disturb under any circumstances.
- It is forbidden to make calls to pregnant women, as well as those who have children under the age of one and a half years.
- It is not allowed to communicate with people who are being treated in a hospital.
- Relatives over 70 cannot be disturbed even by informative calls.
- It is forbidden to send notifications or communicate over the phone with people with a first disability group.
What if calls continue?
Having understood how many times a day collectors can call, what time and days, the borrower will be able to feel protected. If communication becomes very intrusive, then each debtor has the right:
- Contact the prosecutor with a complaint about a violation of the law.
- Visit the bank's management with a request to end calls from 10 p.m. to 8 p.m.
- If the callers are not presented, then the borrower can write a statement stating the fact of extortion.
It is recommended that the debtor apply to the bank with an official request in order to find out if calls are allowed at night, and how much they should be received. The organization is required to respond to these issues with a written notice. This document will help protect the rights of the borrower.