February 27, 2023, 13:37 – BLiTZ – News
The Russians are slowly sinking into debt. While specialists are concerned about the debt load of the population, the debtors themselves are concerned about the actions taken by the bank. It’s about collectors. What to do if they call you and your relatives and how to conduct a conversation correctly, Aleksey Lashko, financial expert, head of the Assistance Group, told the BLiTZ.
How to protect yourself from calls
Often, credit organizations and collectors first of all begin to disturb the inner circle of the debtor. How should relatives behave if they are called, and they are not a party to the contract, that is, neither a guarantor nor a pledger?
This happens when the creditor, in consent to the processing of the client’s personal data, has sewn up consent to the processing of data of contact persons provided to them. Relatively speaking, the client asked the contact person for permission and then gave the consent to the processing of his personal data to the creditor.
“What you need to do: write a free-form application to the bank stating that you do not agree to the processing of your data. And a professional collector will no longer be able to call you because it would be illegal. While there is no corresponding statement, it is considered that the data is processed correctly, and you agree with everything, ”Aleksey Lashko advised.
Never be rude
The specialist does not advise being rude, threatening and swearing, because all conversations with collectors are recorded and stored for 3 years. And, of course, it can be used against you.
“I personally know the practice of collection agencies, when criminal cases were opened for insulting their employees. And they were well researched. Because at the stage of negotiations, a person is presented to the collector at the time of execution, which is not an individual, but a representative of a legal entity, a creditor. Nervous borrowers like to say all sorts of nasty things to representatives of the collection agency. And then get “hello” – a knock on the door from the district police officer, ”the expert said.
How collectors work
Today, collectors no longer walk with bats and do not threaten violence. Now his task is to convince the client that it is more profitable for him to pay off the creditor than to continue to run away from him. There are dozens of ways professional collectors convince.
“In 2020-2021, the exhortation “you are still young, you still get a mortgage, but here the debt hangs unpaid” was relevant. And young people paid off the delinquency, which was then filmed at the credit bureau so that they would be approved for a mortgage at a reduced rate. It was more profitable for them to pay off creditors than to refuse to improve their living conditions, ”the specialist gives an example.
Sometimes collectors offer to resolve the issue in a different way: quickly file bankruptcy and automatically write off all debts. Should they be trusted? Of course not.
“The real cost of the bankruptcy service is about 200 thousand rubles. This is a lengthy procedure and it is not a fact that all debts will be forgiven the borrower. And collectors usually say that law firms, which are now spawning in Russia, will get rid of debts. This is not entirely true. And then it will not be possible to achieve the truth even in court. Such promises from collectors will be assessed not as a municipality, but rather as an intermediary or an expensive “lesson” in financial literacy,” Alexey Lashko explained.
If the debt is secured
The block of secured loans stands apart, when money is issued against the security of real estate or a vehicle. Oddly enough, many debtors believe that if the bank “forgot” about them, collectors do not knock on the door, which means that everything is fine. But this is not so, you still have to pay with property.
“The procedure for foreclosing a property is quite long, it can take 1.5-2 years before entering the auction. And the borrower all this time thinks that nothing is happening, there are no auctions, he did a good job and beautifully deceived the lender.
The result – at some point, new owners will knock on his door and begin to make repairs, take out property, doors, and even the borrower himself. Thus, the sooner the borrower agrees with the lender, the better. And you can’t run all the time. But usually the level of financial literacy of our borrowers is so low that they do not want to hear and perceive the position of the creditor,” the expert stated.
There are many examples when people were evicted under mortgage agreements. Although initially the creditors offered to resolve the issue with little bloodshed: either return the money or sell the object, get the money and pay off the debts. But borrowers do not initially consider such offers reasonable.
“But when it comes to bidding, the object is valued below its real value. And a person may not even get anything. But the lender will receive. It is important for him that the object quickly leave the auction, even if with a significant discount,” said Alexey Lashko.
There is another of the unpleasant consequences of having a debt: the impossibility of further lending. That is, when a person decides to become an entrepreneur or sell goods on marketplaces, he is faced with the fact that development opportunities are limited. Therefore, if possible, pay off old debts and try not to take out loans if you are not sure that you can repay them.
Earlier, lawyers told how to cheaply redeem your overdue debt or mortgage from the bank. They also explained how to fix your credit history.
