Draft law on collection activities. The State Duma adopted a law on collection activities. How will violators be punished?

Yesterday, the chairmen of the Federation Council and the State Duma, Valentina Matvienko and Sergei Naryshkin, introduced a bill on collection activities to the lower house. According to the document, collectors will be able to continue their work, but will be limited by very strict rules. In addition, the joint initiative of the speakers of the chambers of parliament will create conditions for protecting the rights of debtors and streamline the activities of legal entities carrying out debt collection activities on an ongoing basis.

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 is where 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.

At the beginning of this year, the Federation Council took seriously the task of resolving the situation in the collection market. The upper chamber received a huge number of appeals, a significant part of which were related to debt collection loan agreements carried out by so-called professional collectors, or collectors.

Fearing that violation of the rights of debtors through the use of unfair methods of influence on them will lead to increased social tension, Speaker of the Chamber Valentina Matvienko announced the need for the speedy adoption of a law on collection activities, which in its current form, in her opinion, has acquired the character of a “criminal business.” At the same time, several bills on this topic have been in the State Duma for a long time, but for one reason or another they have never been submitted to parliament for consideration.

Yesterday, the fundamental document was introduced on behalf of the chairmen of the chambers of parliament. The very fact of such co-authorship speaks of the seriousness of the problem and the prospects for the speedy adoption of the document. As Valentina Matvienko explained, the authorities thus quickly responded to the topic of the day and the request of society. And the chairman of the relevant State Duma Committee on financial market Nikolai Gonchar promised that deputies would consider the bill as a matter of priority.

Commenting on the amendments, Valentina Matvienko said that they became necessary in order to henceforth prevent forceful actions against debtors and psychological pressure on them. It should be borne in mind that legislators did not abolish the obligation of debtors to pay loans, but tried to establish a balance of interests of lenders and borrowers. According to the main provisions of the bill, it is necessary to eliminate threats to the life and health of debtors, save them from intimidation and home invasions, prevent the dissemination of information discrediting them, and also prevent the illegal use of information constituting personal data.

The document proposes that the government determine a body that will maintain a register of debt collectors, where any respectable business structures can officially register. The same body should be given control over debt collection activities.

The bill carefully prescribes the rules for interaction with debtors of banks, microfinance organizations, other creditors and debt collectors. Thus, the collector has the right to call the debtor no more than 2 times a week and meet with him no more than 1 time a week. Communication with the debtor is prohibited from 20.00 to 9.00 on weekends, from 22.00 to 8.00 on weekdays. When interacting with citizens, collectors will not be able to use devices that hide the caller's number and email address.

At the same time, the borrower is given the right to refuse to interact with a bank, microfinance organization, or collection agency after a certain period. In the bill, this period is defined as three months from the moment the overdue debt arose, but during the second reading in the State Duma it can be reduced to one or two months. This time will be quite enough for the credit institution or collection agency to convey to the debtor all necessary information.

The amendments emphasize that the transfer of personal data about the debtor to the claimant who has acquired the rights of claim is allowed only with the personal consent of the debtor, recorded in separate document. The collector is also required to maintain a list of employees who have access to information about clients, and documents and audio recordings confirming interaction with the debtor must be stored for 3 years.

As for interaction with a debt collector, when collecting debts, “the use of physical force, threats of its use, harm to health, damage to property, psychological pressure, misrepresentation” and other methods are not allowed. Collectors are deprived of the right to interact with incapacitated persons, citizens in medical institutions, disabled people, minors. A veto was also imposed on interaction from outside Russia.

It is noted that employees with a criminal record for crimes in the field of economics and public safety, or managers with a damaged business reputation will not be allowed to participate in debt collection activities. For violating the rules of interaction with the debtor, the claimant will face a much more impressive fine than before - 2 million rubles instead of 200 thousand.

The bill also stipulates the activities of legal entities: they have the right to engage in debt collection, provided that this is their main activity. Another condition is that they have an authorized capital of at least 10 million rubles.

Thus, legislators formulate legal system, which strictly regulates collection activities, and thereby provide legal grounds for law enforcement agencies, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other structures to carefully monitor the implementation of legislation in order to take adequate measures if necessary. Valentina Matvienko is convinced that those collection agencies, who abused their rights, “terrorized people, kicked them out, and did not repay the debt,” will be forced to leave the market after the bill is passed. "IN current legislation“There is essentially no legal regulation of debt collection activities from individuals,” she clarified. Parliament intends to establish all fundamental barriers to ensure that there are no more such egregious cases as in Ulyanovsk, and that there are strict limits on legal interaction creditors and debtors.

At the same time, Matvienko assured that after the adoption of the law, conscientious businesses will feel good. There will be no place left in the market only for those collection agencies that have consistently abused their rights. The speaker of the Federation Council did not rule out that during the discussion in the lower house of parliament some amendments would be made to the bill. "But conceptually nothing will change, and the entire bulk of norms legal regulation the bill provides for it,” she emphasized.

Infographics RG/Anton Perepletchikov/Angelina Zhukova

Yesterday, the St. Petersburg court read out another verdict to the unruly collector. He received a suspended sentence of 1 year and 6 months for being in the entrance of the house in which the debtor lives. The burning stroller, according to the collector, should have scared the debtor.

The arson took place last summer. Damage to residents amounted to 16 thousand 500 rubles, and the fire also damaged property worth 321 thousand rubles. But the collector was mistaken - the strollers he set on fire did not belong to the debtors.

In just one week in February, judging by reports from law enforcement agencies across the country, debt collectors dealt with threats, damage to property, and slander on social networks.

Here are just the most egregious cases.

In Moscow, debt collectors are harassing a woman named Olga. She paid the loan until she found herself unemployed last May. After this, relatives, friends and Olga herself began to be terrorized, first with calls. The collector threatened to burn her child. This outrageous telephone conversation was published by one of the portals. The debt collector reminded Olga over the phone about the incident when a Molotov cocktail was thrown through the debtor’s window and a man and a child were injured. Even the victim’s words that she was recording the conversation did not stop him. Olga contacted the police. After two collectors, who by the way came from the Volgograd region, tried to break into the apartment where Olga and her sister and their children were, the police took the couple away. The bank apologized through gritted teeth.

In Novosibirsk, the head of a family took out a microloan to buy a sled and winter clothes for a child. I paid most of it, but then I lost my job and stopped making payments for a month. Collectors sent a photo of the debtor’s wife to family friends on social networks, on which they wrote prices for the provision of intimate services. After that, on behalf of the woman’s relative, they sent out a photo of their one-year-old daughter with the caption “We remember, we love, we mourn,” although the child is alive and well. The woman, who suffered from debt collectors, has already sued the bank for compensation for damage.

And in Perm, collectors promise the debtor's guarantor a public death penalty. A friend of a local resident took out a loan a small amount. At the end of the year I paid in full. But her friend began receiving threatening messages. In them, the collectors offered to repay the debt, and if they refused, they promised the women cruel punishment. The police are checking the statement. But the threats continue.

In Perm, for several years now, collectors have been sending threatening letters to an 80-year-old pensioner. They demand the debt of a deceased grandson who took out a loan for a computer. A copy of the death certificate was provided to the collectors. But the threats continue.

In Chelyabinsk, a married couple was tormented by automatic dialing. Their relative took out the microloan debt. The police opened a case under the article “Extortion committed with threat of violence.”

In Omsk, a mother of two children is threatened by debt collectors with giving her entire family a heart attack and stroke. Debt - 5 thousand rubles.

In Yaroslavl, collectors defaced the entrance, writing in red paint which apartment the debtor lives in.

In Omsk, a lady collector hinted to the debtor about explosions in educational institutions. The debtor has a child - a schoolboy. A recording of the conversation appeared on the Internet.

And in Samara, a collector threatened to blow up a school because of a physical education teacher who took out a microloan. A criminal case has been opened.

In Rostov-on-Don, a trial begins against a debt collector who threatened to blow up a kindergarten for his father’s debt of 6 thousand rubles. The family received death threats. After his call to the kindergarten, the collector was detained. Now he faces 4 years.

The share of Russians' overdue loans has reached a record high over the past seven years - 11.84 percent.

The number of problem loans is also growing. Thus, in the segment of cash loans, the growth was 10 percent, here there are problems with payments on 7.5 million loans, on credit cards - an increase of about 15 percent (more than 5 million loans), on car loans - 10 percent (up to 200 thousand), on mortgage - 15 percent (up to 110 thousand loans). With a total number of loans of 38-40 million, about 12.7 million are overdue.

The average amount of overdue debt also increased over the year: in the car lending segment the growth was 19.68 percent, up to 282.8 thousand rubles, for credit cards - 83.92 percent, up to 73.9 thousand, for cash loans - 31.54 percent, up to 80.78 thousand, on mortgage - 8.49 percent, up to

1.175 million rubles. Add here almost a trillion rubles of housing and communal services debts. And there are also taxes, alimony and other payments.

Among borrowers with one loan, 25 percent have a problem loan, and with three or more - almost every second. People say the main reasons for delay are difficult financial position(about 80 percent), including job loss, temporary unemployment, reduction in income against the backdrop of sharply rising inflation, and increased spending on essential goods. About 5 percent of debtors complain about debt overload and the inability to restructure the debt. But the share of those who cited the impossibility of repaying the debt due to exchange rates decreased, which indicates an adaptation to the prevailing market conditions.

The President of the Russian Federation signed Federal Law No. 230-FZ of July 3, 2016, which even before its adoption caused a stir in the ranks of both debtors and collectors, and which both were waiting for, although they were counting on different results. The so-called law on collectors, which in reality is called On the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of individuals when carrying out activities to repay overdue debts and on amendments to the Federal Law “On microfinance activities and microfinance organizations”, has finally been adopted and, with the exception of certain provisions, has already entered into force.

To begin with, it is worth warning those debtors who have debt in the housing and communal services sector. The restrictions of the new law on collectors do not apply to debtors for housing and communal services. Although there are many such debtors in Russia. According to the Ministry of Construction, as of September last year, the debt of Russians for housing and communal services amounted to 504.35 billion rubles. based on the results of the 2nd quarter of 2015. Without delays, only 60% of the population pays for housing and communal services. However, the law does not affect debts for housing and communal services. True, there is one exception. In the event of the transfer of powers to collect debts for housing and communal services to credit organizations or legal entities equivalent to them, collectors will be required to act within the framework of the new law on debt collectors. This means that all the requirements of the new law will apply to them.

What does a debt collector have the right to? For personal meetings and telephone conversations, telegraphic, text, voice and other messages transmitted over telecommunication networks, including mobile radio telephone communication; postal items at the place of residence or place of stay of the debtor. However, for each item the limitations of such interaction are specified. Direct interaction between the creditor and the debtor is not allowed on weekdays from 10 pm to 8 am and on weekends and non-working holidays from 8 pm to 9 am local time at the debtor’s place of residence or stay. However, personal meetings are possible no more than once a week. The debtor cannot communicate by telephone with the debtor more than once a day, more than twice a week and more than eight times a month. There are also restrictions on telegraphic, SMS and other written and oral messages about debt. They cannot be sent on weekdays from 10 p.m. to 8 p.m. and on weekends and non-working holidays from 8 p.m. to 9 a.m. local time at the debtor’s place of residence or stay, a total of more than 2 times a day, more than 4 times a week , more than 16 times a month.

Before communication, the debtor must be informed of the full name of the creditor or someone acting on his behalf, the name of the creditor and the full name of the person acting on his behalf. This applies to both personal and telephone, as well as any other interaction with the debtor.

Written messages additionally indicate a telephone number, information about the creditor, including name, OGRN, TIN, location, postal address, email address, full name and position of the person who signed the message and a number of other documents.

What is the creditor not entitled to? To use physical force against the debtor and other persons or the threat of its use, the threat of murder or harm to health; destruction or damage to property or threat of destruction or damage to property; to use methods that are dangerous to the life and health of people, to exert psychological pressure on the debtor and his relatives, to commit other actions that degrade honor and dignity; to mislead the debtor and other persons regarding the amount of the debt, transfer the issue of debt repayment to court, criminal prosecution, etc.

The law provides for the possibility for a credit institution to enter into a written agreement with the debtor for additional interaction. However, there is protection from the fine print. By law, the debtor may at any time refuse to fulfill such an agreement by notifying the creditor or a person acting on his behalf and in his interests. To do this, you must send the creditor a notice of your refusal. through a notary or by mail by registered mail with notification of delivery or by delivery against receipt. Upon receipt of such notice, the creditor or his authorized representative has no right to interact with the debtor in the ways provided for by the agreement.

A ban has also been introduced on communication with the debtor’s relatives, with the exception of two conditions that must be met simultaneously. The creditor must have the debtor's consent to interact with a third party to repay the debt, and this third party has not expressed disagreement with the interaction with him. However, the lender must have such documents in writing.

What is the debtor entitled to? Refuse to interact with the lender. Or transfer the functions of such interaction to your representative, although only a lawyer can act as a representative.

Such a refusal is subject to certain restrictions. The debtor may refuse to interact with the creditor no earlier than 4 months from the date of delay in loan payments. Before this, you will have to communicate with the lender within the framework of the law. In addition, if there is a court decision on the collection of overdue debt from the date of its entry into legal force, the debtor’s application for refusal to cooperate is suspended for 2 months. That is, if there is judicial act The right to claim the debt by any means permitted by the law on debt collectors is returned to the creditor. If you did not refuse to interact with the lender before court decision, an application for refusal to cooperate can be sent after 1 month from the date of entry into force of the judicial act on the collection of overdue debt.

It is necessary to clarify that the form of such an application has not yet been approved and will appear later. In addition, in this part the law will come into force only on January 1, 2017. Now the debtor does not have the opportunity to refuse communication with the creditor. On the other hand, if there are any inaccuracies in your application, the lender is obligated to explain to you how to correctly fill out the application from the interaction.

The Law on Collectors strictly limits the circle of persons who have the right to claim overdue debts.

Firstly, the creditor, that is, directly the microfinance organization or bank that issued you the loan, has the right to communicate with the debtor. When the right to claim a debt is transferred, the new creditor receives the right to repay the debt. In addition, a person acting on behalf and in the interests of the creditor can engage in “debt collection”.

The law limits the circle of both new creditors and representatives of creditors. Both of them can be an operating credit institution or a person for whom the activity of collecting overdue debts is the main activity and this is included in State Register. A legal entity whose main activity is debt collection must, among other things, comply with several more rules. They must have an agreement compulsory insurance liability for causing losses to the debtor when carrying out activities to return overdue debt with an insured amount of at least 10 million rubles. in year; they must have a website on the Internet, have equipment, software, meeting the requirements established authorized body, must be included in the register of operators processing personal data. There are also a number of requirements, including separately for the founders and members of the board of directors of such companies.

Any creditors and collection agencies are prohibited from disclosing information about the debtor, his overdue debt and its collection, and any other personal data of the debtor to an unlimited number of persons, including by posting information on the Internet or in (on) a residential premises, house, or any other building or structure , construction, as well as a message at the debtor’s place of work.

To return the debt, the creditor can involve only one collection agency (or credit institution). Moreover, in some cases, neither the creditor nor his representative has the right to interact with the debtor. Among them, declaring the debtor bankrupt (or recognizing the validity of the debtor’s bankruptcy petition), in the presence of documents indicating that the debtor is deprived of legal capacity or has limited legal capacity, is undergoing treatment in a hospital, is a disabled person of group 1 or is a minor.

There are a couple more important points. Firstly, texts demanding debt repayment sent by mail must be written in a clear, easy-to-read font. Secondly, creditors can call only from subscriber numbers allocated on the basis of an agreement on the provision of telephone services concluded between the creditor or its representative and the telecom operator. They are prohibited from hiding information about the number contact phone number from which a call is made or an SMS is sent to the debtor, as well as the email address from which the message is sent, or the sender of the email.

The punishment for violation by creditors or their representatives of the law on debt collectors is spelled out in another document signed by the president on the same day - Federal law t July 3, 2016 No. 231-FZ.

Lenders face lower penalties for violating the law. For citizens in the amount of 5 thousand to 50 thousand rubles; for officials - from 10 thousand to 100 thousand rubles. or disqualification for up to a year; for legal entities – from 20 thousand to 200 thousand rubles.

If the law on interaction with debtors was violated by a legal entity whose main activity is the collection of overdue debts, that is, a collection agency, the punishment will be more severe: officials faces a fine of 20 thousand to 200 thousand rubles. or disqualification for up to a year; for legal entities – from 50 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. or administrative suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

The second law also requires that the credit history of the debtor, transferred to repay the debt to a new creditor or agency, be stored in the same bureau credit histories where it was previously stored.

Accounting and reporting

Review of judicial practice

The President of the Russian Federation signed Federal Law No. 230-FZ of July 3, 2016, which even before its adoption caused a stir in the ranks of both debtors and collectors, and which both were waiting for, although they were counting on different results. The so-called law on collectors, which in reality is called “On the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of individuals when carrying out activities to repay overdue debts and on amendments to the Federal Law “On microfinance activities and microfinance organizations””, has finally been adopted and with the exception of certain provisions have already entered into force.

Debtor and creditor: rights and obligations

What does a debt collector have the right to? For personal meetings and telephone conversations, telegraphic, text, voice and other messages transmitted over telecommunication networks, including mobile radiotelephone communications; postal items at the place of residence or place of stay of the debtor. However, for each item the limitations of such interaction are specified. Direct interaction between the creditor and the debtor is not allowed on weekdays from 10 pm to 8 am and on weekends and non-working holidays from 8 pm to 9 am local time at the debtor’s place of residence or stay. However, personal meetings are possible no more than once a week. The debtor cannot communicate by telephone with the debtor more than once a day, more than twice a week and more than eight times a month. There are also restrictions on telegraphic, SMS and other written and oral messages about debt. They cannot be sent on weekdays from 10 p.m. to 8 p.m. and on weekends and non-working holidays from 8 p.m. to 9 a.m. local time at the debtor’s place of residence or stay, a total of more than 2 times a day, more than 4 times a week , more than 16 times a month.

The law provides for the possibility for a credit institution to enter into a written agreement with the debtor for additional interaction. However, there is a “fine print protection” here. By law, the debtor may at any time refuse to fulfill such an agreement by notifying the creditor or a person acting on his behalf and in his interests. To do this, you must send the creditor a notice of your refusal. through a notary or by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt or by delivery against signature. Upon receipt of such notice, the creditor or his authorized representative has no right to interact with the debtor in the ways provided for by the agreement.

What is the debtor entitled to? Refuse to interact with the lender. Or transfer the functions of such interaction to your representative, although only a lawyer can act as a representative.

Such a refusal is subject to certain restrictions. The debtor may refuse to interact with the creditor no earlier than 4 months from the date of delay in loan payments. Before this, you will have to communicate with the lender within the framework of the law. In addition, if there is a court decision on the collection of overdue debt from the date of its entry into legal force, the debtor’s application for refusal to cooperate is suspended for 2 months. That is, if there is a judicial act, the right to claim the debt is returned to the creditor by any means permitted by the law on debt collectors. If you did not refuse to interact with the creditor before the court decision, an application for refusal to interact can be sent after 1 month from the date of entry into force of the judicial act on the collection of overdue debt.

Who can carry out collection activities?

The Law on Collectors strictly limits the circle of persons who have the right to claim overdue debts.

The law limits the circle of both new creditors and representatives of creditors. Both of them can be an operating credit institution or a person whose main activity is the collection of overdue debts and this is included in the state register. A legal entity whose main activity is debt collection must, among other things, comply with several more rules. They must have concluded a contract of compulsory liability insurance for causing losses to the debtor when carrying out activities to return overdue debts with an insured amount of at least 10 million rubles. in year; they must have a website on the Internet, have equipment and software that meet the requirements established by the authorized body, and must be included in the register of operators processing personal data. There are also a number of requirements, including separately for the founders and members of the board of directors of such companies.

To repay the debt, the creditor can involve only one collection agency (or credit institution). Moreover, in some cases, neither the creditor nor his representative has the right to interact with the debtor. Among them, declaring the debtor bankrupt (or recognizing the validity of the debtor’s bankruptcy petition), in the presence of documents indicating that the debtor is deprived of legal capacity or has limited legal capacity, is undergoing treatment in a hospital, is a disabled person of group 1 or is a minor.

There are a couple more important points. Firstly, texts demanding debt repayment sent by mail must be written in a clear, easy-to-read font. Secondly, creditors can call only from subscriber numbers allocated on the basis of an agreement on the provision of telephone services concluded between the creditor or its representative and the telecom operator. They are prohibited from hiding information about the contact phone number from which a call is made or an SMS is sent to the debtor, as well as about the email address from which the message is sent, or about the sender of the email.

What threatens creditors for failure to comply with the law?

Punishment for violation by creditors or their representatives of the law on debt collectors is spelled out in another document signed by the president on the same day - Federal Law No. 231-FZ of July 3, 2016.

If the law on interaction with debtors was violated by a legal entity whose main activity is the collection of overdue debts, that is, a collection agency, the punishment will be more severe: officials face a fine of 20 thousand to 200 thousand rubles. or disqualification for up to a year; for legal entities – from 50 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. or administrative suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

The second law also requires that the debtor's credit history, transferred to repay a debt to a new creditor or agency, be stored in the same credit history bureau where it was previously stored.

On June 21, 2016, the State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted the law on collectors in the final third reading. Official name document “On the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of individuals when carrying out activities to repay overdue debts.”

The adopted law prohibits debt collectors from calling the phone more than twice a week, threatening the debtor or his relatives, causing damage to property, and also seeing the debtor more than once a week. In addition, collectors do not have the right to call at night - from 22 pm to 8 am, and on weekends - from 20 pm to 9 am.

Contacts with minors, incapacitated persons, disabled people of the first group, and patients in hospitals are completely prohibited.

Also, if previously collectors could hide their phone numbers, now this is prohibited, and the same applies to email. It is impossible to disclose information about the existence of a debt to third parties without the consent of the debtor.

It is especially important that the debtor now has the right to prohibit collectors and creditors (banks, microfinance organizations, etc.) from calling him and arranging personal meetings, but only if at least four months have passed since the delay occurred. To do this, the debtor must draw up a corresponding application to the creditor or collection agency. At the same time, the debtor will need to receive confirmation that collectors or creditors have received this application.

If the debtor has filed for bankruptcy of an individual and a restructuring procedure has been introduced against him, he is released from the obligation to pay in arrears.

For violations of the rules of the law on collection activities, collection agencies can be fined from 50 thousand to 2 million rubles. To engage in debt collection activities, authorized capital agency must be at least 10 million rubles and the agency must be included in the register.

Who will this law not help?

This law on debt collectors does not apply to debtors who are individual entrepreneurs. If the loan was received from individual for an amount of up to 50 thousand rubles, or this individual has received the right to demand payment of the debt as a result of an assignment agreement, then the law will also not protect such a debtor

Debtors for housing and communal services, if their debt has not been transferred to collectors or a bank, will also not be able to rely on the provisions of this law.

The law also does not apply to residents of Crimea who are debtors to Ukrainian banks.

When will the law on debt collectors come into force?

According to experts, after this bill comes into force, overdue debt under already concluded loan agreements will increase significantly, as well as the number of fraudsters who will take out loans and borrowings and then not repay them. To minimize risks, lenders will be forced to tighten requirements for borrowers and, possibly, increase interest rates on loans; the number will increase statements of claim to debtors regarding debt collection.