Debt collection agencies and their unlawful practices

Debt collection agencies should not be confused with legal firms. They are commercial for-profit companies, and the collection procedures and enforcement techniques they utilize often go beyond the bounds of law. More specifically, the practices of debt recovery, enforcement, and the arbitrary increase of outstanding debts by the imposition of “collection costs”, which they collect directly from debtors, are illegal. Moreover, debt collection activities conducted by such agencies encroach with the exclusive powers of lawyers and bailiffs established by Law and the Greek State.

Time and again the case law and the Hellenic Consumers’ Ombudsman have found the methods and procedures followed by debt collection agencies utterly illegal and unethical.

According to Law 3758/2009, as amended by Law 4038/2012, Collection Agencies are prohibited to use unlawful and misleading practices towards their debtors, such as:

1. During the communication with the debtor, the company’s employees falsely imply an identity different than their own, such as employees of the creditors, lawyers or process servers.
2. Exercise any kind of physical violence or psychological pressure towards debtors or their family about risking their job, their property or their life.
3. It is prohibited to Show provocative behaviour or use insulting expressions against debtors or their family.
4. Slander or threat to slander the debtors at their workplace or family.
5. Take advantage of circumstances of objective weakness of the debtor.
6. Threat to take unlawful measures against the debtor.
7. Misleading information of the debtor.
8. Visit debtors at their house or workplace, as well at other strictly personal places, such as hospitals.
9. Disturb debtors’ family within the meaning of case 4.
10. Misleading use and presentation of documents that falsely imply that they are documents issued by the court.
11. Any kind of communication including inaccurate information about the consequences of non-payment.
12. Communicate with debtors for debts resulting by abusive general terms of transactions judged as abusive by irrevocable judicial decision as well as the terms mentioned at the ministerial decrees issued by the authority of paragraph 21, article 10 of the law No 2251/1994 (GG 191Α), in the version in force.