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Interview with the Director of “Global Credit Solutions LTD” SRL to the www.brw.md publication on the collection services market in Moldova:
Financial literacy. Often, we increase its level, already having behind us an unpleasant experience, pretty tickled my nerves and seriously hit my pocket. The representative of perhaps the smallest profession in Moldova, the director of one of the Chisinau collection agencies “Global Credit Solutions LTD” SRL, Mr. Baragan Sergey told BRW about the national market for collection services and shared a secret on how not to fall into the debt hole.
What does the collection services market in Moldova look like today?
Actually, the first agencies specializing in this industry and forming the national collection services market today appeared not so long ago, about 6-7 years ago. At the moment, the main “players” in the collection services market, there are about 5 companies. For example, PFB Collection specializes in the banking sector and leasing companies, while Incasa focuses on the legal recovery of debts in cooperation with the courts. Each of the representatives has its own specialization, which is why the agencies practically do not touch. In the classical sense, a “collection agency” is usually engaged in collecting debts of both financial institutions and microcredit organizations. Also among the agencies there are those that depart from the classical system and specialize in collecting private debts. The collection agency Global Credit Solutions LTD SRL also provides this service, but in addition to collecting private debts in Moldova, it also provides exclusive collection of commercial debts of our citizens abroad in more than 80 countries of the world. However, the general principle of cooperation with a collection agency remains unchanged: “no penalty – no fee.”
Who can contact a collection agency for help?
Any natural or legal person capable of proving the existence of a debt in his favor. If we talk about the debts of individuals of pre-trial nature, a proof of transfer of money followed by a mandatory return can serve as a receipt, a notarized loan agreement, a lease agreement with acts of transfer, etc. Unfortunately, correspondence in social networks, mobile applications or email does not serve as a sufficient basis for initiating the work of a collection agency. In addition, according to the current legislation, any transaction exceeding the amount of 1000 lei must be executed in writing. If we talk about legal entities, then the evidence base for the presence of debt is most often the contract. If the relations between the parties are of a one-time nature, which does not imply the execution of agreements as a separate document, the client can provide a tax invoice. There is a third case, which excludes the presence of the listed documents and concerns debts for payment of construction works, where the acceptance certificate is considered the basis for the presence of debt.
Can the transfer of personal data to a collection agency by an individual or legal entity be considered a disclosure of personal data?
According to the Law on the Protection of Personal Data, due to the fact that there is a written contract between the creditor and the debtor. This is automatically considered an act of exchange of personal data and, by default, gives the right to use such information by both parties if necessary. The injured party may ask a third party to resolve the problem and provide the details of the debtor. In addition, it is worth mentioning that the collection agency has the legal right to act on behalf of its client, since the agreement concluded with it involves the transfer of the right to claim.
How does the fight against troubled debtors begin?
A request for help is received from a party interested in receiving money, after which a contract is concluded and the cost of work is negotiated, which depends on the size of the debt and the presence / absence of a court decision on the existing problem. Following is the process of collecting and processing personal data. In the activities of a collection agency, an individual approach to each psychotype of a debtor is an important factor. The specifics of working with various categories of dishonest payers, as a rule, remains a commercial secret of a collection agency and is not disclosed to the general public.
Which category of people most often falls into the category of non-payers?
As a rule, these are pure scammers, but the stories are different. Unscrupulous “characters” enter into confidence in a potential borrower, talk about super-business and its development prospects, and then disappear. Another common mode of action for scammers is the publication of messages on popular sites, announcements of willingness to take a round sum of loans at a percentage. With a high probability, the funds you trust will not be returned. It also happens that a person who provides lending services maliciously creates conditions (unreasonably high interest on loans or deliberate failure to notify of possible fines) that contribute to the rapid growth of the amount of debt and lead to the borrower’s inability to pay off the debt. In this situation, the collection agency most often acts as an intermediary in the search for a way out of the conflict situation that will suit both parties.
How does a collection agency affect evaders?
The collection procedure consists of 3 stages. The first step is to conduct a superficial investigation of the problem and assess the financial situation of the non-payer. Then a letter with a claim is sent to the debtor and a conversation is held to urgently resolve the debt situation. At this stage, psychological methods of influence are also used. Further, based on the cause of the debt, when notifying the payer about the possible filing of a lawsuit against him, or applying a set of administrative measures against him, it is proposed to draw up a schedule for paying off the debt. If none of the above leads to the desired result, an analysis of the assets. This makes it possible to understand whether a person is actually unable to repay a loan due to a lack of finance. After that, a decision has already been made to transfer the case to law enforcement if there are elements of a crime (for example, fraud) or if a lawsuit is filed in court to recover the debt.
How to avoid becoming a victim in a payer-payer relationship?
If you act as a lender to a private person, you need to remember the iron rule – take a receipt. Money spoils any relationship, and due to the fact that yesterday it was inconvenient for you to ask your friend to draw up such a document, tomorrow you may find yourself in an unpleasant situation. Speaking about the banking sector, where you are a party taking money on credit, you should pay attention to the text of the loan agreement, the percentage of the loan, hidden fees, and take an interest in penalties. Bank employees act according to the job description, persuading the client as they can. Most often, a person is not able to sensibly assess his strength in an unsecured loan, but the type of loan, which implies the provision of a pledge of his property, makes you think. Care should also be taken to the so-called “interest-free loans”, which, if you look at them, are not. Such advertising moves are not very relevant to large banks, because their reputation is important to them, and they are quite common among credit organizations. “Interest-free loan” may mean “interest-free lending period”, that is, interest is not taxed, for example, only the first two months of loan repayment.
Despite the numerous warnings of specialists in the field of lending, there are still cases of using someone else’s passport data for obtaining loans.
Help:
Such an act is regarded as a violation of Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova, according to which the deliberate submission of false information in order to obtain a loan is punishable by a fine in the amount of 1,500 to 3,000 conventional units or by imprisonment for a term of 2 to 6 years.
In addition, the Criminal Code provides for liability for fraud (Article 190 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova) and for causing property damage through fraud or breach of trust (Article 196 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova).