Important to know before you settle any debt

When settling your debt and negotiating settlement thereof, you may encounter debt collectors as debt can be assigned to debt collectors by the creditors.

How Should I deal with Debt Collectors

As of 11 August 2003, all debt collectors, whether they are employed by a company or operate individually, have to register with the Council for Debt Collectors. Therefore, if you doubt the credibility of a debt collector, you can and ought to confirm whether that debt collector is in fact registered with the Council for Debt Collectors.

Council for Debt Collectors Contact Details:
310 Brooks Street, Menlopark, Pretoria, 0081
Telephone: (012) 804 9808
Facsimile: (012) 804-0744
Email: info@cfdc.org.za / https://www.cfdc.org.za/

Debt collectors are tasked with collecting money that is owed and are usually not interested in the debtors’ circumstances. As soon as an account has been handed over to them, they will take steps to recover the money owed to the credit provider concerned. Debt collectors are usually paid a percentage of the amount collected and it is therefore essential to their collection business that they recover as much as possible from the debtor. It is important that a debtor verifies any claim that a debt collector may make. After all, the debtor has a legal right to a statement of the amount claimed. As per Section 113 of the National Credit Act:

“A credit provider must deliver, without charge to the consumer, a statement of the amount required to settle a credit agreement. The credit provider is obliged to deliver the statement to you within five business days and the statement may be delivered orally or in person, or by telephone, or in writing, either to the consumer in person or by SMS, mail, fax or email or other form of electronic communication.”

Should the debt collector refuse to send a copy of a statement or loan document, the debtor can lodge a complaint with the Debt Collectors Council. If the debtor is dissatisfied with an account for payment that a debt collector gives, the debtor may request that the clerk of the magistrate’s court, or a committee of a provincial legal practice council, to tax assess the statement of costs, interest and payment claimed, at the prescribed fee of R20.

The Legal Practice Council

Website: https://lpc.org.za/

The Legal Practice Council – NATIONAL OFFICE
851 River View Park Street │Riverview Office Park │Halfway Gardens │ Midrand │ 1685
Tel: +27 (0) 10 001 8500 │Fax: +27 (0) 12 323 2606
E-mail: info@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – GAUTENG PROVINCIAL OFFICE
Procforum Building│123 Paul Kruger Street│ Pretoria│ 0002
P O Box 1493 │Pretoria │0001 │Docex 50│Pretoria
Tel: +27 (0) 12 338 5800 │Fax: +27 (0) 12 323 2606
E-mail: infogp@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – FREE STATE PROVINCIAL OFFICE
139 Zastron Street│Westdene│Bloemfontein│9300
P O Box 319│Bloemfontein│9300│Docex 49│Bloemfontein
Tel: +27 (0) 51 4473237│Fax: +27(0) 51 4307369
E-mail: infofs@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – WESTERN CAPE PROVINCIAL OFFICE
26th & 27th Floors | Foreshore Place
A 2 Riebeek Street│ Cape Town│ 8001
P O Box 4528 │Cape Town │8000 │Docex 124│Cape Town
Tel: +27 (0) 21 443 6700 │Fax: +27 (0) 21 443 6751/2
E-mail: infowc@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCIAL OFFICE
1ST Floor│200 Hoosen Haffejee Street│Pietermaritzburg│3201
P O Box 1454│Pietermaritzburg│3200 │Docex 25│Pietermaritzburg
Tel: +27 (0) 33 345 1304│Fax: +27 (0) 33 394 9544
E-mail: infokzn@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – LIMPOPO PROVINCIAL OFFICE
2nd Floor Maneo Building │ 73 Biccard Street (cnr Jorrisen) │Polokwane│ 0700
Tel: +27 (0) 15 590 0389
E-mail: infolp@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – NORTHERN CAPE PROVINCIAL OFFICE
219 Du Toitspan Street | Belgravia | Kimberley
Tel: +27 (0) 53 0500508/9
E-mail: infonc@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – MPUMALANGA PROVINCIAL OFFICE
01 Parkin Street | The Pinnacle Building | Suite 501 | Nelspruit
Tel: +27 (0) 17 200 2487
E-mail: infomp@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – NORTH WEST PROVINCIAL OFFICE
ERF 45205 | Unit 11 | Palmer Crescent |
Leopard Park | Mahikeng
Tel: +27 (0) 18 011 0093
E-mail: infonw@lpc.org.za

The Legal Practice Council – EASTERN CAPE PROVINCIAL OFFICE
44 Pearce Street | Berea | East London
Tel: +27 (0) 43 050 1025
E-mail: infoec@lpc.org.za

How to File a Complaint with the Debt Collectors Council

A complaint to the Debt Collectors Council must be in the form of a written affidavit and must state the date, time and particulars of the incident in question, the name of the debt collector and the name of any witnesses to the incident in question. Within fourteen days of receiving the complaint, the Debt Collectors Council must inform the debt collector concerned of the complaint. The debt collector then has five days within which to respond to the complaint.

What debt collection practices are unacceptable?

Debt collectors are acting illegally if they:

• commit assault, intimidation, trespassing and harassment;
• use physical force against you or to enter your property;
• block access to your premises
• trespass on your premises after you have asked them to leave, or return after you have told them they are not permitted on your premises
• embarrass or intimidate you through other people
• engage in misleading conduct
• pretend unpaid debts are a criminal offence involving the police or possibly jail
• provide you with false notices designed to look like court documents
• threaten that they are going to tell other people about your situation
• use abusive, racist or obscene language designed to demoralise or humiliate you
• attempt to tire you out by phoning you more than two or three times per week, late at night or very early in the morning
• contact you at work, even though you have asked that you not be contacted at work and have, in fact, given alternative contact details to the debt collector.