Debt Recovery Agencies

By Colin McGregor

You are in debt. A debt collection agency is trying to get you to repay your debt. They harass you day and night, even going so far as to contact members of your family by email. It’s a nightmare that can violate your rights.

The level of debt among Quebec households worries a lot of people. People who accumulated debt when interest rates were low have to rethink their budget now that rates are a little higher and inflation has raised prices generally.

To recover debts, some who are owed money turn to debt collection agencies. They must have a permit from the Office de la protection du consommateur to operate. Their permit can be suspended if they do not conform to the law.

– The debt collector can only communicate with the debtor from 8 am to 8 pm, Monday to Saturday;

– The debtor can require that they only be communicated with in writing;

– The first communication must be in writing;

– The collector cannot threaten, harass or intimidate the debtor;

– The debt collector cannot discuss your file with other people, including those you live with and, of course, your children or other relatives!

– The collector cannot let the debtor think that they can sue or have the debtor arrested and sent to prison;

– The debt collector cannot threaten to seize belongings.   

On their websites, these collection agencies boast of their ability to recover sums due. When you stop talking to them, they continue to harass: they use electronic means, text messages, automated emails… “For me it’s shocking to read that” says Annik Lafrenière, a lawyer at Community Legal Services of Pointe-Saint-Charles and Little Burgundy.

Too often, kids are targeted. “Your mother hasn’t paid her debts… and this, despite the fact that they aren’t supposed to talk to anyone in your family.” Visiting a lawyer can help.

Lafrenière observes: “For these people in debt, their stress levels are elevated. Loss of job, loss of family, loss of housing, expulsion from their housing, all their belongings on the street… Generally they have access to social assistance. They fear losing what they have. Often these agencies send threatening letters.”

Lafrenière suggests that you “get to know your rights. Never admit you owe money. Don’t believe what an agency says to you without contacting a lawyer, a legal aid clinic, or the Office de la protection du consommateur.”

– Annik Lafrenière wrote for the community newspaper Vues sur la Bourgogne, which sadly closed its doors last summer.  

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*