what can a debt collection agency actually do if someone refuses to pay up?

CSIRL in message #11 you mention the Irish Law governing debt collectors (3rd Party act??) Can you guide me to where exactly I could find that on net please???

Thank you for your time
 
There are no laws governing debt collectors. They are subject to the same laws as the rest of us.
 
bond-007 said:
There are no laws governing debt collectors. They are subject to the same laws as the rest of us.
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Precisely. There are no specific laws governing them as they have no legal status in Ireland - in the eyes of the law, they are members of the public.
 
So they literally run on fear of the average Joe, explains why when sent a letter to tell them they have no permission to interfere and then told if they communicate further they will be dealt with by way of harrassment and extortion they disappear, excellent. Gentleman I thank you.
 
Re: Debt Collection agency

ClubMan said:
Can debts not be "sold on" or otherwise transferred?
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bond-007 said:
Of course they can but it is really not done in Ireland. Collection agencies are just brought in to try and collect on behalf of the creditor. In the UK debts are routinely sold to these types of agencies who then own the debt and can use the courts to collect.
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How times have changed.
 
Any debt can be sold to a debt collector and their collection of the debt is independant of the original defaulted debt. Say you owed the bank the last 4k of a loan and couldn pay it back, if the bank wrote the 4k off they would sell the debt to a collection agency for maybe €100 (guesstimate) The agency will then look for the 4k from you using threats that will not be initiated, this is my experience anyway, I even got the ICB report stating that debt was written off, debt collector got minimal amount from me, just didn't pay them anymore and they never came after me, probably recovered their cost of debt from me and let rest go. I would fear them anymore anyway thats for sure.
 
Taslett said:
Any debt can be sold to a debt collector and their collection of the debt is independant of the original defaulted debt. Say you owed the bank the last 4k of a loan and couldn pay it back, if the bank wrote the 4k off they would sell the debt to a collection agency for maybe €100 (guesstimate) The agency will then look for the 4k from you using threats that will not be initiated, this is my experience anyway, I even got the ICB report stating that debt was written off, debt collector got minimal amount from me, just didn't pay them anymore and they never came after me, probably recovered their cost of debt from me and let rest go. I would fear them anymore anyway thats for sure.
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Wow... aren't you the clever one :rolleyes:. No wonder this country is going the wrong way up.. christ almighty...
 
Wonder will the TD's that have overspend the tax payers money will have to pay it back or will they get a black mark on the credit rating or perhaps a DCA will be sent out to recover it from them and send them threatening letter and telephone calls.

How much does these debt collecting agency (DCA) pay for debts I expect they are sold off for peanuts say 10cents per euro owning on the debts. If a debt is over 5 years then it is statued barred. Also if there is no valued credit agreement between the loan company and the purchaser then it will be very difficult to prove that the debt is owned, DCA's usually purchase these debts in bulk and often there is no valued agreement.
 
You fail to understand how debt collectors operate here. They do not buy debts for a start. They all operate on a commission basis. So if they collect €1000 of a debt they may get €200 of it. For them to buy a debt they would need to have the debt assigned to them and the debtor must be informed that the debt now belongs to the DCA. The DCA can bring proceedings in its own right if they own the debt.

The statute of limitations is 6 years for a debt.
 
I understand that they would make an application to your county court in order to register a judgement. If you turn up to the hearing with evidence on why you didn't pay and can back this up there is a possibility that a judge may look kindly on it. However if you simply ignored them or refused to pay the judgement will probably go against you.

It would certainly make sense at this point to make a realistic offer in writing to the debt collector based on a realistic assessment of what you can afford, no matter how small. If they refuse this it would work in your favour if the case then goes to court.

I know a few years ago it was very common (though pretty much unreported in the media) that a lot of banks etc would refuse to accept offers from clients who had missed payments due to changes in circumstances etc and just continue to demand the entire amount back. Even if you go through MABS the lender is not bound to accept any offer from you, but if they refuse and then go to court, it will stand against them if there is considerable evidence that you made a real effort.

Intrum Justitia are well established in this business, but as far as I know the debt collectors here are only service agents. Not sure what exactly the law is regarding the purchase of consumer debt in Ireland. I believe the original loan right now remains with the original lender, which is only correct since they are the ones who took the risk in the first place.
 
Regardless of who owns the debt or whether or not its been sold, a debt collection agency has no power to enforce collection of a debt. The only person who is authorised to turn up at your house and demand payment is the County Sherriff who is a public servant.
 
hopefully not off-topic, but how do i sell on a debt owed to me by a tenant who has defaulted on rent when i have no written contract with them (only verbal)?
 
can i get other tenants in the house to attest to his presence in pursuit of making a legitimate claim against him.. or any other options?
 
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