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    რეზიუმე - Journal Law and World

    Volume 9, Issue 1


    A NOTE FOR THE NEED TO REGULATE PRIVATE DEBT COLLECTORS’ ACTIVITIES IN GEORGIA – EXISTING REGULATORY GAP AND SELECTED COMPARATIVE APPROACHES

    Authors: Gvantsa Elgendashvili

    Gvantsa Elgendashvili

    Doctoral Candidate of Law at Central European University, Vienna, Austria

    Email: Elgendashvili_Gvants@phd.ceu.edu



    Affiliation: Doctoral Candidate of Law at Central European University, Vienna, Austria

    Abstract: The economic recession, COVID-19 pandemic, growing indebtedness of the consumers, and enhancement of credit borrowings such as credit cards, personal and household loans have led to the growing numbers of the credit default, and the subsequent surge of the debt collection practices in the World and Georgia is no exception. Even though private debt collection is necessary on the market, it usually involves abusive or unfair practices towards the debtors in the debt recovery process. This Article identifies an existing regulatory gap in the field of private debt collection and analyzes traditional branches of Georgian law to answer the question of whether they can tackle and prevent abusive and unfair debt recovery practices. It also gives an overview of the selected regulatory responses – Anglo-Saxon systems (the United States and the United Kingdom) possessing the most developed system. The specific focus rests on the building blocks of an efficient regulatory system touching upon the private debt collection activities with the idea that will follow the best practice and fill the regulatory gap.

    Keywords: Private debt collection, Abusive and unfair practices, Harassment, Validation of debt, Licensing, Private action, Public action


    Language: EN

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    ბიბლიოგრაფია:

    1. Law of Georgia on Enforcement Proceedings, Article 146 , No. 1908 (1999).
    2. Law of Georgia Criminal Code of Georgia, No. 2287 (1999).
    3. Law of Georgia on Entrepreneurs, No. 875-VრსXმპ (2021).
    4. Law of Georgia on Licenses and Permits, No. 1775 (2005).
    5. Law of Georgia on Consumer Rights Protection, No. 1455-VIIIმს-Xმპ (2022).
    6. National Conference of State Legislatures, State Fair Debt Collection Statues (2021),
    7. The Consumer Credit Act (2006) (as amended).
    8. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Handbooks, Link
    9. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), CONC 7.3 Treatment of Customers in Default or Arrears (Including Repossessions): Lenders, Owners and Debt Collectors (CONC 7.3.4), Link
    10. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), The FCA’s Duties and Powers Link
    11. FCA’s Approach to Enforcement Link
    12. Consumer Credit Sourcebook (CONC), a combination of Standards, General Principles for Business Link
    13. The FSMA, Regulated Activities Order (2001), Link
    14. Consumer Rights Act (2015), Link
    15. Botta, A., Caverzasi, E., & Russo, A. (2020). Fighting The Covid-19 Crisis: Debt Monetisation and EU Recovery Bonds. 55(4) Intereconomics
    16. Business Media Georgia, Private Debt Collecting Companies Fined for Disclosing Personal Data (2018) Link
    17. Coleman, M.A. (2004). Collection Management Handbook: The Art of Getting Paid. (2nd end.). John Wiley & Sons Inc
    18. Deville, J. (2015). Lived Economies Of Default: Consumer Credit, Debt Collection and The Capture of Affect. Routledge.
    19. Ferretti, F. (Ed.). (2016). Spooner, J. (2016). Comparative Perspectives of Consumer Over-Indebtedness: A View From The UK, Germany, Greece, And Italy. 25(3) International Insolvency Review.
    20. Finlay S. (2009) Consumer Credit Fundamentals.
    21. Fox, J. (2012). Do We Have Debt Collection Crisis Some Cautionary Tales of Debt Collection in Indiana. 24(3) Loyola Consumer Law Review.
    22. Gardner J., Gray M. (2022). Regulation of Abusive Informal Debt Collection Practices. The U.K. Debt Collection Industry: Why Regulation is not Enough in Regulation of Debt Collection in Europe.
    23. Gow, H. R., Streeter, D. H., & Swinnen, J. F. (2000). How Private Contract Enforcement Mechanisms Can Succeed Where Public Institutions. Agricultural Economics, 23(3).
    24. Kurowski, Ł. (2021). Household’s Overindebtedness During the COVID-19 Crisis: The Role Of Debt And Financial Literacy. Risks, 9(4).
    25. Landes, W. M., & Posner, R. A. (1975). The Private Enforcement of Law. 4(1), The Journal Of Legal Studies
    26. Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia, Report on the State of Personal Data Protection and Activities of the Inspector (2020), (2018) and (2017) Link
    27. Stănescu, C. G. (2021). Regulation of Abusive Debt Collection Practices in the EU Member States: An Empirical Account. 44(2) Journal of Consumer Policy.
    28. Stănescu, C. G., Albanezi A. (2022). Romania’s Struggle to Regulate Abusive Debt Collection Practices in Regulation of Debt Collection in Europe
    29. Tajti, T. (2019). A Holistic Approach to Extra-Judicial Enforcement and Private Debt Collection: A Comparative Account of Trends, Empirical Evidences, and the Connected Regulatory Challenges -Part One. Pravni Zapisi.
    30. Tajti, T. (2020). A Holistic Approach to Extra-Judicial Enforcement and Private Debt Collection: A Comparative Account of Trends, Empirical Evidences, and the Connected Regulatory Challenges - Part Two. Pravni Zapisi.
    31. Whaley, D. J. (2020). Problems and Materials on Consumer Law. Aspen Publishers.

    სქოლიო:

    1. Coleman, M.A., (2004). Collection Management Handbook: The Art of Getting Paid. (2nd end.). John Wiley & Sons Inc. Preface XIV, p. 1.
    2. Tajti, T., (2019). A Holistic Approach to Extra-Judicial Enforcement and Private Debt Collection: A Comparative Account of Trends, Empirical Evidences, and the Connected Regulatory Challenges -Part One. Pravni Zapisi, (2), p. 278; Stănescu, C. G. (2021). Regulation of Abusive Debt Collection Practices in the EU Member States: An Empirical Account. Journal of Consumer Policy, 44(2), p. 179; Ferretti, F. (Ed.). (2016). Spooner, J. (2016). Comparative Perspectives of Consumer Over-Indebtedness: A View From The UK, Germany, Greece, And Italy. International Insolvency Review, 25(3), p. 241-244; See generally, Deville, J. (2015). Lived Economies Of Default: Consumer Credit, Debt Collection and The Capture of Affect. Routledge.
    3. Botta, A., Caverzasi, E., & Russo, A., (2020). Fighting The Covid-19 Crisis: Debt Monetisation and EU Recovery Bonds. Intereconomics, 55(4), p. 239-244; Kurowski, Ł. (2021). Household’s Overindebtedness During the COVID-19 Crisis: The Role Of Debt And Financial Literacy. Risks, 9(4), p. 62.
    4. Coleman, M.A., (2004).
    5. Whaley, D. J., (2020). Problems and Materials on Consumer Law. Aspen Publishers, p. 785.
    6. Fox, J., (2012). Do We Have Debt Collection Crisis Some Cautionary Tales of Debt Collection in Indiana. Loyola Consumer Law Review, 24(3), p. 359.
    7. Stănescu, C. G., (2021), p. 180.
    8. Whaley, D. J., (2020).
    9. See Landes, W. M., & Posner, R. A., (1975). The Private Enforcement of Law. The Journal Of Legal Studies, 4(1), 1-46 (regarding general privatization of law enforcement); Gow, H. R., Streeter, D. H., & Swinnen, J. F. (2000). How Private Contract Enforcement Mechanisms Can Succeed Where Public Institutions. Agricultural Economics, 23(3), pp. 253-265.
    10. Law of Georgia on Enforcement Proceedings, Article 146,No. 1908 (1999). Link
    11. Tajti, T., (2019), p. 294.
    12. Personal Data Protection Service of Georgia, Report on the State of Personal Data Protection and Activities of the Inspector (2020), (2018) and (2017) Link
    13. Business Media Georgia, Private Debt Collecting Companies Fined for Disclosing Personal Data 2018 Link
    14. Tajti, T., (2019), p. 294; Florida Statutes Title XXXIII, Chapter 559, section 559.542.
    15. Law of Georgia Criminal Code of Georgia, No. 2287 (1999). Link Article 151 (Threat) “A threat of killing, damaging health or destroying property, when a person threatened has started to have a reasonable sensation of fear that the threat will be carried out […]”; Article 181 (Extortion) “Extortion, i.e. demanding another person to hand over property or title in property or the right to use property by threatening to use violence against the victim or the victim’s close relative or to destroy or damage their property or to make public the information that may damage their reputation or otherwise damage substantially their rights […]”.
    16. Law of Georgia on Entrepreneurs, Article 1(1), No. 875-Vრს-Xმპ (2021) It “regulates the legal forms of an entrepreneur, the procedures for their incorporation and registration, and issues related to their activities”.
    17. Law of Georgia on Entrepreneurs, Article 4(3); Law of Georgia on Licenses and Permits, No. 1775 (2005). Link Article 1(1) states that the law provides for the exhaustive (comprehensive) list of all permits and licenses that are required in Georgia
    18. Tajti, T., (2019), p. 297-298 (stating that licensing requirements together with disciplinary powers can end up unsuccessful if tactics of debt collectors are not regulated in sector-specific laws).
    19. Law of Georgia on Consumer Rights Protection, No. 1455-VIIIმს-Xმპ (2022). Link
    20. Tajti, T., (2020). A Holistic Approach to Extra-Judicial Enforcement and Private Debt Collection: A Comparative Account of Trends, Empirical Evidences, and the Connected Regulatory Challenges - Part Two. Pravni Zapisi, p. 18.
    21. See further discussion, Stănescu, C. G., (2015). Self-Help,Private Debt Collection and the Concomitant Risks: A Comparative Law Analysis. Springer, p. 217.
    22. See generally, The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692-1692.
    23. 15 U.S.C. §1692a(6).
    24. Ibid. §1692.
    25. See the list of the States adopting mini-FDCPAs, National Conference of State Legislatures, State Fair Debt Collection Statues (2021). [Last seen 10.09.2022] Link
    26. Stănescu, C. G. (2015), p. 218.
    27. Ibid
    28. Ibid. p. 220.
    29. Tajti, T. (2020).
    30. The Consumer Credit Act (2006) (as amended); See Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Handbooks Link [Last seen 30.11.2022].
    31. See Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), CONC 7.3 Treatment of Customers in Default or Arrears (Including Repossessions): Lenders, Owners and Debt Collectors (CONC7.3.4). Link
    32. See Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), The FCA’s Duties and Powers Link [Last seen 30.11.2022]; See also, FCA’s Approach to Enforcement Link [Last seen 30.11.2022]
    33. Link
    34. The FSMA, Regulated Activities Order (2001). [Last seen 01.02.2023] can be accessed from Link (Article 39F states that the debt collectors fall under the scope of “credit intermediaries”; the same applies under the Article 3 (f) of Parliament and Council Directive 2008/48/EC1 Directive on Credit Agreements for Consumers).
    35. CONC 7.11.1.
    36. CONC 7.3.2, 7.3.2A, 7.3.6.
    37. CONC 7.3.5 (1).
    38. CONC 7.10.
    39. Consumer Rights Act (2015) Link [Last seen 01.02.2023].
    40. Ibid. s 62(4).
    41. Gardner J., Gray M. (2022). Regulation of Abusive Informal Debt Collection Practices. The U.K. Debt Collection Industry: Why Regulation is not Enough in Regulation of Debt Collection in Europe. p. 206.
    42. Ibid. p. 207.
    43. Ibid. p. 213.
    44. Stănescu, C. G. (2015), p. 230-231.
    45. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FCDPA) Link [Last seen 01.02.2023].
    46. Stănescu, C. G., Albanezi A. (2022). Romania’s Struggle to Regulate Abusive Debt Collection Practices in Regulation of Debt Collection in Europe. p. 168.
    47. Ibid. p. 169.
    48. Operating without authorization is considered a criminal offence in the U.K. See Finlay S. (2009) Consumer Credit Fundamentals. p. 79.
    49. See Stănescu, C. G., Albanezi A. (2022). p. 169.
    50. Ibid. p. 171.
    51. Ibid. p. 174.
    52. Ibid. p. 175.
    53. Ibid. p. 176.
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