DEBT COLLECTION-SALARY ACCOUNT ATTACH

Dear Client,
A credit card holder is held personally liable for non-payment of the outstanding amount of the loan/credit card. If a suit for recovery of an outstanding loan from the borrower is filed by the Bank before a Civil Court/DRT, after hearing both parties Court may even pass an order for attachment of immovable or movable property of the borrower for recovery of the loan including attachment of salary account of the defaulter borrower. Until and unless an injunction order is passed by a Court restricting the harassment of recovery agents, a copy of the OS petition would not serve any purpose. As per the RBI Guidelines, Banks/NBFC/FI are advised to ensure that the contracts with the recovery agents do not induce the adoption of uncivilized, unlawful, and questionable behavior or recovery process. In the context, reference is invited to (a) Circular DBOD.Leg.No.BC.104/ 09.07.007 /2002-03 dated May 5, 2003, regarding Guidelines on Fair Practices Code for Lenders (b) Circular DBOD.No.BP. 40/ 21.04.158/ 2006-07 dated November 3, 2006, regarding outsourcing of financial services and (c) Master Circular DBOD.FSD.BC.17/ 24.01.011/2007-08 dated July 2, 2007 on Credit Card Operations. Banks/NBFCs are strictly advised to adhere to the guidelines/code mentioned above during the loan recovery process. In the given situation, filing a complaint against the recovery agents of the concerned Banks/NBFCs at the local Police Station, a copy of the said complaint should be sent to the said Banks/NBFCs. Further, a complaint against the loan recovery agents appointed by Banks can be made to the regulatory authority RBI online on the Digital Complaint Management System (CMS) Portal: https://cms.rbi.org.in/cms/IndexPage.aspx. This is a unified portal for grievances related to banking, NBFC, and digital transactions. In a recent judgment, the Hon'ble Patna High Court in the case of Dhananjay Seth v. Union of India, 2023 SCC OnLine Pat 1393, decided on 19-5-2023 directed the Superintendent of Police of all the districts in the State of Bihar, to ensure that within their jurisdiction no recovery agent of the Bank and Financial Institution might take the law into their hands without an order of the competent court of law. Further, a quick counseling session with a certified credit counselor can help you discover your options and choose the right path to resolve or settle the matter.