What to do when recovery agents come calling

There was a time your mother would threaten you with stories of the big black bear if you didn't eat your vegetables.

Those big black bears probably don't scare you anymore. Let's tell you something that will: loan recovery agents.

If you are lagging behind on your loan returns, you have just reason to be scared.

Calls and reminders are part of the deal. But, eventually, the bank or financial institution brings on the heavy artillery, the recovery agents. These people are notorious for their lack of tact. They can be rude, aggressive, threaten you outright.

Yet, you feel you can't do much to retaliate. You may be right.

• If you are facing this situation, criminal lawyer Satish Maneshinde (actor Sanjay Dutt's key lawyer), believes you can approach the courts. But lack of infrastructure for individuals means your case could go on for months.
• Many debt recovery companies are run by retired police officers, and this nexus makes things difficult.
• If you want to prove you have been threatened beyond the law, you must be able to prove it. That is why you need to record such calls and conversations for evidence.
• The judicial system has no comprehensive laws or regulations, just 'guidelines' by individual banks/ institutions.

Collection is partly governed by laws such as The Banking Regulation Act, 1949; The Negotiable Instruments Act and the Indian Contract Act, 1972; but there is no specific law at play.

In its guideline, the Indian Banks' Association specifically forbids the use of threats, but no wonder it has not held much sway.

But all is not lost. There are some things you can do to protect yourself:

i. Call up the bank. Complain bitterly. Besides their internal grievance mechanisms, you could also approach the bank's ombudsman, a popular global mechanism and something the IBA and Reserve Bank of India are enthusiastic about.

ii. Threaten litigation if need be.

iii. Go to the nearest police station and file a complaint.

iv. Take precautions against further calls. Keep a tape recorder handy. Make sure you get the agent to say clearly which institution he is from and what he wants from you. If you have the resources, you could then sue the bank.

v. If you do not want to get involved, approach a consumer action group.

Make sure you do not let the agents/ banks get away with bullying you.

When you were 10, you could hide behind your mother's sari. At 30, you have no such hiding place!

Have YOU faced a situation with a loan recovery agent? What did you do about it? Narrate your experience to us , mentioning your name, age, profession and the city you reside in. We would love to hear from you!

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