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Unfair advertising of bankruptcy proceedings: what the "debt collectors" are hiding
In Russia, about 300,000 people go bankrupt every year. There are thousands of companies that help in this process, but they are guided solely by the interests of their clients and their own pockets.
Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets: “According to our estimates, this year alone our citizens paid these unscrupulous people about 50 billion rubles.”
Such companies even have their own name - "debt debtors". They are fast, efficient and promise to bankrupt a person with a guarantee. But in reality, such companies cannot guarantee anything.
Dmitry Rezyapkin, deputy director of a company that helps with bankruptcy: "A very important point is that the result of the procedure does not always lead to debt forgiveness. At the end of the trip, only the judge will decide whether to forgive the debt. That is, this promise, or, as they say in advertising language, the offer to guarantee that we will write off your debts, is nothing more than a play on words and an attempt to encourage people to use these services."
And this is just one of the clever ways to attract potential clients. In their ads, they promise not only to forgive debts, but also to keep all movable and immovable property.
Anton Mikhailov, director of a company that helps with bankruptcy: "You can't write off alimony debts, you can't write off damages, damages to third parties, damages caused by a crime. And, of course, you can't pay off a debt if a person acted in bad faith."
In addition, for the next five years after bankruptcy, you cannot become bankrupt, open an individual enterprise or become the head of a financial institution. And even after the procedure is completed, these "cannots" are kept silent. They decided to fight them at the highest level. The State Duma is currently developing a bill regulating the advertising of bankrupt companies.
Anton Mikhailov, director of a company that helps with bankruptcy: "We cannot say that a person can get rid of all debts without restrictions. It is important to describe in detail all the consequences of the bankruptcy procedure. That is, negotiations with creditors, taking credit holidays, agreeing to a possible restructuring and, if an individual meets the parameters, then, in fact, a free bankruptcy procedure through the MFC."
However, bankruptcy through the MFC is not available to everyone. First of all, the debt amount must be from 25,000 to 1 million rubles.
Maria Medvedchuk, Head of the Corporate Regulation Department: "Firstly, on this basis the bailiffs did not find property subject to recovery and terminated the enforcement proceedings. Secondly, the citizens are pensioners or recipients of childbirth and child-rearing benefits. Thirdly, debt collection continues for at least seven years."
While you're reading, additional items may appear in your account. For example, experts suggest banning "puns."
Dmitry Rezyapkin, deputy director of a bankruptcy assistance company: "A very common manipulation that has been used for a long time is as follows: We guarantee that we will declare bankruptcy for you or pay off your debts on your behalf. But there are two points here. Usually, such companies do not have the authorized capital to pay off. And the second point is very important. Bankruptcy is declared at the beginning of the process, and the judge ultimately decides whether the bankrupt will be released from debts."
The bill's sponsors expect the bill to be passed by the end of this year.