Parliament passes Bill to stamp out 'problematic' debt collection tactics as MPs flag concerns like fairness of screening process
The number of police reports lodged against debt collection companies went up from 134 in 2015 to 590 in 2018, and averaged around 255 in the past three years.
Concerns over whether the screening process will be discriminatory, and questions on what would constitute problematic debt collection conduct were debated before the law introducing the regulatory framework was passed.
The Debt Collection Bill was introduced by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) last month, and came after a high number of police reports were made against errant debt collection companies and collectors over the past few years.
Tabling the Bill, Ms Sun Xueling, Minister of State for Home Affairs, said that an average of 367 reports against the conduct of debt collection businesses and debt collectors was filed each year from 2018 to 2021.
"The reports were mainly against debt collection tactics aimed at pressuring debtors into payment by causing public embarrassment and inconvenience to them," she said. "Such tactics have attracted significant public attention and affected the public’s sense of safety and security."
