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Transcript of Indian Banks Data
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Normal debt recovery procedurefollowed by banksNormal debt recovery procedure will generally apply to the debtors who are willing to pay the dues with
normal recovery process. Based on the regulatory guidelines of procedure of tribunal on debt recovery,
following procedure may be outlined for such recovery. However the recovery agents should follow the
bank-specific debt recovery procedure as advised by their principal. Below are given the main rules for
making telephone calls and visit to the debtor for recovery of dues:
1) The recovery agent has been authorized by the bank to collect the past due debt from the particularcustomer.
2) The customer has been notified by the bank of the details of the recovery agent for collection of the
past-due debt.
3) Making customer calls: This is the first step in recovery procedure and following rules should be
followed generally:
Calls are made from the same number as advised by the bank to the customer.
The agents disclose his identity and authority at the first instance.
The agent contacts the debtor between 0700 hours and 1900 hours, unless the special circumstance of
his/her business or occupation requires the bank to contact of a different time. Under no
circumstances, can the customer be called beyond 2100 hours.
All calls where the customer becomes abusive or threatening should be appropriately documented.
Customers question be answered in full. They should be provided with information requested and given
assistance in making recovery. Minor issues should be resolved.
How often to call customer/ The purpose of a collection call as to bring to the Customers notice the
obligation and to seek a commitment to pay on a specified date. Once a promise is elicited a call may be
made to serve as a reminder and for confirmation of payment.
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If the customer is not available during a few calls made by the agent, a message may be left to an adult
family member as follows Please leave a message that ABC had called and request the customer to call
ABC back at the given phone number. The message should not indicate that the customer ABC has
overdue amount , or the call originated from a Recovery agency.
4) Visit to customer (debtor) This would be the second step in collection process. Following procedureshould generally be followed.
(i) A customer should be visited for debt collection only after these conditions are satisfied;
The debtor has not paid the due amount within the days of grace and the dues are still outstanding
against him/her.
The debtor has been notified of the amount due and also of the name of the collection agent.
The collection agent has taken an appointment from the debtor for the visit.
(ii) During visit, the agent should be in proper dress and appearance, or wear the dress prescribed by the
principal and follow the timing and place of the visit as per the principals or RBI/IBA code, unless
otherwise agreed by the debtor expressly.
(iii) At the first stance, the agent should utter salutation words (like good morning/eveningsir/madam,
as per custom of the bank). The agent should thereafter show his ID card and authority given by theprincipal for debt collection from the debtor./ Only after these initial formalities, the conversation
regarding debt collection should start.
(iv) The time of visiting the customer will be generally between 0700 hours to 2100 hours. Visits earlier
or later than the prescribed time may be made only under the following conditions:
When the customer has expressly consented to that timing.
When attempts to contact the customer have resulted in information that the customer is normally only
available outside these hours and no alternate telephone number is available to contact him/her,
When due to nature of the customers employment i.e. working in shifts e.g. call center, hotel. He/she is
usually available outside these hours.
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(v) The agent should respect privacy of the debtor. Privacy policy as discussed above for calls would
apply during visits also.
(vi) During the visit, due respect and courtesy should be shown to the customer and the interactions
should be civil and polite as per the principals policy.
(vii) During interactions with the debtor, the agent must not use threats or intimidation verbally or by
body language. Under no circumstances, any physical violence be used in debt collection process.
Debt recovery processes
followed by Indian BanksBanks lay down theirpolicyand procedure for collection of past due debts in conformity with the legaland regulatory framework. The banks will in particular, abide by:
The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) directives on recovery of debt, including recovery agentsengaged by the bank and,
The Model Policy on collection of Dues and Repossession of security framed by the Indian BanksAssociation.
A bank will normally incorporate its policy and procedure for debt recovery in the arrangement entered
into its recovery agents. In terms of the recovery management agreed with the bank, the recovery
agents should adhere to the policy, procedure, etc. prescribed by the bank.
Debt recovery processes
Debt recovery processes can be typically of following kinds, each involving different procedure:
Difficult recovery process where the debtors are not willing to pay and who intentionally resistor avoid recovery efforts: The recovery agent has to follow special process of recovery against
the recalcitrant defaulters, in consultation with the bank.
Assets possession process: If the recalcitrant debtors do not eventually pay the dues, themovable assets charged to the bank by way of hypothecation or pledge, can be possessed by the
bank or the recovery agent and thereafter auctioned or otherwise sold to recover the dues.
Legal recovery process: The intervention of the court is required to possess mortgagedimmovable property by the or its recovery agent. Also if the charged assets do not exist, or the
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debt is unsecured, the debtor will have to be sued for recovery of the dues by the bank/recovery
agent.
Debt recovery agentThe phrase Debt Recovery Agent comprises three terms- Debt, Recovery and Agent. Let us
understand the meaning of these terms separately, before we explain the meaning of Debt Recovery
Agent.
Debt: It refers to a sum of money owed by one person or entity (debtor) to another person orentity (creditor). Thus there are two parties to a debt- debtor who receives money by way of a
debt; and creditor who lends money to the debtor.
Recovery: It means collection or recovery of money from the debtor by, or on behalf of thecreditor, after it has become due for payment in accordance with the debt terms agreed
between the creditor and the debtor. In the above example, if debtor fails to pay the agreed
installment on the due date, the bank may send him notice to remind him to pay the agreed
amount within a stipulated period. If he does not pay even after receiving the notice here that a
debt becomes payable by the debtor only on or after the due date, but not before that date. If
the debt is not paid on the due date it becomes overdue or past due.
Agent:It is a legal term defined in section 182 of Indian Contract Act as a person employed todo any act for another or to represent another in dealings with third person. The person for
whom such acts are done, or who is represented, is called the Principal. An agent has thus an
authority to do acts on behalf of the principal within the limits of the authority and thereby bind
the principal for such acts in relation to third parties. There are several kinds of agents e.g.
brokers (financial or commodity brokers), auctioneers, insurance agents, estate or property
agents, commission agent, selling agents, marketing agents, debt recovery agents.
Debt Recovery Agent may now be defined as a person or entity engaged by a bank for the purpose of
collecting specified loans, or advances or other kind of debts from the debtors (or borrowers) in
accordance with the specified terms and conditions.
Engagement of Recovery Agents
Banks are advised to take into account the following specific considerations while engaging recovery
agents:
Agent in these guidelines would include agencies engaged by the bank and the agents/ employees of
the concerned agencies. Banks should have a due diligence process in place for engagement of recovery
agents, which should be so structured to cover, among others, individuals involved in the recovery
process. The due diligence process should generally conform to the guidelines issued by RBI.Further,
banks should ensure that the agents engaged by them in the recovery process carry out verification of
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the precursors of their employees, which may include pre-employment policy verification, as a matter of
abundant caution. Banks may decide the periodicity at which re-verification of backgrounds should be
resorted to.
To ensure due notice and appropriate authorization, banks should inform the borrower the details of
recovery agency firms / companies while forwarding default cases to the recovery agency.
Further, since in some of the cases, the borrower might not have received the details about the recovery
agency due to refusal / non-availability / avoidance and to ensure identification, it would be appropriate
if the agent also carries a copy of the notice and the authorization letter from the bank along with the
identity card issued to him by the bank or the agency firm / company. Further, where the recovery
agency is changed by the bank during the recovery process, in addition to the bank notifying the
borrower of the change, the new agent should carry the notice and the authorization letter along with
his identity card.
The notice and the authorization letter should, among other details, also include the telephone numbers
of the relevant recovery agency. Banks should ensure that there is a tape recording of the content / text
of the calls made by recovery agents to the customers, and vice-versa. Banks may take reasonable
precaution such as intimating the customer that the conversation is being recorded, etc.
The up to date details of the recovery agency firms / companies engaged by banks may also be posted
on the banks website. Where a grievance/ complaint has been lodged, banks should not forward cases
to recovery agencies till they have finally disposed of any grievance / complaint lodged by the concerned
borrower. However, where the bank is convinced, with appropriate proof, that the borrower is
continuously making frivolous / vexatious complaints, it may continue with the recovery proceedings
through the Recovery Agents even if a grievance / complaint is pending with them. In cases where the
subject matter of the borrowers dues might besub judice, banks should exercise utmost caution, asappropriate, in referring the matter to the recovery agencies, depending on the circumstances.
Recovery agencies
Debt recovery agents are employed Debt Recovery Agencies who work for banks subject to certain
terms and condition. Debt recovery agencies are third-party businesses that collect dues past-dues and
other receivable of banks in exchange for a fee. DRAs charge the banks/NBFCs for their services in one
of two ways:
1. A flat fee and2. A percentage of amounts collected.
Most collection agencies use one of following three methods to collect debts/dues viz.
1. Contact and follow up through telephone2. Letters,
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3. Direct contact by visiting the debtors.Before the debt recovery agent is given the job, banks begin their work banks issue normal reminders to
the borrowers. However it is seen that in the case of retail loans the initial reminders could also begin
from the DRA. Typically, collection agencies begin the collection process by sending a demand letter
followed by phone calls If these efforts do not result in the payment, it will be followed up andsupplemented by visit to customers houses to more intensive methods. Besides sending out letters and
making phone calls, some recovery agencies also specialize in locating debtors who can no longer be
reached at the address or phone number listed on their accounts. Certain act on behalf of banks to
collect severely overdue accounts.
Training for Recovery Agents
In terms of the guidelines on managing risks and code of conduct in outsourcing of financial services by
banks, banks were advised that they should ensure that, among others, the recovery agents are properly
trained to handle with care and sensitivity, their responsibilities, in particular aspects like hours of
calling, privacy of customer information etc.
Reserve Bank has requested the Indian Banks Association to formulate, in consultation with Indian
Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF), a certificate course for Direct Recovery Agents with minimum
100 hours of training. Once the above course is introduced by IIBF, banks should ensure that over a
period of one year all their Recovery Agents undergo the above training and obtain the certificate from
the above institute. Further, the service providers engaged by banks should also employ only such
personnel who have undergone the above training and obtained the certificate from the IIBF. Keeping in
view the fact that a large number of agents throughout the country may have to be trained, other
institutes/ banks own training colleges may provide the training to the recovery agents by having a tie-
up arrangement with Indian Institute of Banking and Finance so that there is uniformity in the standardsof training. However, every agent will have to pass the examination conducted by IIBF all over India.
Soft skills for debt recovery
Success in recovery depends on compliance with the regulatory norms added with collection skills and
strategy. Both are complementary to each other. Mere regulatory compliance without collection skills
and strategy may not result in recovery. Similarly, collection skills and strategy without regulatory
compliance may vitiate recovery atmosphere in the long term.
In the present unit, we would briefly discuss some of the essential skills and strategy that facilitate and
improve debt recovery. The objective is limited to acquainting the readers with the meaning and keyelements of skills and strategy required in debt recovery. The learning can, and should, be enhanced
through detailed discussions in the classroom of a training institute, including role plays by the
participants.
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1) Communication skill:
Communication is the process of exchanging information, ideas and thought etc. between at least two
persons in order to create a common understanding. In recovery process, communication takes place
between the debtor and agent by words, in writing, eye contact or body language (during personal
meeting) Communication is of two types:
Verbal communication by spoken words, Non-verbal communication e.g. face language (facial expression, eye contact), voice language
(voice tone, voice pitch), and body language (body position, body movement) All or any of these
elements of non-verbal language communicate some message (whether intended or unintended
by the communicator) to the receiver.
Following are the main principles of effective communication, which could be followed by a recovery
agent (communicator) in communication with the debtor (receiver).
The agents language (verbal as well as body language) should be civil and courteous, as per thebank-specific requirement.
The objective of the communication should be clear. The language used should be clear simple and courteous. The language used should be easily understood by the receiver. The agent should be watchful and sensitive to the receivers responses (including his/her body
language as mentioned above).
Make sure that the non-verbal communication (or body language) is not adverse to debtor,though unintentional
2) Listening skill:
Listening is another skill which is recovery in process. A good recovery agent should be a good
communicator and a good listener. Listening refers to all the ways in which communication is being
received from the other party and includes not only hearing but also facial body expressions,
attentiveness or lack of it. Following are the requisites of good listening, which help improve
communication and make if effective:
Hear attentively to what the debtor is saying. One may hear, but not listen, if he/she isdistracted or inattentive.
Lack of listening conveys lack of regard/ respect for the communicator; hence it should beavoided.
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Do not show impatience or haste while listening to the debtor. You may lose some importantinformation the debtor washes to say.
Do not show anger or disapproval, or other such facial/ body expression, while listening to thedebtors point of view.
Normally, commence speaking only after the other party has finished speaking or making apoint. Normally do not interrupt. In other words, interrupt only when absolutely necessary, e.g.
when the points being spoken are irrelevant or becoming unduly lengthy or controversial and
time is limited or is being exceeded. Also interrupt softly by saying words like excuse me.
3) Inter-personal skill:
Inter-personal skill refers to communication plus skill that enhances the relationship and understanding
between two or more persons. It thus include communication and listening skills, plus something more.
This something more would be explained here. Generally, person relate to each other favorably when
they find support to their dignity, self-respect, self-esteem, ideas and values. Establishing good inter-personal relationship with a person means establishing a rapport with that person. Any transaction
that enhances the self would be helpful for better inter-personal relation. Conversely, any transaction
that diminishes the self is likely to disturb the inter-personal relation. For instance, when a recovery
agent assumes a posture of superiority and belittles the debtor in the communication process, the
recovery agent is really making the recovery difficult. Many recovery agents who think otherwise and
communicate/ behave rudely or harshly in recovery process may turn out to be mostly counter-
productive overall. Following are some of the elements of inter-personal skill for recovery agent :
Communicate and listen properly and effectively, as described in the preceding paragraph. Show empathy and respect to other party, not with standing the fact that he/she debtor to the
principal.
Do not make the debtor feel anxious/ insecure/ threatened by your communication verbal ornon-verbal. On the contrary, try to remove such apprehension, if any, of the debtor.
Give all the information the debtor asks for in connection with the debt and its repayment. Thiswould help improve inter-personal relation and also the recovery prospects.
4) Persuasive skill:
After having established good rapport with the debtor, the next skill required in a good recovery agent isto be able to persuade the debtor to repay the dues. This may be termed as persuasive skill. The
persuasive skill is built on establishing a good rapport and winning the trust of the debtor. Some of the
elements of the persuasion in debt recovery may be suggested as follows:
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Explain that the bank (principal) lends money out of the deposits collected from the public andrepayment of the loans by the debtor and others as per the terms would enable the bank to pay
the deposits when demanded by the depositors.
Explain your task/ duty of collection of dues on behalf of the principal and that you have noauthority to waive/ reduce or unduly postpone the recovery, which only the principal can do.
Show interest/ concern for the debtor by understanding his/her problem and say that youwould try to give assistance to the possible, within the authority, as agent, given to you by the
principal.
Explain that non-payment may adversely impact the debtors credit history, which may makehis/her future borrowing with any bank costlier and difficult. This should induce the debtor to
pay.
Also explained that non-repayment of the loan dues would amount to breach of the loanagreement and would result in the bank charging higher interest rate.
Functions of debt recoveryagentsThe core function of adebt recovery agentis to collect dues/receivables from specified debtors of the
bank as per agency agreement entered with the principal. Remitting the collected funds to principal,
keeping account of the receivables collected and yet to be collected and reporting the position and
developments to the principal are essential but ancillary to the core function. All these functions will be
specified in most agency agreement and would require to be accordingly discharged by the debt
recovery agent.
Apart from the easily collectible receivables, most banks have on their books overdue receivables from
debtors who are not traceable, or who show unwillingness pay or who resist surrendering the security
charged. In such cases, the recovery process is difficult and requires handling by specialized collection
agencies to process the required expertise. The functions of re-processing the security, initial legal
action and tracing the vanished debtors may be called as specialized function of debt collecting
agencies.
Collecting dues receivable:
As mentioned above, collecting dues is the core function of adebt recovery agent. Receivables refer to
the sums of money which have become due in the loan/advances accounts and are payable on or after
due dates by the debtors to the creditors as per the loan/advances agreements entered between the
lenders and creditors. Thus the receivables in a loan/advances account connote the following essential
features:
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1. Existence of loan or advance agreement between the creditor and debtor.2. Due date on or after which the obligation is required to be discharged by the debtor in favour of
the creditor.
In terms of the arrangement between the creditor bank and the debt recovery agency the former
authorizes the agent to collect specified receivables from the named debtors on or after the specified
due dates. The required particulars of the debtors and receivables to be collected from them are
furnished by the bank to the agent, along with copies of the relative loan agreements.
Thus the debt recovery agent is legally authorized to collect the specified receivables from the debtors
on behalf of the principal:
1. The loan agreement, and2. The debt collection agency agreement.
The procedure and processes of debt collection, code of conduct in collection process and other
regulatory requirements that need to be complied with by the recovery agents.
Remitted collected funds:
The funds collected from the debtors should be sent deposited by the agent to the creditor periodically
as per the agency arrangement. Statement of collections remitted should also be sent along with the
remittance, preferably in duplicate and the copy acknowledged by the bank be kept on record by the
agent, in chronological order, for future reference. These statements of remittance will form the basis of
claiming the agreed fee or commission by the agent from the principal in due course.
Book keeping of recovery management:
While each debt recovery agent may devise his/her own accounting and book keeping methods, he/she
has to take care of the reporting requirements of its principal. Further, book-keeping has to be separate
for each principal. IT following would constitute the minimum requirement of book-keeping for a
recovery agent.
Lists of debtors received from the principal: Collection of receivables is a going activity of arecovery agent who may receive the debtor lists from the principal from time to time. The
debtor lists from the basis of agents activities and also the book-keeping required. These
should therefore be carefully kept on record in chronological order.
Ledger account of each debtor: Showing the amounts of receivable collected and balance to becollected should be kept in chronological or this can be maintained in the computer also. It may
be note that all the collections/recoveries should be remitted to the bank. Normally agent
cannot adjust its dues on account of fee against the recoveries made on behalf of the bank.
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Copies of loan/advances: Agreements between the debtors and the bank is obliged to keepconfidentiality of its customers accounts and recovery and these should not be divulged to third
parties without the customers sent. As such, a debt recovery agent must take all due care to
the required privacy and confidentiality as regards the records of each due furnished by the
bank and also as regards the collections made remitted by him to the principal.
Guidelines for preparing a properstrategy for debt recoveryDevising a strategy helps in achieving a set goal or objective. Recovery agents should therefore devise a
strategy for debt recovery. The following guidelines would help in preparing proper strategy for debt
recovery.
i) The collection process should be compliant to the bank-specific recovery norms and also regulatory
guidelines.
ii) The collection timing should be synchronized to the cash inflow pattern of the debtors: For example,
recovery from salaried employees should be timed when salary is received by or credited to the debtors
account, normally at the moth-end. In case of SME borrowers the effort should coincide with cash flow
on account of sales. In case a collection from agriculturist should be made, then it should be soon after
the crops are sold. This will call for knowledge of bank products on the part of agents. It should be the
endeavor of the agent that collection should be made well before the cash inflows are spent away by
the debtor for meeting other expenses.
iii) Adopt different collection strategy for different debtor types: This is based on the sayingthat one
size does not fit all. In the foregoing paragraphs, three types of debtors have been described and they
need different strategies for recovery success:
Normal debtors, i.e. who can pay and will pay if reminded or/and persuaded to pay. Difficult debtors, i.e. those who can pay, but will not pay. Doubtful debtors, i.e. those who can pay the reduced amount as negotiated with them.
iv) While different strategies are required for different types of debtors, the following are the common
points to be followed in all kinds of recovery strategies:
Recovery effort should start with the establishing a good rapport with thedebtor. Communication, listening and persuasive skills would be applied in building good
interpersonal relations.
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Go through the know Your Customer papers furnished by the bank and know the customersidentify and personal profile.
Go through the copy of the loan agreement of the debtor furnished by the bank and note downthe financial position, cash flow pattern, and assets charged to the bank.
v) Record in notebook recovery efforts in chronological order for each.
Modes of debt recovery otherthan normal debt recoveryprocedure(1) Where a certificate has been issued to the Recovery Officer under Sub-section of section 19, the
Recovery Officer may, without prejudice to the modes of recovery specified in section 25, recover the
amount of debt by any one or more of the modes provided under this section.
(2) If any amount is due from any person to the defendant, the Recovery Officer may require such
person to deduct from the said amount, the amount of debt due from the defendant under this Act and
such person shall comply with any such requisition and shall pay the sum so deducted to the credit of
the Recovery Officer: Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall apply to any part of the amount
exempt from attachment in execution of a decree of a civil court under section 60 of the Code of Civil
Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908).
(3) (I) The Recovery Officer may, at any time or from time to time, by notice in writing, require any
person from whom money is due or may become due to the defendant or to any person who holds or
may subsequently hold money for or on account of the defendant, to pay to the Recovery Officer either
forthwith upon the money becoming due or being held or within the time specified in the notice (not
being before the money becomes due or is held) so much of the money as is sufficient to pay the
amount of debt due from the defendant or the whole of the money when it is equal to or less than that
amount.
(ii) A notice under this sub-section may be issued to any person who holds or may subsequently hold any
money for or on account of the Defendant jointly with any other person and for the purposes of this
subsection, the shares of the joint holders in such amount shall be presumed, until the contrary is
proved, to be equal.
(iii) A copy of the notice shall be forwarded to the defendant at his last address known to the Recovery
Officer and in the case of a joint account to all the joint holders at their last addresses known to the
Recovery Officer.
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(iv) Save as otherwise provided in this sub-section, every person to whom a notice is issued under the
sub-section shall be bound to comply with such notice, and, in particular, where any such notice is
issued to a post office, bank, financial institution, or an insurer, it shall not be necessary for any pass
book, deposit receipt, policy or any other document to be produced for the purpose of any entry,
endorsement or the like to be made before the payment is made notwithstanding any rule, practice or
requirement to the contrary.
(v) Any claim respecting any property in relation to which a notice under this sub-section has been
issued arising after the date of the notice shall be void as against any demand contained in the notice.
(vi) Where a person to whom a notice under this sub-section is sent objects to it by a statement on oath
that the sum demanded or the part thereof is not due to the defendant or that he does not hold any
money for or on account of the defendant, then, nothing contained in this sub-section shall be deemed
to require such person to pay any such sum or part thereof, as the case may be, but if it is discovered
that such statement was false in any material particular, such person shall be personally liable to the
Recovery Officer to the extent of his own liability to the defendant on the date of the notice, or to the
extent of the defendants liability for any sum due under this Act, whichever is less.
(vii) The Recovery Officer may, at any time or from time to time, amend or revoke any notice under this
sub-section or extend the time for making any payment in pursuance of such notice.
(viii) The Recovery Officer shall grant a receipt for any amount paid in compliance with a notice issued
under this sub-section, and the person so paying shall be fully discharged from his liability to the
defendant to the extent of the amount so paid.
(ix)Any person discharging any liability to the defendant after the receipt of a notice under this sub-
section shall be personally liable to the Recovery Officer to the extent of his own liability to thedefendant so discharged or to the extent of the defendants liability for any debt due under his Act,
whichever is less.
(x) If the person to whom a notice under this sub-section is sent fails to make payment in pursuance
thereof to the Recovery Officer, he shall be deemed to be a defendant in default in respect of the
amount specified in the notice and further proceedings may be taken against him for the realization of
the amount as if it were a debt due from him, in the manner provided in sections 25, 26 and 27
(4) The Recovery Officer may apply to the court in whose custody there is money belonging to the
defendant for payment to him of the entire amount of such money, or if it is more than the amount of
debt due an amount sufficient to discharge the amount of debt so due.
The Recovery Officer may, by order, at any stage of the execution of the certificate of recovery, require
any person, and in case of a company, any of its officers against whom or which the certificate of
recovery is issued, to declare on affidavit the particulars of his or its assets.]
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(5) The Recovery Officer may recover any amount of debt due from the defendant by distrait and sale of
his movable property in the manner laid down in the Third Schedule to the Income-Tax Act, 1961 (43 of
1961).
Use of lok adalat
The Honorable Supreme Court also observed that loans, personal loans, credit card loans and housing
loans with less than Rs.10 lakh can be referred to Lok Adalats. In this connection, banks attention is
invited to Circular DBOD.No.Leg.BC.21/09.06.002/2004-05 dated August 3, 2004 wherein they were
advised to use the forum of Lok Adalats organized by Civil Courts for recovery of loans. Banks are
advised that they should preferably use the forum of Lok Adalats for recovery of personal loans, credit
card loans or housing loans with less than Rs.10 lakh as suggested by the Honorable Supreme Court.
Banks, as principals, are responsible for the actions of their agents. Hence, they should ensure that their
agents engaged for recovery of their dues should strictly adhere to the above guidelines and
instructions.
Complaints received by Reserve Bank regarding violation of the above guidelines and adoption of
abusive practices followed by banks recovery agents would be viewed seriously. Reserve Bank may
consider imposing a ban on a bank from engaging recovery agents in a particular area, either
jurisdictional or functional, for a limited period. In case of persistent breach of above guidelines. Similar
supervisory action could be attracted when the High Courts or the Supreme Court pass strictures or
impose penalties against any bank or its Directors/ Officers/ agents with regard to policy, practice and
procedure related to the recovery process.