Debt Counselling News
Debtfree DIGI is a free monthly online magazine about the Debt Counselling and Debt Review Industry.
Each Issue features a round up of the months latest debt counselling news and industry developments.
Why wait a whole month when you could keep up to date with Debt Counselling news and Debt Review developments on our News Page?
We know you are busy so we aim to give you the latest debt counselling news in 3 minutes or less.
I have faithfully fo th last 5 years paid my debt councellor not skipping any payment what so ever and this year I increased payment am I allowed to get credit
It would be best if you paid off all your credit before starting to get new credit (consumers under debt review are not able to get credit as credit providers are barred from offering them credit until they stop debt review).
if you have been paying for 5 years you are probably close to being Debt free. Don’t give up now! Keep going!
When your Debt Counsellor one day issues you with your clearance certificate then you will have squeaky clean credit record.
If only it worked that way. I know of people that are under debt review since 2008 and owe more now than they did when they started the process. The repayments does not even cover the interest portion of the debt. Worse, they cannot change jobs because companies do not want to employ people under review.
The repayment plan may have been made with Section 103(5) of the National Credit Act in mind (not a very popular plan but it can happen). This allows for the balances to grow to the point were the consumer no longer needs to pay as they have paid double the debt at the time of default.
If the consumer did not have the ability to pay more each month then this may be the case.
It is best to pay more if you can but as some will know it is not always possible and the Debt Counsellor can only work with the funds available toward the debt. The priority is to make sure they can feed and house their families each month.
Also something to consider is that the creditors system may not be working out the amounts as per the court order and they may just need to adjust them…
It may be that these consumers don’t owe more than when they started.
Hi. I went under debt review in 2008. I never missed a payment. My std bank and Fnb acc has risen.I owed for instance 19 000 to stud bank in 2008 but they now allege I owe 97 000 that was the last rising balance with no explanation. I wrote to the nor last year Nov still waiting for a reply. This is just one of the accounts. The Fnb rose from 20 to about 80 000. I paid so much in and they still insist I owe them. Absa does not want to give me a balance.I finished one of the Feb acc and get handed me over. Eventually after I paid the lawyer I was told that I still owe them another amount which was added after the court order was granted. My counsellor gets no reply from Fnb. Absa and std bank. I have never defaulted on payment since 2008. Help
HI Vino,
The good news is that it sounds like you are talking about figures that are showing on the credit providers computers which are often incorrect or illegal.
For example, a debt which you have defaulted on can never go more than double (or you never have to pay more than double on such a debt) due to NCA section 103(5). So, immediately, i can tell you those figures they mention are blatantly wrong and illegal.
Besides that, your court order will set out how much you will pay and over how long.
Your debt counsellor needs to take steps to engage properly with the credit providers along with help from your PDA.
Can i ask: which Payment Distribution Agency do you use?
Hi, we are married in community of property, although my husband has taken out laons and debt without my knowledge, or consent, which is part of the matrimonial act. however, if i now want a divorce, he wante me to pay half od his debt, even though i was aware of it, nor did i consent or co-sign. On one contract i found he even stated married ANC, which obviously is a lie. If we do end up divorcing, can i be held liable for all his unknown debt and loans? He cant even tell me what a R65 000 loan was for?? He also has 3 children, which stay with us. under the school act, both parents are held liable for school fees, even though his ex wife does not even pay maintenance or contribute towards abything, she is too lazy too work. Can i be held liable for school fee debt? I also would like to know, is it the credit provider’s responsibility to obtain the spouse’s written consent for debt made, or is it only the applying spouse’s responsibility? African bank’s contract only says something like ”you agree that you have your spouse’s consent”. Surely my signature for written consent should be on that contract and not just his, as this does affect our assets and debt
?
If you are prepared to take each of those accounts to court or an ombud to challenge their validity then you might get some of them written off…in other words you can try but it might cost you as much as you save.
If the amounts are big then it is worth looking at.
If you are married COP then yes you are liable for half the debts.
ok but who is still responsible to obtain the consent from the other spouse? see below
extract from chapter three of the matrimonial property act
” 15. Powers of spouses
(1) Subject to the provisions of subsections (2), (3) and (7), a spouse in a marriage in
community of property may perform any juristic act with regard to the joint estate
without the consent of the other spouse.
(2) Such a spouse shall not without the written consent of the other spouse –
(a) alienate, mortgage, burden with a servitude or confer any other real right in any
immovable property forming part of the joint estate;
(b) enter into any contract for the alienation, mortgaging, burdening with a servitude
or conferring of any other real right in immovable property forming part of the
joint estate;
(c) alienate, cede or pledge any shares, stock, debentures, debenture bonds, insurance
policies, mortgage bonds, fixed deposits or any similar assets, or any investment by
or on behalf of the other spouse in a financial institution, forming part of the joint
estate;
(d) alienate or pledge any jewellery, coins, stamps, paintings or any other assets
forming part of the joint estate and held mainly as investments;
(e) withdraw money held in the name of the other spouse in any account in a banking
institution, a building society or the Post Office Savings Bank of the Republic of
South Africa;
(f) enter, as a consumer, into a credit agreement to which the provisions of the
National Credit Act, 2005 apply, as ‘consumer’ and ‘credit agreement’ are
respectively defined in that Act, but this paragraph does not require the written
consent of a spouse before incurring each successive charge under a credit facility,
as defined in that Act;
[Para. (f) substituted by s. 172 of Act 34/2005]
(g) as a purchaser enter into a contract as defined in the Alienation of Land Act, 1981
(Act No. 68 of 1981), and to which the provisions of that Act apply;
(h) bind himself as surety.
(3) A spouse shall not without the consent of the other spouse –
(a) alienate, pledge or otherwise burden any furniture or other effects of the common
household forming part of the joint estate;
(b) receive any money due or accruing to that other spouse or the joint estate by way
of –
(i) remuneration, earnings, bonus, allowance, royalty, pension or gratuity, by
virtue of his profession, trade, business, or services rendered by him;
(ii) damages for loss of income contemplated in subparagraph (i);
(iii) inheritance, legacy, donation, bursary or prize left, bequeathed, made or
awarded to the other spouse;
(iv) income derived from the separate property of the other spouse;
(v) dividends or interest on or the proceeds of shares or investments in the name
of the other spouse;
(vi) the proceeds of any insurance policy or annuity in favour of the other
spouse;
(c) donate to another person any asset of the joint estate or alienate such an asset
without value, excluding an asset of which the donation or alienation does not and
probably will not unreasonably prejudice the interest of the other spouse in the
joint estate, and which is not contrary to the provisions of subsection (2) or
paragraph (a) of this subsection.
(4) The consent required for the purposes of paragraphs (b) to (g) of subsection (2), and
subsection (3) may, except where it is required for the registration of a deed in a deeds
registry, also be given by way of ratification within a reasonable time after the act
concerned.
(5) The consent required for the performance of the acts contemplated in paragraphs (a), (b),
(f), (g) and (h) of subsection (2) shall be given separately in respect of each act and shall
be attested by two competent witnesses.
(6) The provisions of paragraphs (b), (c), (f), (g) and (h) of subsection (2) do not apply
where an act contemplated in those paragraphs is performed by a spouse in the ordinary
course of his profession, trade or business.
(7) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (2) (c), a spouse may without the consent
of the other spouse –
(a) sell listed securities on the stock exchange and cede or pledge listed securities in
order to buy listed securities;
(b) alienate, cede or pledge –
(i) a deposit held in his name at a building society or banking institution;
(ii) building society shares registered in his name.
(8) In determining whether a donation or alienation contemplated in subsection (3) (c) does
not or probably will not unreasonably prejudice the interest of the other spouse in the
joint estate, the court shall have regard to the value of the property donated or alienated,
the reason for the donation or alienation, the financial and social standing of the spouses,
their standard of living and any other factor which in the opinion of the court should be
taken into account.
(9) When a spouse enters into a transaction with a person contrary to the provisions of
subsection (2) or (3) of this section, or an order under section 16 (2), and –
(a) that person does not know and cannot reasonably know that the transaction is being
entered into contrary to those provisions or that order, it is deemed that the
transaction concerned has been entered into with the consent required in terms of
the said subsection (2) or (3), or while the power concerned of the spouse has not
been suspended, as the case may be;
(b) that spouse knows or ought reasonably to know that he will probably not obtain the
consent required in terms of the said subsection (2) or (3), or that the power
concerned has been suspended, as the case may be, and the joint estate suffers a
loss as a result of that transaction, an adjustment shall be effected in favour of the
other spouse upon the division of the joint estate.
The Credit provider HAS to get info from both parties. You definitely have a case. The Ombud is the cheaper option to go at first.
hi I want to know if I was about to voluntarily hand myself over for debt review can I opt out since I haven’t signed any forms yet
Of course,
Just correspond with the debt counsellor in writing that you are not going ahead. Make sure they acknowledge it and change your status on “ncrdebthelp” which updates the credit bureaus.
Good day. Thank you firstly for replying to.my email. I truly appreciate it. I am with Beatrice De Beer debt collecting agency. They are based in pmb . According to my counsellor the bank’s are not responding to their emails. I made several phone calls to the bank’s as well and they are just not assisting instead I get shunted around to different people. Fnb had a debt which was over but they increased the amount and handed me over. Another debt which was about 25 rose to 80. After paying from 2008 ask when my counsellor queried same they brought it down to 55 after so many years. The standard bank is also rising to about 97. The payment distribution agency is debit i data will you ma’am allow me to type all the details and send to you. I know you are busy but at least I will be able to explain it better. Once again thank you for your advise. God bless you
Can you ask your counsellor for their NCR registration number (i just want to check they are actually registered and not just someone offering unregulated and illegal “mediation”)
Good evening. The number is NCRDC111