Germany is one of the most important countries in the European Union from an economic point of view, nevertheless, companies and citizens here can also face difficult times which lead to the impossibility of complying with their financial responsibilities. Most of the times such cases lead to the recovery of debts which is handled by specialists represented by lawyers and debt collection agencies in Germany.
The Civil Code is the main legal framework which covers the activities undertaken by debt recovery agencies in Germany. It also sets out the regulations and the steps under which a debt can be collected from a bad payer.
Below, our debt collection lawyers in Germany explain how debt collection agencies work in this country. We also offer debt collection services to those in need of legal assistance when trying to recover outstanding amounts of money.
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The main legal procedures for debt collection in Germany
There are two main ways in which German debt collection agencies can act in order to recover a debt: an amicable procedure and a legal or court procedure. The order of these actions is to first try and recover any debt in an amicable way followed by the court procedure.
Claimants can request the help of a debt collection agency from the beginning of the procedure in order to maximize their chances and recover the money they are owed as soon as possible.
You can also rely on our debt collection lawyers in Germany for assistance with the debt recovery procedure. If you need debt collection services in other countries, we can put you in touch with our local partners.
Types of debts in Germany
Debt collection agencies in Germany are enforced to resolve various cases. Among the most common debt collection cases in Germany are those related to:
- commercial contracts which can be business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-customer (B2C) contracts;
- unpaid bills can also be collected by German debt collection agencies, at the request of providers;
- debts of a German citizen or company arisen in a foreign country can be collected in Germany with the help of a debt collection agency;
- German debt collection agencies can also help local companies seeking to recover debts from a foreign client or business partner;
- other types of debts, such as unpaid amounts of money resulted from contracts with banks can be recovered by debt collection agencies in Germany.
The main types of debt collection cases in Germany, however, result from commercial contracts. These are also cases in which our debt collection lawyers can assist.
Recovering a debt with the help of a German debt collection agency
The person or company representative seeking to recover money from a debtor is called a claimant or creditor. He or she has the right to appeal to the services of a debt collection agency in Germany once the debt has been registered or the company or person has reasonable doubts about the possibility of payment of the debtor.
A debt collection agency in Germany can help with the following procedures:
- it can check the credit history of the debtor and report to the creditor and propose the next steps;
- if the creditor considers it correct, the debt collection agency can start gathering evidence for the recovery of the debt to begin;
- the debtor will then be contacted by the debt collection agency and an amicable settlement can be reached;
- the debt collection agency has the obligation to send to the debtor all the evidence connected to the unpaid amount of money;
- if no settlement can be reached or the debtor fails to reply, the debt collection agency can start the court procedure.
It should be noted that Germany debt collection agencies must comply with certain regulations when trying to recover any outstanding amounts of money from debtors. One of these refers to the timeframe in which they are allowed to contact the debtor.
Our lawyers can explain the legal procedures related to debt collection in Germany.
The steps for debt collection in Germany
The recovery of a debt in Germany will usually start with an official notification sent to the debtor. This is also the first step in the amicable procedure. If the debtor replies and a settlement for paying the debt are agreed, the procedure stops here.
In case the debtor will fail to pay or respond, the German debt collection agency will file a petition with a local court. Based on the evidence submitted by the claimant, the court can issue an enforcement order for debt collection and can dispose the seizure of assets of the debtor in order to resolve the case.
For complete information on how debt collection agencies in Germany can help you recover a debt, do not hesitate to contact our lawyers who also specialize in offering debt recovery solutions.