Can debt collectors call me at work?

Yes, a debt collector may phone you at work, but there are firm limits on what they can say and do. They may not tell your employer, your manager, your receptionist or a colleague that you owe money. They may not call so often, or at such hours, that it amounts to harassment. And they may not threaten you with things they cannot lawfully do, such as arrest.

Debt collection in South Africa is regulated. Registered debt collectors fall under the Debt Collectors Act 114 of 1998 and the code of conduct made under it, and are supervised by the Council for Debt Collectors. Attorneys who collect debt answer to the Legal Practice Council. Credit providers themselves answer to the National Credit Regulator under the National Credit Act 34 of 2005.

What a collector may do

• Contact you by phone, email, SMS or letter to demand payment of a debt you actually owe.
• Contact you at your workplace if that is the number they have for you.
• Ask you to pay, offer a settlement or propose a payment arrangement.
• Take legal steps if you do not pay, which means summons, judgment and possibly an attachment order.

What a collector may not do

• Discuss your debt with anyone but you. They may not tell your employer, HR, colleagues, neighbours or family members why they are calling, and generally may not leave a message with a third party that reveals the debt. Under the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, your financial information is personal information that may not be shared without a lawful basis.
• Harass you. Repeated calls day after day, calls at unreasonable hours, abusive language, and calls designed to embarrass you are all conduct the code of conduct prohibits.
• Threaten criminal consequences. You cannot be arrested or imprisoned for owing money on an ordinary civil debt. Any threat of arrest for non-payment is false.
• Pretend to be someone they are not. They may not claim to be the sheriff of the court, an official of the court, the police or an attorney if they are not.
• Threaten steps they have not taken. Saying your salary will be attached next week when there is no judgment and no court order is misleading conduct.
• Charge whatever they like. Collection costs and fees are limited by law. Ask for a breakdown of capital, interest, legal costs and collection commission in writing.
• Collect a prescribed debt where you have raised prescription. The National Credit Act prohibits this and prohibits the sale of prescribed debt. See what happens when a debt prescribes.

A worked example

Zanele works at a call centre. A collector phones the switchboard three times in one morning asking for her, and on the third call tells the receptionist that "it is about her outstanding account with the furniture store". By lunchtime two colleagues have asked her about it. The collector then phones her desk and says a sheriff will be at her workplace on Friday to "attach her salary" unless she pays R2 400 today.

Several lines have been crossed at once. Disclosing the debt to the receptionist breaches the code of conduct and raises a Protection of Personal Information Act problem. Three calls in a morning is heading towards harassment. And no sheriff can attach a salary without a judgment and a court order, which the collector has not obtained. Zanele writes down the times, the caller's name and what the receptionist was told, emails the collection agency withdrawing consent to be contacted at work and giving her personal email, and lodges a complaint with the Council for Debt Collectors with that log attached. She separately asks for a statement of account, because the R2 400 demanded is more than she remembers owing. The figure is illustrative, but the pattern is one regulators see regularly.

How to stop calls at work

1. Give them a better channel. Send an email saying you are not available at your workplace number and giving a mobile number and email address for all future contact. This is reasonable and most collectors will comply, because they want to reach you.
2. Put it in writing. Verbal requests vanish. Email creates evidence you can attach to a complaint.
3. Ask for the debt in writing. Ask for the name of the original creditor, the account number, the date of the last payment, a full statement of account and proof that they are entitled to collect. A legitimate collector can produce this.
4. Keep a log. Date, time, number, name of the caller, and what was said. If a colleague was told about the debt, write down their name and what they were told, on the same day.
5. Do not admit the debt or make a payment until you have checked whether it has prescribed. If the three years have not yet run, a payment or an acknowledgement restarts the clock under the Prescription Act 68 of 1969. If they have run, it does not restart anything, but the money cannot be reclaimed and the collector may argue that you gave up the defence. Our prescription checker helps you work out the position.

Documents to gather

• Your call log, with dates, times, numbers and what was said.
• Screenshots of every SMS, WhatsApp and email from the collector.
• The collector's company name and registration number, which you are entitled to ask for.
• Any statement of account or letter of demand they have sent.
• Your own bank statements showing your last payment on the account.
• Your credit report, to see how the debt is listed and whether any judgment exists.
• A short written statement from any colleague who was told about the debt, if they are willing.

A realistic timeline

Day 1. Send the email redirecting contact and requesting the debt in writing. Start the log.

Week 1 to 2. A legitimate collector responds with a statement of account and moves to your preferred channel. If the calls to your workplace continue, that is already evidence of a breach.

Week 2 to 4. Lodge complaints with the Council for Debt Collectors and, if a credit provider is involved, the National Credit Regulator. Attach the log and the emails. Regulators acknowledge complaints within days and investigate over weeks to months.

If harassment continues. Apply at your local magistrates' court for a protection order under the Protection from Harassment Act 17 of 2011. The clerk assists with the forms and an interim order can be granted quickly, often the same day.

Common mistakes and what they cost

Paying a small amount to make the calls stop. If the debt was close to prescribing, the payment restarts the three years and the whole balance stays enforceable. If it had already prescribed, you cannot get the money back, and the collector will argue that the payment showed you gave up the defence.

Agreeing to anything on the phone. A verbal payment arrangement counts as an acknowledgement of the debt, and you have no record of what was actually agreed.

Asking a colleague or manager to deal with the collector. That hands the collector a third party to discuss the debt with and weakens your privacy complaint.

Ignoring a summons because "the collector was rude". Rudeness is a complaint. A summons is a court process with a deadline. Deal with both, separately.

Assuming the caller is who they say they are. Some callers are unregistered and some are outright scams. Never pay into an account you have not verified in writing against the original creditor's details.

Your rights and the collector's rights

You are entitled to privacy about your finances, to be contacted at reasonable times and by reasonable means, to a written statement of the debt and of the collector's authority to collect it, to a breakdown of every fee, to raise prescription, and to complain to a regulator without cost.

A collector is entitled to contact you about a genuine debt, to propose settlements and arrangements, to charge fees within the limits set by law, and to hand the matter to attorneys for legal action if you do not pay. A collector is not entitled to your employer's cooperation, to your colleagues' attention, or to any payment on a prescribed debt once you have raised prescription.

Where to complain, for free

• The Council for Debt Collectors regulates registered debt collectors and can act against a collector who breaches the code of conduct. Ask the caller for their registration details first.
• The National Credit Regulator, 0860 627 627, handles complaints about credit providers and conduct under the National Credit Act.
• The Credit Ombud, now part of the National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa, resolves consumer credit disputes at no cost.
• The Legal Practice Council if an attorney's firm is the one collecting and the conduct is improper.
• The Information Regulator under the Protection of Personal Information Act if your information has been shared unlawfully.
• The magistrates' court if the conduct amounts to harassment. The Protection from Harassment Act 17 of 2011 allows you to apply for a protection order, and the application is made at your local magistrates' court without an attorney.

Complaints work better with evidence. Include your call log, screenshots of messages, the collector's name and the account reference.

What if the debt is not yours?

Say so in writing, immediately, and ask for proof. Do not pay anything to make it stop. Then check your credit record at each bureau and dispute any listing, using our guide on disputing a credit listing. If the account was opened fraudulently, open a case with the South African Police Service and keep the case number.

If the debt is yours and you cannot pay

Ignoring collectors does not make the debt go away and usually ends in summons. Better options are to negotiate a written payment arrangement, ask for a settlement figure, or, if you are struggling across all your accounts, apply through a registered debt counsellor for debt review. Our guide on how long debt review takes sets out what that involves.

If you cannot afford an attorney

Stopping unlawful collection conduct does not require one. The Council for Debt Collectors, the National Credit Regulator on 0860 627 627, the Credit Ombud and the Information Regulator are all free, and a protection order application is made at the magistrates' court without an attorney. If you are sued, Legal Aid South Africa on 0800 110 110 can tell you whether you qualify, and our legal aid page explains the means test. For small amounts, the Small Claims Court handles claims up to R30 000 without an attorney, which matters if a collector has taken money from you that it was not entitled to.