Debt & Finance - Making a Complaint

When submitting a complaint to your debt collection agency, Consumer Affairs recommends that you collect all supporting documents and evidence you intend to rely on to support your claim.

Such supporting documentation may include, but are not limited to: the following:

A copy of the original debt that you incurred with the creditor that referred your matter to the debt collection agency (i.e. the original service agreement entered into with a consumer good and/or service provider)
Notes and correspondence supporting conversations held with your debt collection agency and/or customer service representatives
An account number
Proof of payments made towards your debt held with the debt collection agency (i.e. invoice, bank statements indicating transfer of funds).

After you have collected your supporting documentation and evidence, and are ready to submit a formal complaint, Consumer Affairs advises that you look online to confirm whether your debt collection agency has a formal “complaints handling” procedure.

Your debt collection agency’s formal complaints procedure (i.e. how to file a formal complaint) should be listed on their website. Failing to submit a formal complaint in accordance with your debt collection agency’s formal complaint procedure may result in experiencing undue delays in resolving your complaint.

If you decide to submit a formal complaint you may decide to either:

Have a follow-up phone call with your debt collection agency; and
Submit a formal complaint in writing to your debt collection agency.

During your follow-up phone call with your debt collection agency you will need to:

Restate the nature of your circumstances;
How you would like your issue resolved;
How your debt collection agency has failed to resolve your issue since you last contacted them (i.e. an unreasonable amount of time has passed to resolve your issued);
When you would like your issued to resolved; and

Following completion of your follow-up phone call with a customer service representative, Consumer Affairs advises that you take note of the name of the customer representative and ask for a customer call reference number; the customer service representative that handled your formal complaint may not be the same person that handled your initial phone call. It is also a good idea to take note of the time and date you called and submitted your formal complaint.

Whether you decide to make a follow-up phone call and submit a formal complaint orally, or not, Consumer Affairs advises that you submit a formal complaint in writing to your debt collection agency.

When you put your complaint in writing, you will need to explain:

The nature of your issue with the debt collection agency;
The date and time in which you communicated your issue with your debt collection agency;
What has happened since you first communicated your issue with your debt collection agency;
He date and time in which you made a follow-up phone call to make a formal complaint to your debt collection agency;
What you would like the debt collection agency to do to fix the problem being reported; and
When you would like your issue resolved by.

When complaining in writing, you can either directly email your complaint to your service provider or print a physical copy of your complaint and submit it physically to your service provider.

Consumer Affairs advises that you make sure you keep a copy of any emails you send to or receive from your debt collection agency. If you elect to mail a physical copy of your formal complaint, Consumer Affairs advises that you ask the Post Office for proof of postage.

Your debt collection agency, upon receipt of your formal written complaint, should then get in touch with you within a reasonable amount of time (i.e. 48 hours) and confirm whether they need any more details about your complaint.

Your debt collection agency should have your complaint resolved within 30 days of submitting your complaint and provide you with a ‘decision letter’ explaining their decision and how they will deal with your complaint.

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