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IStock / City Presse

Some 143,080 over-indebtedness situations were submitted to ad hoc committees in 2019, including 81,000 new files (first-time deposits), according to the balance sheet drawn up by the Banque de France.

This is a historic drop of 38% over five years.

But if the battle for institutions is therefore bearing fruit, isolated people with precarious income remain the first victims of this infernal spiral.

The descent into Hell

Different causes can lead to falling into the red.

This is the case, for example, when a private landlord suffers several damages in the accommodation that he rents or chains bad paying tenants.

It also happens when an owner loses his job and finds himself caught in the throat by the repayment of his mortgage, or quite simply after a separation which brings about a sudden drop in the standard of living ... Still others too often tend to resort to consumer credit to compensate for insufficient daily resources.

Thus, according to the 2019 balance sheet of the Banque de France, 21% of over-indebted households are single-parent families, while nearly 56% of people filing cases are women.

The median slate reached 16,384 euros, excluding real estate, that year.

Know where to get help

We must not wait for letters of recovery from creditors to pile up or, worse, to be the subject of seizure measures to react.

Do not hesitate to find out about the possible solutions from a consumer association, a lawyer (the bars organize free consultations) or a social and family economy adviser (hotlines in certain town halls and funds). Family allowances).

Likewise, if your difficulties are temporary and your creditor refuses to reorganize your debt, you can apply to the judicial or local court (former district court) to grant you a period of payment.

On the other hand, once you are indebted to several people or your difficulties are lasting, you must contact the Banque de France to initiate an over-indebtedness procedure.

Please note, only non-professional debts are taken into account.

You must then collect a file from one of the branches of this institution or download it from its website, before completing it and returning it to the address indicated.

Your department's over-indebtedness commission then has three months to rule on your case.

Protect the debtor

As soon as your file is submitted, you will be registered with the FICP (national file of credit repayment incidents for individuals) for the duration of the measures prescribed by the commission, which will prevent you from obtaining any new credit.

But, in return, you will be able to benefit from specific protection if the commission considers your situation admissible.

In this case, and throughout the investigation of your file, you no longer have to repay your credits or settle your debts.

The foreclosure procedures for your property are automatically suspended and your housing benefits will be paid again if they had been stopped.

After examining your file, the committee can take several measures to help you get your head out of the water: reschedule the payment of your debts, reduce the interest rate on maturities, suspend their repayment for a maximum of two years, or even reduce the amount of capital due on your mortgage or partially erase certain debts.

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Three solutions

The over-indebtedness commission has three options:

  • The conventional recovery plan: if you are a homeowner, the commission will negotiate with your creditors to adjust your debts.

    If no agreement is reached, it may impose measures.

  • The imposed repayment plan: the commission can directly impose its measures on creditors when it considers that it is impossible to repay all debts and that an attempt at conciliation is therefore futile.

  • Personal recovery: it is offered in extreme situations and allows you to erase your debts with the exception of alimony, criminal fines and damages awarded to a victim.

    If you own real estate, it will be sold to pay off creditors.

  • Purchasing power

  • Rights

  • Bank

  • Precariousness

  • Indebtedness