Improved protection in case of unjustified debt enforcement

In the future, anyone falling victim to unjustified debt enforcement will be able to ensure that third parties cannot find out about the enforcement action. The Swiss Federal Council adopted a corresponding amendment to the Swiss Debt Collection and Bankruptcy Act with effect from 1 January 2019.

Debt collection agencies will no longer provide information to third parties about debt enforcement actions, provided that a corresponding petition from the debtor is received after a period of three months has elapsed from the time the summons to pay was served.

If, however, within a period of twenty days set by the debt collection agency, the creditor furnishes proof that they have initiated a procedure to rectify the legal proposal in good time, third parties will still be informed accordingly. Equally, third parties will also be informed accordingly if the proof is only provided retrospectively or the enforcement action is continued. (Source: Swiss Federal Office of Justice)