Debt relief: demand for debt collectors has doubled in Russia
The demand for debt collection specialists has doubled over the past year, and since the beginning of 2025 — by another quarter, according to recruiting services. This is due to both the over-crediting of the population, combined with an increase in the number of overdue payments, and a shortage of personnel. Debt collection activities are strictly regulated by law, however, the so-called black collectors continue to operate on the market, which use violent methods, among other things, and have brushed off Izvestia's sources in law enforcement agencies.
Who is looking for collectors
The number of vacancies in debt collection doubled in 2024. A similar trend has been observed over the past three years, according to data from a joint study of the service "Work.ru" and the collection agency ABC. In the first three months of 2025, the demand for staff in this segment of the labor market increased by another quarter, SuperJob recruitment service added.
Most of these specialists are sought in Yekaterinburg, Kurgan, Rostov-on-Don, Moscow, Saratov and Ufa. Moreover, women were almost twice as likely to respond to applicants' vacancies than men.
SuperJob pointed out that the labor market is being replaced by waves of demand, first for loan specialists, and then for collectors. Thus, increased demand for loan sellers was recorded in December 2024, and now the same thing is happening with debt collection specialists. Salaries of the latter increased by 9% over the year, averaging 120 thousand rubles.
The growing need for such specialists is associated with the over-crediting of the population and the growth of overdue payments, experts believe. Banks are extremely interested in reducing overdue debts, as their availability requires additional reserves and reduces their profits, said Svetlana Zubkova, Associate professor at the Department of Banking and Monetary Regulation at the Financial University.
— Despite the fact that the statistics of the Bank of Russia show that in recent months the growth of debt on loans to individuals has slowed down significantly, and for some types there has been a decrease, we cannot talk about a significant improvement in the situation, — she said. — On the contrary, due to the slowdown in credit growth, the relative indicators of overdue debt among banks are deteriorating, which cannot but worry them.
Specialists in dealing with overdue debts are in demand, since debt collection requires, first of all, a person-to-person conversation, Svetlana Zubkova added.
The increase in demand for debt collectors is directly proportional to the increase in overdue debts, added Alexey Kamyshov, lawyer, senior partner at the Samsonov, Kamyshov and Partner Bar Association. By the end of 2024, the key rate has increased to 21%, he recalled.
"On the one hand, such a measure has led to curbing the growth of inflation, on the other hand, credit institutions have significantly increased interest rates on loans, and if earlier in the case of a "cash gap" citizens or businesses had the opportunity to re—credit, now it has ceased to be a lifeline," he stressed.
Earlier, Izvestia wrote that the overdue mortgage debt of Russians at the beginning of February reached 100.6 billion rubles in accumulated total for the first time. During the month, the figure increased by 5.7 billion, according to the Central Bank. This is despite the fact that the total volume of housing loans has been declining. Since the beginning of the year, it has fallen by 108 billion rubles and amounted to 19 trillion rubles at the beginning of February.
How professional collectors work
All industries are currently experiencing a certain personnel shortage, so the foreclosure market is no exception, the press service of the National Association of Professional Collection Agencies (NAPCA) told Izvestia. This encourages employers not only to set competitive wages, but also to offer comfortable working conditions: modern offices, recreation rooms, and a busy corporate life. The profession of a recovery specialist is quite young, they noted.
— Despite its difficulties in terms of the need to communicate regularly with people whose reactions are not always adequate, it has its advantages. For example, the possibility of fairly rapid career growth," the association said. — At least half of the department heads started their career as a recovery specialist and were able to grow up to their position.
For example, the Sbera remote collection centers accept employees with no work experience and with secondary education, said Denis Kuznetsov, director of Sberbank's Retail Collection and Settlement division. Such specialists communicate by phone with customers who have debts and offer them ways to solve the situation.
— This job is not easy, stress tolerance is important for it. In addition, it is quite monotonous and routine, so perseverance and attentiveness are also needed," he stressed.
Remote recovery employees can also work remotely, which makes it possible for people from small towns or with disabilities to work in a large company.
— We have a psychologist at each site who accompanies the employee at different stages and can assess his condition. There are psychological relaxation rooms for employees," Denis Kuznetsov explained.
In addition to stress tolerance, potential candidates are required to be willing to help a client in a difficult situation and to be human-centered, added Maxim Koloskov, CEO of ABC.
— The ability to negotiate, communication skills, the ability to establish trusting relationships, and empathy are important. Our task is not only to achieve financial performance, but also to help people in difficult circumstances in finding optimal solutions," he said.
How unscrupulous collectors collect debts
While large companies and banks are trying to establish a dialogue with their debtors, so-called black collectors continue to operate on the market, lawyers told Izvestia. Microfinance organizations often resort to their services, the source of the publication in law enforcement agencies noted.
All collectors can be clearly divided into two types, said lawyer Andrey Lisov.
— The first category includes those citizens who are mentally stuck in the dashing nineties and tend to solve problems with a baseball bat and a soldering iron. From the point of view of the law, these are the most ordinary bandits. Actually, they are not collectors," he explained.
The website of the Federal Bailiff Service has a register of collection companies, the lawyer recalled. If the organization is not on it, it means that it is operating illegally.
— Collection agencies, which, by the way, are not so many, are licensed. They have a well—defined functionality," the expert emphasized.
The sphere of debt collection is regulated by Federal Law No. 230, recalled Kantemir Keshokov, General Director of the law firm Keshokov, Bitueva and Partners. It defines the procedure for the interaction of collectors with the borrower, the types of debts they can work on, the requirements for collection organizations, as well as the permitted ways of interacting with the debtor.
"The law prohibits threats, harm to the debtor, damage to property, psychological pressure and other illegal actions," he stressed. — There are restrictions on the time of calls to debtors — they can only be made from 8:00 to 22:00 on weekdays and from 9:00 to 20:00 on weekends. In addition, collectors cannot call more than twice a week and eight times a month.
Collectors have no right to enter residential premises or communicate with relatives of debtors.
— Also, upon application to the collection organization, a citizen may prohibit them from conducting telephone conversations and face—to—face meetings with him altogether - in this case, the only way to interact with the debtor will be registered letters to the registration address, - the lawyer reminded.
Formal debt collection methods, such as courts, writ of execution, bailiffs, work very poorly with some debtors, said Ekaterina Kosareva, managing partner of the VMT-Consult analytical agency.
— The threat of a trial does not affect such a person: many simply have nothing to lose. Some of the debtors have no official income or property, and from the point of view of the law it is extremely difficult to get anything from them," she explained.
It is the "black collectors" who remain the main users of various bots for finding out personal data, the Izvestia source added.
— Then they call all their relatives and friends, write to them on social networks, and intimidate them. They can use fake accounts. For example, writing to men on behalf of a beautiful girl," the source told the publication. — They can hire people to set fire to the door, which is especially common in the regions.
They can intimidate you directly. For example, one debtor girl was splashed in the face with water, assuring her that next time it would be acid.
— They use the full range of elements of criminal pressure on the debtor. These are threats, surveillance. In addition, lawyers are allegedly calling and threatening to sue, deprive of real estate, and so on," the source stressed.
Once, foreclosure specialists took daily photographs of the debtor's child on the way to school, and sent them to parents to exert psychological pressure on them, Kantemir Keshokov added.
"It also happens that employees of such companies post flyers near debtors' entrances with information about them, including the amount of debt or even personal data," he stressed.
If collectors are trying to illegally collect a debt and humiliate a person in the eyes of others, you can safely file complaints about the illegal actions of the collectors in the FSSP or write a statement to the police, the lawyer assured. If a citizen is in bankruptcy proceedings, collectors automatically lose the right to any kind of interaction with the debtor, be it calls, personal meetings or letters, he recalled.
To counter the illegal actions of collectors, debtors need to carefully record all interactions with them, including recording telephone conversations and saving text and electronic messages, said lawyer and human rights activist Ekaterina Kutuzova.
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