Interview with BDIU board member Dr. Christian Behrens
Today we get some insights into the work of BDIU – Federal Association of German Debt Collection Agencies.
Together with Dr. Christian Behrens, we take a look behind the scenes. He tells us how important this cooperation is in the debt collection industry – especially for the economy and consumer protection.
Hello, Dr. Behrens, I am delighted to welcome you to our short interview today. Before we start, can you tell us a bit about yourself and briefly introduce yourself?
Hello, thank you for inviting me to our interview today. My name is Christian Behrens, I am 46 years old, happily married for 14 years and I come from Schleswig-Holstein. After my civilian service as a paramedic, I went to Heidelberg, Uppsala (Sweden) and Freiburg to study law. I also did my PhD in Freiburg, Germany.
After several years as a lawyer in large commercial law firms, I wanted to try something new with an in-house job, and in spring 2012 I came across a very interesting job advert from "Arvato Financial Solutions" – today’s Riverty. After a very pleasant interview, it quickly became clear that I would be going to Baden-Baden. My line manager at the time promised me that it would never get boring - and he absolutely kept his word!
I can understand that very well!
And how did it come about that you are now a member of the BDIU board?
In 2016, there was a major personnel change in the BDIU board, during which also a representative of our company was to be elected. Through BDIU's European Committee and my work on a major joint project on behalf of the EU, I already had many contacts there and enjoyed the exciting tasks. So I didn't have to hesitate for long when I was asked whether I would be interested in applying to become board member.
I am now in my third term as a member of the BDIU board and primarily responsible for legal tasks. In addition, I am also a member of the board of our European umbrella organisation FENCA (Federation of European National Collection Agencies) since 2022 and, as the interface between the two associations, I deal in particular with European legal and political matters.
Very exciting!
For all those who are not yet familiar with BDIU - what does the abbreviation "BDIU" stand for and what are its aims?
BDIU stands for "Bundesverband Deutscher Inkasso-Unternehmen e.V.", in English "Federal Association of German Debt Collection Agencies". As such, BDIU represents the political and legal interests of its members. The members of the BDIU cover around 90 % of the German debt collection market. These are more than 400 companies active in receivables management with a total of 12,000 employees, who annually process 33.4 million newly transferred claims for 500,000 clients and in this way return around 5 billion Euros back into the economic cycle each year.
OK, and how can one become a member of BDIU?
And what advantages does this offer?
To become a member of BDIU, a debt collection agency must, among other things, provide proof of its registration and reliability. Together with the association's office, the board then examines the documents very carefully and decides on the admission.
The advantages are manifold: professional political representation of interests, support in legal matters, extensive training opportunities, an annual virtual congress as highlight of the numerous lectures and seminars, as well as the extremely popular congress of the German debt collection industry.
Membership in the BDIU is a very important seal of quality for debt collection service providers, which many debt collection clients make a prerequisite for commissioning.
Are there any current interesting topics that BDIU is dealing with?
Last year, the Higher Regional Court of Hamburg passed a judgement on debt collection costs. It would have considerable consequences for the contractual models of the entire industry if it were upheld. But not only that - far-reaching cuts in the creditors' economic situation would also have to be feared. However, the judgement is currently in appeal proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice. Riverty and BDIU are monitoring the progress of the proceedings very closely - and with optimism.
What other current legal changes are having an impact on the debt collection industry?
On 1 October 2021, the so-called VVInkG, the “Act to improve consumer protection in debt collection law", came into force. In this context, the legislator recognised that debt collection agencies and lawyers perform the same activities in extrajudicial debt collection and in judicial dunning proceedings, which are therefore to be treated and remunerated in the same way. Notwithstanding this, in some areas debt collection agencies are still treated differently than lawyers - without convincing justification for this. There is still action required in this area. Together with BDIU, we will continue to energetically campaign for this. BDIU is playing a constructive role and has already provided the Federal Ministry of Justice with many relevant figures, data and facts.
Consumer protection is an important issue.
What measures is BDIU taking to strengthen consumer protection?
In 2020, the BDIU Members’ Meeting adopted a "Code of Conduct for Receivables Management", which contains clear and verifiable rules for debt collection. In line with BDIU's motto "Debt collection means responsibility", the Code of Conduct answers questions about debt collection from a consumer perspective: How does a claim arise? When does a creditor transfer a case to debt collection? How does the debt collection agency check that the claim is legitimate? What costs are incurred in the course of the debt collection? As a debtor, how can I communicate with the debt collection agency?
Some of the regulations contained in the Code of Conduct go significantly beyond the restrictions imposed on debt collection agencies by law. For example, according to the Code of Conduct, BDIU member companies may not demand from debtors reimbursement for payment plan or instalment agreements that are limited to less than three instalments to be paid.
Compliance with the Code of Conduct is strictly monitored in cooperation between BDIU's office and board.
What are the expected future prospects?
It remains to be seen how much potential for optimizing efficiency and performance lies in increased digitisation.
The progress of digitisation is also reflected in current legislative proposals. A prime example of this is the "Act on the Development and Testing of an Online Procedure in Civil Jurisdiction". It is welcome that new digital procedures and platform solutions shall be created for civil proceedings. This legislative project demonstrates par excellence in several respects that there is still a great need for modernisation in German civil procedural law.
The use of artificial intelligence also promises great opportunities to help creditors realise their claims even better in the near future.
BDIU prepares itself and its members for the upcoming changes by organising appropriate seminars, training courses and presentations and is optimally positioned with dedicated expert and working groups on these future topics.
Is there anything else you would like to pass on to our readers?
As in many areas of life, there are also "black sheep" in the debt collection industry. However, very often these are not even genuine debt collection agencies but rather fraudsters who try to persuade consumers to make payments with fictitious claims. First and foremost, in case a debt collection letter appear dubious (e.g. if there are many spelling mistakes or if foreign bank details are given), you should check whether the company is listed at all in the legal services register. If not, then it is almost certainly an attempted fraud. Further tips can be found on the BDIU website under Check reminder | INKASSO.DE.
Thank you Dr. Behrens for the insights you have given us today!
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Interview with BDIU board member Dr. Christian Behrens
Today we get some insights into the work of BDIU – Federal Association of German Debt Collection Agencies. Together with Dr. Christian Behrens, we take a look behind the scenes. He tells us how important this cooperation is in the debt collection industry – especially for the economy and consumer protection.
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