Almost a million Slovaks deal with debt collectors

Currently about 968,000 people face forced debt collection in Slovakia, according to the Slovak Chamber of Executors. According to its president, Miroslav Paller, the planned legislation aimed to introduce an amnesty for these people will send a negative signal to society that it is all right to speculate on one's financial commitments and wait for another solution rather than be responsible for honoring one's own obligations. Paller says that most of those affected by debt collection have been faced with multiple court orders against them. The record-holder is a person with 144 ongoing distraints. The supporters of the amnesty argue that it is necessary to save people from a spiral of debt from which they are unable to exit on their own. This often pushes them towards the black labour market in order to hide their income from debt collectors.