The article seeks to establish, in a comprehensive manner, if and how abusive debt collection practices are regulated in the respondent EU Member States. Using empirical data gathered from consumer and supervisory agencies as well as debt collection associations in 26 EU Member States, it provides an insight into (a) the existence of a licencing regime for debt collectors; (b) the potential transboundary dimension of debt collection and its implications for the common market; (c) the types of abusive debt-collection practices encountered in the Member States; (d) the efficacy of self-regulation via Codes of Conduct; and (e) the potential traditional remedies available to consumer-debtors. The article concludes that the existence of different national models creates potential issues and discrepancies in the legal status and defences available to consumer-debtors across the EU, which ultimately affects the proper functioning of the single credit servicing market. The advocated solution is that of a harmonized sector-specific regulation of abusive debt collection practices at EU level.

中文翻译：

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欧盟成员国对滥用收债行为的监管：实证分析

本文旨在以全面的方式确定欧盟成员国是否以及如何监管滥用收债行为。使用从 26 个欧盟成员国的消费者和监管机构以及收债协会收集的经验数据，它提供了对 (a) 收债人许可制度的存在的见解；(b) 收债的潜在跨界层面及其对共同市场的影响；(c) 成员国遇到的滥用债务催收做法的类型；(d) 通过行为守则进行自我监管的有效性；(e) 消费者债务人可用的潜在传统补救措施。文章的结论是，不同国家模式的存在在欧盟消费者债务人可用的法律地位和辩护方面产生了潜在的问题和差异，最终影响了单一信贷服务市场的正常运作。提倡的解决方案是在欧盟层面对滥用债务催收做法制定统一的特定行业监管。