Imagine the situation: you come to the store, fill a cart full of food, and at the checkout they tell you that your card is not being serviced. If this is not a technical glitch or scammers, then most likely your card was seized by bailiffs.
This situation is possible if you are required by court to pay someone a debt, but have not yet done so voluntarily. We have a separate article about the work of bailiffs.
It should be noted that bailiffs do not always behave strictly according to the law. You will find out for sure whether they have exceeded their authority by consulting with a lawyer. We will talk about the rules for blocking cards by court below.
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Reason for arrest
If a salary card is seized, there must be a very compelling reason. All reasons can be divided into two groups: the presence of debts and suspicions that the money received on the card is not a salary, but funds associated with the “laundering” of proceeds obtained by criminal means.
At the same time, if we talk about debts, they can be very diverse:
- Delay in payment of a loan debt (to a bank, microfinance organization) and ignoring a “trip” to the creditor in order to draw up a petition indicating the reason for the impossibility of paying the debt (for example, long-term illness).
- Evasion of child support payments to a child or incompetent parents.
- A disregard for paying for utilities (and the presence of a months-long “tail” in paying for utilities).
- The presence of numerous unpaid traffic police fines (one fine will not make a difference, but a collection of fines can become a good reason for imposing sanctions).
- An outstanding administrative fine (for example, for violation of such articles as “Violation of the peace and quiet of citizens”, “Violation of the rules for the placement and maintenance of burial places”, “Violation of the order and rules for the protection of green spaces”, “Connivance in the presence of minors in gambling establishments”, “Violation procedure for preventing the burning of dry vegetation”, etc.).
- Systematic failure to pay fees for using paid parking.
- Unpaid taxes of individuals (car, real estate).
How to protect yourself from such situations
To prevent bank accounts from being frozen, there is no need to take the matter to court. Try to repay debts on time or resolve the issue directly with the creditor, for example, agree on a partial refund or ask for a deferment.
If you are nevertheless sued, you have five days to repay the debt yourself. There is no need to run around and hide from the bailiffs when you cannot repay the entire amount: it is better to immediately bring information about your accounts. This way you will have at least part of the funds left for your needs.
Try not to keep all your money on the card: leave some cash in case of such a situation. If you understand that the card may be blocked, disable the overdraft service, otherwise you will be driven into debt to the bank, for which high interest will be charged.
Who has the right to seize the card?
Do bank employees themselves have the right to seize a salary card? When it comes to debt, this is not their area of expertise. As a bank client, a citizen can always count on confidentiality, but at the same time, the bank, if FSSP employees contact it, cannot hide from him the presence of an open account. Yes, the information is not provided immediately - but after an official request, but the initiator is not the bank, but the FSSP.
If the operation to seize the card is connected with a process that is associated with “money laundering” (or suspicion of such a scam), then the initiation of card blocking can be carried out either by the bank itself (independently) or at the request (resolution) of Rosfinmonitoring.
Do bailiffs have the right to seize a salary card? Yes, bailiffs have the most complete powers to arrest, no matter what the main reason is.
At the same time, it is important to remember the legal subtlety: no matter what reason leads to actions on the part of the bailiffs, it is the funds that are seized, and not the salary card itself. But a common practice is to say “card arrest”.
The debt is paid, but the card is not unlocked
To remove the encumbrance, the bank needs an official request from the FSSP. According to reviews from the forums, this is 2-3 days. If after the specified time the blocking is not lifted, the debtor sends a notification to the bailiff with a request about the current situation. In the request, the citizen specifies whether the arrest has been lifted by the bank.
You will also need confirmation from the claimant that there are no claims. He is taken to the bank. If after these steps the blocking is not lifted, file a complaint and contact the district court.
Shouldn't you confuse arrest and card blocking?
Seizing a card and blocking funds on it should not be confused with blocking the card itself. The last option is practiced by the bank when the client entered the PIN code incorrectly 3 times in a row in the payment terminal, blocking.
When a card is blocked in this case, in most cases you receive an SMS, push notification, or email. But this is optional. Some banks, if the client has entered the PIN code incorrectly three times, automatically block the card and do not send any notifications.
Which card should I get so that bailiffs don’t withdraw money?
Get a Tinkoff card. Go to the Tinkoff website and open the Tinkoff Mobile SIM card. We need it so that Tinkoff can make us a virtual credit card. It has a balance in common with the mobile account. According to the law, such an account is not a bank account and cannot be seized.
Also, one of the most reliable ways to keep your money intact is to deposit personal funds on credit cards. The current legislation of the Russian Federation establishes a ban on the seizure of such accounts.
Many banks provide clients with the service of storing personal funds on credit cards in excess of the borrowed limit with interest accrual. The executive service is aware of this. Therefore, the FSSP proposed a number of relevant amendments to the legislation for consideration. But this issue still remains unresolved.
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Bailiffs seized a salary card: what to do?
If funds are still seized, the main thing is not to panic and act, taking into account the situation.
So, for example, if during the seizure of the card they do not explain the reason, moreover, you, being the owner of the card, do not understand what is the reason for such actions, you have the right to immediately make a request to the banking institution, and they must provide you with a document based on which the funds are blocked. The papers must indicate the date of seizure and the name of the body that is involved in the procedure.
If you are convinced that this is not a mistake, and there really is a documentary basis, as well as the reason for the arrest, it is important to obtain a certificate from your organization or enterprise. It must indicate that the salary is actually transferred to the seized account. It is important that not all funds are written off, but only those required by law and equal to the amount of the fine and alimony.
There is no need to make such a certificate only if the debt is huge and the funds in the account do not cover it.
If the arrest is imposed legally, you pay off the debts from the card, and then write a statement addressed to the bailiff who issued the decision. The goal is to demand that the arrest be lifted.
It is important to include a proof of employment and a bank statement with your application. It is possible to submit documents in person or through an authorized representative (lawyer). If a salary card is seized without notification, no matter what the reason for the arrest, the actions of the authorities are illegal. You should have a subpoena and papers in your hands at the beginning of the paperwork.
How to receive a salary if the account is seized by bailiffs
To receive your salary in full, you must pay off the debt and wait for the card to be unblocked within one to three days.
When seizing an account, the bailiffs do not know about its intended purpose. In order to be able to receive half of the wages remaining after collection, the debtor needs to find out the reason for the arrest from the bailiff, demanding documents confirming its legality. You should first obtain an account statement from the bank, which will serve as proof that it is a salary account.
Note!
Even if other funds are received there, if wage income predominates, half of the earnings can be released. To do this, it is recommended to take a salary slip from the employer, which will allow you to determine the share of funds for wages in the total number of credits.
It is also worth preparing copies of the pages of the work book. Bailiffs, knowing the place of work, can send a collection order directly to the employer without seizing the card, which will allow them to dispose of half of their earnings.
The collected documents, along with an application to release the account from seizure, must be submitted to the FSSP. The application is written in free form. It indicates the details of the creditor and the debtor, the number of the enforcement proceedings and a request to remove the seizure from the account on the basis that wages are the only source of income.
Note!
Electronic document flow has been established between the FSSP and banks. If the bailiff makes a positive decision, the debtor does not need to take any papers to the bank. If the process is delayed, you can get a decree to lift the seizure from the bailiff and personally present it to bank employees.
How much money can be withheld?
Everyone is concerned about the question of how much money is withheld when bailiffs seize a salary card.
The Law “On Enforcement Proceedings” allows you to block an amount in an account in most cases that is no more than 50% of the debtor’s income.
If we are talking about a debt that is associated with the collection of alimony, compensation for harm to health, compensation for material damage, we are no longer talking about 50%, but about 70%.
But there are options when the retention rate, on the contrary, can be reduced. So the amount of 30% begins to be discussed in situations where there are minor children in the family, and if the child is raised by only one of the parents - up to 25%.
Receiving salary
No less important is the question of how to receive a salary if the bailiffs have seized the account. First of all, we should not forget about the restrictions on wage deductions established by Art. 99 of Law 229-FZ. If you are completely unable to use your salary, you must contact the bailiff with a statement and supporting documents. This could be a certificate from your place of work.
Another option to solve the problem is to receive your salary in cash at the organization’s cash desk. The employee retains this right, and the employer cannot deny him if he receives a corresponding application.
Should the bank notify the client about the seizure of his account?
Many complain: “The salary card was seized without notification.” The problem is indeed very pressing. The process is initiated by bailiffs, and, according to the law, the bank is not obliged to warn clients about the seizure of their accounts, blocking, or collection of money.
The bank receives a decision to enforce that all debit transactions on the accounts are prohibited and the money is “frozen” as soon as the bailiffs seize the salary card.
Only after the bank fulfills the requirements of the bailiff (order, writ of execution), it notifies its client about the transaction performed. For this reason, many disputes often arise. Clients believe that they were deceived and the bank hastened to act. But in fact, legally everything here is absolutely correct.
However, not everything is so pessimistic; since 2015, the Federal Bailiff Service of Russia has made it possible to find out information about ongoing enforcement proceedings via the Internet. Therefore, if a citizen himself understands that he has “shoals”: he does not pay utilities, fines, and is a persistent defaulter of alimony, then he should constantly monitor the resources of the Federal Bailiff Service of Russia.
Errors and misunderstandings
True, sometimes monitoring can reveal unpleasant surprises, revealing not only fair decisions of authorities, but also annoying misunderstandings.
Sometimes a citizen clearly knows his “flaws,” but they try to “hang” debts on him for matters completely unknown to him. This happens if a citizen has not only debts, but also a namesake and mother-in-law, who also “fined himself.” In this case, sometimes the human factor and the haste of authorities come into play.
The fact is that when a case is opened by the FSSP, a search begins for the bank that services the client and the account. And, if a case is already being conducted according to the namesake, the cases can be “mixed” into one “pile”. It’s wild in the age of information technology, but, alas, such situations have arisen more than once. And here the main task of the citizen is to immediately notify the bailiff for his part about the illegal seizure of the account and blocking of the card.
Often, erroneous identification of the debtor occurs in situations where the resolution contains only the debtor’s full name and date of birth. In a multimillion-dollar Russia, where there are many Ivanovs, Petrovs, Zhuravlevs (etc.), the probability theory that the data will coincide is not so small.
Also, confusion may arise if a person has accounts in several banks and several places of work, or if a citizen has already paid debts through the FSSP website, but for some reason
the data has passed. The consequence of this is double recovery. The most unpleasant thing in this situation is that simply canceling the resolution (if the money has been written off) will not solve the problem. But everything can be fixed: the process of returning the money itself begins.
Not only salary...
By the way, it is important to understand that all means can be used to repay the debt. Everything is fine with the accounts on the salary card, it is being “worked out”. There are no funds on it; deposits and loans are used.
At the same time, we are talking not just about the funds that are present in the account “here and now,” but also about potential amounts. So, in the case when the account balance is lower than the amount specified in the court order, the missing amount will be seized at the moment, as, for example, on a salary card, the deposit will arrive later (when the client “places” it on account some money) when the client deposits any funds into the accounts.
Deadline for unblocking
The card can be blocked for a certain period of time:
- If the problem is in maintaining the wrong code (and we are talking about blocking, not arrest), then the problem is solved as soon as the client contacts the bank.
- If there is a suspicion of money laundering and the card was blocked by the bank without a resolution from Rosfinmonitoring and bailiffs, then the period for blocking the card is up to 5 working days. During this time, clients must provide documents on the “transparency” of funds. If there are no documents, the operation moves to a new phase, the bank attracts the forces of Rosfinmonitoring.
- If the income is truly honest (and we are really talking about wages), then the problem is solved by the employer providing the initial reasons for transferring money and pay slips.
- If there is a resolution of Rosfinmonitoring, but there was no court, then the blocking period, according to current legislation, is up to 30 days.
- If there is a court decision - for the period until the decision is canceled.
If the income is truly honest (and we are really talking about wages), then the problem is solved by the employer providing the initial reasons for transferring money and pay slips.
If the case is resolved through the court, then there are no specific deadlines; everything is “tied” to the wording specified in the law “On Enforcement Proceedings”. It clearly states that the removal of the arrest from the card is associated with the completion of the execution of the writ of execution by the banking institution. The execution of the writ of execution, in turn, ends most often after the debt has been transferred in full, according to the claimant’s application. Less often, a situation is possible when the bailiff announces the cancellation (termination) of execution.
If the bank withholds money for more than the specified period, then it is possible to demand compensation for a penalty.
How to understand that money was written off by ROSP employees
When money is debited from the card, the owner receives an SMS notification. To understand who exactly wrote off the funds, the debtor contacts the bank. The employee will provide information on your passport.
The payment document indicates:
- number of enforcement proceedings;
- amount of funds written off;
- Full name of the FSSP employee.
Now you need to check the presence of debts through the database of enforcement proceedings. The debtor needs to compare information from the bank with the FSSP data.
How to avoid card seizure?
To avoid card seizure, it is important to always remember the following legal nuances:
- Can a salary card be seized if criminals tried to pay with the card? No, in this case the only place to be is blocking.
- If there are debts, then you must make it clear to the bank that arrest can only be carried out after a court decision; there must be a writ of execution from the bailiffs. If it is not there, blocking and arresting the card is illegal. And there is every reason to defend your rights. If you have paid your debts, there is a complete agreement with the bailiffs, and the arrest on the card cannot be removed, you can safely file a complaint.
- Even if the arrest is based on a court order
Knowing these nuances will allow you not to panic in difficult situations and confidently defend your rights.
If a card linked to a loan is seized
This case can be called extremely difficult and bad for a citizen. When issuing a loan, Sberbank also issues the borrower a debit card with which monthly payments are made: the client replenishes this card, the money is automatically debited on the appointed day.
If this card is seized, that is, driven into the red, the borrower will not be able to make the monthly payment. So it turns out: you want to pay the loan, but you can’t, and there is a risk of falling behind.
In this case, you should contact the servicing Sberbank as soon as possible and find out how you can repay the loan in this case. The manager will provide the loan account number; you will need to pay using it, that is, directly, and not through a card.
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about the author
Irina Rusanova - higher education at the International East European University in the direction of "Banking". Graduated with honors from the Russian Economic Institute named after G.V. Plekhanov with a major in Finance and Credit. Ten years of experience in leading Russian banks: Alfa-Bank, Renaissance Credit, Home Credit Bank, Delta Credit, ATB, Svyaznoy (closed). He is an analyst and expert of the Brobank service on banking and financial stability. [email protected]
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