Seizure of a credit card

On what grounds do bailiffs seize accounts?

According to Article 64 of Federal Law No. 229-FZ "On Enforcement Proceedings" dated October 2, 2007, a bailiff has the right to seize all movable and immovable property of the debtor, including their bank accounts.

The main condition for seizure is that the account must belong exclusively to the bank client and no one else. It follows from this that a credit card cannot be seized, since the funds located in the account linked to it belong to the bank, not the debtor. Another case is when the client also stores their own savings on the credit card.

What does the bank say about this?

To understand the position of banks on this issue, one must first understand how the FSSP seizes a debtor's bank accounts. This happens as follows:

1. The bailiff sends an official request to the credit institution regarding the debtor's open accounts.
2. The bank, in turn, sends complete information on the client's accounts to the FSSP in a response message.
3. The bailiff sends a writ of execution to the credit institution.
4. The bank seizes all or part of the client's accounts.

It must be understood that the seizure of accounts and the write-off of funds from them is not a whim of the credit institution. Banks are obliged to comply with the requirements of the FSSP. Evasion of obligations can lead to sanctions from the regulator.

The only thing a credit institution can do is notify the bailiff of the futility of seizing credit cards, since the FSSP has no right to collect the bank's money, and there may be no own funds of the borrower in the account.

How lawful is the seizure of a credit card?

The legislation allows bailiffs to seize any movable and immovable property of the debtor, including their bank accounts. In the case of a credit card, the funds on it belong to the bank, not the holder, so their seizure is not permissible.

The ban on seizing a credit card is explained by the following reasons:

• the possible absence of the borrower's own funds on the balance sheet;
• the procedure for repaying credit card debt — incoming funds go first to repay the credit card debt, rather than to fulfill third-party obligations;
• frequent changes in credit card terms.

From all of the above, it follows that formally a credit card can be seized — there are no legislative restrictions on this matter. However, the seizure will be pointless, since the funds deposited by the borrower will be written off to pay off the credit card debt, rather than to fulfill third-party obligations.

What to do if bailiffs have seized a credit card?

The issue with the seizure of a credit card can be resolved quite quickly, because very often the cause is a banal human error. Upon receiving a writ of execution against a client, the bank must notify the FSSP of the impossibility of writing off funds from the credit card to pay off debts.

If a credit card holder receives a notification of seizure, they need to write an application to the credit organization. It must indicate:

• credit card details;
• surname, name, and patronymic of the applicant;
• reasons for lifting the seizure.

As a reason for lifting the seizure, it is enough to indicate that the card is a credit card, and therefore debiting funds from it to fulfill third-party obligations would be unlawful.

Answering frequent questions

To conclude the article, we will answer the most frequently asked questions on the topic.

The bank sued me for non-payment of a loan. Can my credit card be seized?

In fact, bailiffs may insist on the seizure of funds located in a credit account. Your bank can point out to the Federal Bailiff Service the unreasonableness of blocking the credit card. But the decision to lift the seizure is made by the bailiff in any case.

How to repay the debt to the bank if my credit card is under seizure?

You need to understand that the bailiffs seize not the credit account itself, but the funds coming into it. If you repay the debt by transfer, your money will most likely go toward a writ of execution, and you will incur a debt to your current creditor as well. In this case, it is better to deposit funds through the bank's cash desk or correspondent account.

What to do if the bailiffs wrote off my credit card payment to pay off a debt under a writ of execution?

You can, of course, contact the bailiff directly and try to get your money back. But with a high probability, you will have to make another payment to prevent arrears on the credit card. It is best to find out how to do this directly from the bank employee.