At the moment, many people who want to take out a loan find it difficult to do this without the help of guarantors. Banks do not seek to provide funds to everyone who applies, so the borrower first needs to confirm his solvency. But such a system allows only the bank to protect itself, while neither the borrower himself nor his guarantor can be 100% sure of each other.
Today, many people willingly go to meet close acquaintances, friends and relatives and agree to become guarantors. Agreements are signed with the belief that the borrower will pay his loan, and the presence of a guarantor is just a formality. However, the situation is often different. The borrower, for any reason, cannot pay his debt, therefore, according to a previously concluded agreement, the bank collects funds from the guarantor. At the same time, the latter is responsible not only for the return of the principal debt, but also for interest, fines, and even state duty.
Usually, the guarantor finds out about the need to pay the debt for the borrower when the bank starts calling and demanding repayment of the loan. In this situation, you need to do the following:
1. Carefully study the loan agreement (preferably together with a lawyer), which was signed by the borrower and the guarantor. If for some reason there is no copy on hand, then it can be requested from the bank.
2. Then you need to find out if there is a clause in the agreement about the time limit for collecting funds from the guarantor. If the time frame is not specified, then usually no more than 6 months from the date of signing the contract. After this period has expired, the bank has no right to collect money from the guarantor.
3. If the term is specified and is more than six months, and has not yet expired, then you should meet with the borrower to find out from him personally the reasons for the lack of loan payments. If the reasons are serious and have arisen recently, then it makes sense to contact the bank and ask for debt restructuring. You can also ask for a deferral of payments.
If the situation with the borrower has reached a dead end, and the bank demands payments from the guarantor, the latter should know about possible ways out. It is impossible to collect a loan from a guarantor if he does not have a job or any property. If such a situation takes place, then the guarantor is given a deferral of payment.
You can postpone debt repayment even if you have minor children, as well as parents of retirement age. In this case, the guarantor should send a letter to the bank where the loan was taken with the following content: "I, full name, guarantor, cannot currently fulfill my obligations under the surety agreement due to minor children (or elderly parents) who are supported." The letter must be accompanied by copies of documents that confirm this situation.
The guarantor should also remember about the limitation period, equal to three years from the moment the loan agreement expired. If during this time the bank has not shown itself in any way, then it loses the right to forcibly collect the debt. Before direct collection, the bank is obliged to notify the borrower or guarantor in writing about the need to return the amount of money.
You can also avoid paying the debt for the borrower to the guarantor by declaring yourself incapacitated. Sometimes, in especially difficult and difficult cases, people resort to this method. They are seeking to obtain a certificate of insanity in a psychological dispensary. And although this method helps to get rid of financial problems, in the future it can lead to bad consequences.
The best option for the guarantor is to buy out the debt if the borrower has any tangible property. In this case, the surety becomes the creditor. The bank provides him with all the necessary papers with which you can go to court and in this way collect the required amount from the borrower along with the penalty.
