In South Africa, a section 129 notice, also known as an s129 letter of demand, is derived from Section 129 of the National Credit Act. It is a notice (letter) given to a consumer who has not been able to keep up with their payments. The consumer, at this point, has also not made alternative arrangements for the payment of their debt.
The National Credit Act aims to protect the South African consumer who has a credit agreement with any credit provider. In order to ensure the enforcement of the act and regulate the credit industry, the National Credit Regulator (NCR) was formed.
Some of the most important information included in the section 129 notice is:
This is an example of an s129 notice template that a creditor may use.
As is outlined in this template, if you fail to respond to the creditor by not taking any of the proposed alternative routes, they make take legal action against you.
To avoid legal proceedings, one of the routes a creditor should make you aware of is seeking out a debt counsellor to undergo debt counselling (debt review).
Debt counselling is a legal process that helps you pay back your debt, while keeping your assets like your home and car protected. It's important to note that when you undergo the debt counselling process, you will no longer be allowed to apply for credit.
While this may seem daunting—especially if you have been surviving on credit—relying on credit to survive is not sustainable. And if you don't stop taking on further credit, you will continue receiving these letters of demands. Or worse, your assets could be repossessed.
A few other alternative routes a creditor should highlight are:
The reason you received a Section 129 notice is probably that you are unable to pay your debt. It’s not because you don’t want to. We understand. With all the fuel and interest rate hikes, keeping up with all your repayments can seem impossible.
After receiving a Section 129 notice, it's also important to realise how serious this is. If a creditor has served you with a Section 129 notice, they can, following this, take legal action against you.
While this is a lot to take in, we want to assure you that there is hope. These notices can stop. All the creditors calling you demanding money you simply don’t have can stop.
How? With debt counselling at Meerkat.
After filling in this contact form, one of our knowledgeable Debt Counsellors will contact you to give you a free and confidential consultation. Here, we will determine if you actually are over-indebted and the best next-steps to get you debt-free.
Meerkat is registered with the NCR (National Credit Regulator – NCRDC2613). We understand that life happens, and you can start to fall behind on your debt repayments. We can help you regain financial control and walk the journey with you to becoming debt-free. As a team, we’re looking out for you.
We also offer competitive credit life cover to protect you and your family if you die, are retrenched, become disabled or suffer a severe illness.
Do you know how much you are paying on your current loans for cover? We may be able to replace your existing cover where it makes sense to do so.
We will also kickstart an emergency savings fund as part of your debt management plan. This ensures you have funds available for when life happens. Don't delay, get started today!
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