The NCR brought the matter before the National Consumer Tribunal (NCT) this year.
Case Number: NCR vs TRYCO DEBT MANAGEMENT (PTY) LTD NCT-314933-2024-Section 140(1)
After the NCR served papers on Tryco Debt Management (also known as Accord Debt Solutions on Facebook)* who never bothered to try defend themselves, the matter went before the Tribunal who looked at the services offered and compared them to those offered by Debt Counsellors.
The NCT found them to be the same, except perhaps for the fact that the consumer had no legal protection and Tryco was trying to operate without any oversight from the NCR.
The NCR also looked into how the consumers funds were supposedly to be distributed while under mediation and found that they had effectively held themselves out to be a Payment Distribution Agent (or to perform the functions of a PDA). Since PDAs have to also be registered with the NCR this was found to be illegal.
‘the NCT found in favour of the NCR and ruled that this debt mediator was offering unregistered debt review services’
At the end of the matter, the NCT found in favour of the NCR and ruled that this debt mediator was offering unregistered debt review services. Services which can only be offered by a Debt Counsellor and PDA services which can only be offered by a registered PDA.
The Tribunal then considered a suitable fine (which could have been up to R1 million) and settled on R200 000 and ordered them to stop offering these services without registering with the NCR. They also said they should pay back all fees charged to their former clients.
They also must appoint an auditor and give a full report on all fees charged and refunded.
This ruling seemingly finally answers the question of whether people can go around offering the services of a Debt Counsellor without actually being registered as one with the NCR.
*We reached out to Pius of Tryco but he declined to give us any comment.