§ 3. The Act cannot be overridden for consumers
The Debt Collection Act (inkassoloven) protects you as a private individual (consumer (forbruker)). This means that no one can make a contract or an agreement with you that gives you weaker rights than those set out in the Act. An agreement on shorter payment deadlines (betalingsfrister) or higher fees (gebyrer) than the Act allows is entirely invalid.
Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська
The text of the law (unofficial translation)
The provisions in or pursuant to §§ 9 to 11, § 17 first paragraph and § 19 may be departed from by agreement between the creditor (fordringshaveren) and the debtor (skyldneren), but not to the detriment of a debtor who has incurred the obligation in the capacity of consumer. The provisions in §§ 14, 15 and 16 first paragraph may be departed from by agreement between the creditor and the debt collector (inkassatoren). Otherwise, the Act cannot be departed from by agreement.
What does this mean?
In law, there are two types of rules. Some rules only apply if nothing else has been agreed. Other rules are absolute and cannot be overridden by any private contract. For private individuals, the Debt Collection Act falls into the second category. It is "mandatory".
This is an enormously important protection for you if you owe money. The balance of power between a large bank with a team of lawyers and a completely ordinary person struggling to pay the rent is very uneven. If the Act were not mandatory, companies could simply hide a short sentence far down in the terms when you ordered a credit card: "In the event of debt collection (inkasso), you have only a 2-day deadline, and the fee is NOK 5,000". Since you ticked "I accept", you would have had to live with it.
Section 3 puts a stop to this. It states clearly that the most important rules in the Debt Collection Act (such as the deadlines for sending notices, the right to complain, and the limits on how much you must pay in fees) cannot be departed from to the detriment of a consumer. The word "consumer" here means that your debt comes from your private life — for example a mortgage, buying furniture for your living room, or an electricity bill. It does not apply if the debt comes from a business you run.
You and the debt collection company are free to agree on things that are better for you than what the Act says. For example, they can give you a 30-day deadline instead of the Act's requirement of 14 days. That is completely legal. They just cannot give you 10 days.
The section also specifies that businesses that collect money for each other (creditor and debt collector) are allowed to agree on slightly different rules between themselves, because they are professional parties. But this must never be at the expense of you as a private individual who owes the money.
Why can't the debt collection company make its own rules?
When you have financial problems, you are often desperate and stressed. Debt collection companies know that people in crisis are often willing to sign almost anything just to get a little more time, or to keep the case from being sent to the enforcement officer (namsmannen).
Imagine the debt collection company calls and says: "We can give you a one-month extension, but then you must sign a document in which you agree to pay an extra administration fee of NOK 2,000 every month, and that you waive the right to bring the case before the Conciliation Board (Forliksrådet)." Many people would say yes to that out of pure desperation.
This is exactly the kind of exploitation the Act prevents. If a company forces you to enter into such an agreement, you do not need to pay any attention to it afterwards. The agreement is legally worthless. The Act's rules on fee caps and notice deadlines override everything. You pay what the Act says, and not a krone more, no matter what you agreed to on the phone or in an online portal.
Comparison: Law vs Agreement
| What the debt collection company does | Is it legal? | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| Gives you a 21-day deadline to pay | Yes | It is better for you than the Act's requirement of 14 days |
| Requires you to pay a notice fee for a text message | No | The Act requires a written and formal notice to charge a fee |
| Has you sign up to a 5-day deadline | No | The Act says a minimum of 14 days, mandatory |
| Exempts you from late payment interest (forsinkelsesrenter) in December | Yes | More favourable for you, fully legal |
| Charges an extra fee for calling you weekly | No | The Act has maximum rates for which costs you must cover |
What happens if you make a mistake?
If you pay fees you do not actually owe because you thought the agreement applied, the money is gone from your account. In theory you can demand it back, because it was collected in breach of mandatory law, but that takes a lot of time and energy. It is much better to know your rights before you pay. If you accept an agreement that breaks the law and do not protest, in practice you are being exploited without anyone stopping it.
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Example
Lars has a large debt to an online shop. The debt collection company sends him an offer for a repayment plan (nedbetalingsplan). The agreement states in small print that Lars must pay NOK 1,500 to set up the repayment plan, and that the reminder deadline for future delays is reduced to 5 days. Lars signs digitally to get the matter over with. Later, Lars reads up and realises that the Act sets a strict cap on fees, and that the deadline in a debt collection notice (inkassovarsel) must always be at least 14 days. He contacts the agency and refuses to pay the set-up fee, pointing out that the 5-day deadline is illegal. The company claims that Lars "signed the agreement", but Lars stands his ground. Lars is right. Since the Act cannot be departed from to the disadvantage of consumers, the terms of the repayment plan are invalid.
Common mistakes
- Feeling bound by unreasonable agreements made with the debt collection agency (inkassobyrået) while in a stressful situation.
- Believing that general terms of purchase ("Terms and Conditions") you accepted when buying something override Norwegian debt collection law.
- Believing that this protection applies if you run a sole proprietorship (businesses have weaker protection).
- Paying illegal fees in the hope of avoiding trouble, instead of demanding that they be removed.
What should you do?
To make sure you are not tricked into accepting worse terms than you are entitled to, you should:
1. Always read the details — If you are offered a payment arrangement, look carefully at which fees have been added. Do they match standard debt collection rates? 2. Speak up in writing — If you believe a company is using deadlines or fees that breach the Act, send a written complaint and mention the Debt Collection Act § 3. Show that you know your rights. 3. Ask for the legal basis — If a case officer says "it is our routine to do it this way", reply: "Where in the law does it say you can charge this?" A serious company should be able to refer to the text of the law, not just its own routines. 4. Right to complain — If the company refuses to back down on an unreasonable agreement you have entered into, you can complain about them free of charge to the Norwegian Financial Services Complaints Board (Finansklagenemnda) (if it is a bank) or the Debt Collection Complaints Board (Inkassoklagenemnda).