Debt-collection compliance: ACCC and ASIC explained

The ACCC/ASIC Debt Collection Guideline is the single most important conduct document in Australian debt recovery. It applies to every creditor, agent, and platform engaged in debt collection — not just licensed collectors.

What it actually requires

The Guideline sets standards across:

Frequency of contact. No more than 3 phone calls per week, no more than 1 face-to-face visit per month. Reasonable hours only (7:30am–9pm weekdays, 9am–9pm weekends; not public holidays).

Tone. No abuse, no humiliation, no threats of action that aren't legitimately on the table.

Information. The collector must accurately identify the debt, the original creditor, the amount, and the basis. The debtor has a right to dispute and to written confirmation.

Hardship. Genuine hardship must be considered. Punitive treatment of hardship cases is specifically called out as misconduct.

Privacy. Discussions of the debt with third parties (employer, family) are tightly restricted.

Who enforces it

  • ACCC: misleading conduct, unconscionable conduct.
  • ASIC: licensed credit conduct, including most consumer-credit debts.
  • AFCA: free external dispute resolution for consumers.
  • State consumer bodies: NSW Fair Trading, CAV, Office of Fair Trading QLD, etc.

What this means for choosing a recovery provider

Ask any provider you're considering:

  1. How is your contact frequency capped?
  2. How are hardship requests routed and paused?
  3. What's your dispute pathway?
  4. Are you ACL-licensed if you're acting in consumer-credit?

Compliance isn't a checkbox — it's an operating posture. A provider whose business model depends on aggressive recovery will struggle to operate cleanly under the Guideline. A provider built around self-service and hardship-first design tends to comply by default.