Pepper Asset Management practices
Deputy Durkan criticised aggressive debt collection by Pepper Asset Management against vulnerable borrowers whose loans were sold to vulture funds. The Minister said reforms were already in place and invited the Deputy to send specific cases.
I again bring to the attention of the House the activities of Pepper Asset Management. Some of its operatives are behaving in a very aggressive manner in the pursuit of vulnerable long-term borrowers who, for compelling reasons, were not able to service their loans. Those loans were sold to vulture funds, some at a fraction of the face value, but people are now being pursued aggressively for the full face value and arrears, leaving them with no option other than to become homeless, in which case they do not qualify for local authority housing. Those people become homeless to facilitate the vulture funds. I am asking that the licence issued by the Central Bank be reviewed and the activity of this organisation be reviewed as a matter of extreme urgency.
Comment on this
As the Deputy will be aware, the Central Bank and the Department of Finance have advanced significant reforms in this area to support households that face difficulties with their mortgages. There is a clear framework for how that engagement is meant to occur. If there are specifics that the Deputy wants to raise with my office, we will engage with him on the issue.