Canada is a nation of Debtors. Most Canadians are, have been or will be, a Debtor. For many, debt is ever present and a life without debt is but a dream. When debt joins the life of a Debtor, fears can emerge about managing debt effectively. This can lead to feeling financially vulnerable. Financial insecurity manifests states of unhappiness, anxiety, discontentment and many other difficult issues.
View Stories
Debtor Rights
The Canadian Debtors Association aims to improve the Debtor’s journey through advocating for the rights of Debtors nationally. This includes elevating respect for Debtors in Canada.
We strongly believe in the rights of Debtors and have established the Debtor Bill of Rights as a framework for the protocols that Debtors should be entitled to.
We see a future where these Debtors Rights are fully supported and widely embraced by every aspect of the credit industry.
Canadian Debtors Association will work hard to advocate for universal acceptance of the Debtor Bill of Rights for Canadians.
View Stories
Improving Debt Life
A major focus of CDA is to help Debtors with all aspects of debt life. This includes:
- Alleviating confusion for Debtors looking for help; by fixing the lack of transparency in the debt industry and the insolvency system.
- Assisting Debtors to understand the different helping roles that industry stakeholders and the government have; to make it easier to gain clear, accurate and practical knowledge.
- Developing better advocacy programs and educational products that make a positive difference for the financially vulnerable; gleaned from evidence-based research and understanding.
- Building an ethical and trustworthy debtor industry that individuals and families can rely on and trust.
Stories
”My story is not unique. My wife and I worked hard, invested well, saved and paid our credit cards in full every month. None of that was enough when the 2008 financial crisis hit. Much of our investment was in real estate and the market tanked. Prior to that, we were building equity and a future.
David
Now we had to sell everything we had, trying to control loss and manage debt. We struggled in vain as the economy forced losses that were mounting up faster than we could pay. Overwhelmed, we took out a high 2nd mortgage in a last-ditch effort to pay collectors.
Not surprisingly, by around the third year, we were so deep in debt we were unable to meet our obligations to our creditors and the collectors started to call many times per day. The stress mounted and we were literally sick with worry. We are both university-educated, hard working and careful. This wasn’t supposed to happen to us.
”Having to seek debt help is never easy. All situations are different. We all think we are different with the situation we are in, but serious debt is never entered into frivolously or easily. For me it was trying to get a business off the ground over a period of years with personal lines of credit…both dept. store and bank credit cards and other forms.
Diane
People are usually curious if ‘my’ situation was as bad as they are personally experiencing. Well, I was in credit card debt for over $120,000! Crazy, right?
I live on a Disability income, and the business never got off the ground. I am less than a decade from retirement age, so a combination of health and age makes it difficult finding even part time work. So, I think my situation qualified for pretty dire!
”I did NOT want to claim bankruptcy and completely screw up my credit for the rest of my life. Really wanted to responsibly pay all my debtors as much as I could afford and immediately start rebuilding my credit rating score. My credit card debt had reached $60,000, with interest rates causing my debt to rise exponentially. I realized I could not pay it all back in my lifetime.
Brandon
Creditors and debt collectors were phoning day and night, filling my voice mail with dozens of unpleasant messages which made me feel sick to my stomach, worthless and like I was a criminal.
Began losing sleep, was continually stressed out and saw absolutely no future or happiness. I believed I could be easily facing starving to death and be broke, so I’d have to live on the street.
”My financial life was a complete mess. I drove a 1996 car, was self employed with no viable credit and several collection agencies were frequently calling me demanding money for a debt they purchased (let that sink in). All of that compounded my mental health.
Petra
I wanted to pay the debt back, however between injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident, having a young family, and the state of the economy, resources weren’t as readily available to do so and maintain a quality of living.
”How we got into the financial state we where in, I will never know. Obviously, mismanagement and overspending. I knew we had to do something but had no idea what. We did not want to claim bankruptcy, but we knew we were in trouble with our debt. We just had so much stress about owing more than $100,000 in debt.
Jack