by MARIA BRADSHAW

BARBADIANS and other people seeking to escape debt by fleeing the country will find there is no hiding place outside of this jurisdiction.

That's because Creditel Collection (Barbados) Ltd, one of the major debt collection agencies on the island, can now effectively pursue defaulters in over 55 countries.

Managing director Everton Depeiza told the SUNDAY SUN Creditel was now a member of the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ACA International) – a notable trade association for professional businesses and individuals in the credit and collection industry.

As a member it can now utilise the services of other affiliates in locating debt dodgers.

"Now that we are affiliated with ACA we can send information to members in other jurisdictions which they can act on and report back to us. It allows us to work in collaboration with other collectors and attorneys around the world," Depeiza said.

He added that with the expected high movement of labour and businesses throughout the Caribbean, the sharing of information among collection agencies was critical.

Depeiza said its affiliation with ACA was significant at this time because a number of Barbadians, as well as foreigners, were leaving the island with huge debts behind, while defaulters from other countries were also migrating here.

"Creditel does not have the authority to bring back anyone for an ordinary debt which is a civil matter, but we can enter into an agreement with the person or we can submit their information to our affiliate members to put on their database and this can affect their credit rating," Depeiza explained.

He said Creditel had already been successful in locating a Barbadian who had relocated as far away as Jordan in the Middle East. Since joining ACA, Creditel has also received six international clients, including a landlord in Canada, who are looking for defaulters in Barbados.