The programme for voluntary debt settlement began in the fall of 2002 and ended in August 2004. An estimated one fifth of the debtors responded after being contacted by their creditor.
By the end of 2004, around 5,300 debt reconciliations had been achieved. In these cases, the majority of the outstanding debt was settled. Some one thousand applications will still be processed during the course of this year. The number of reconciliations should rise to around 7,000. The figure is not equal to the number of debtors, as the same person may have entered into several debt settlement agreements.
The so-called lighter process was applied in over one thousand cases that led to reconciliation. In this process, the debt of those who experience long-term insolvency is annulled.
Statutory debt adjustment has been granted to over 62,000 debtors after the introduction of the legislation in 1993.
In the debt adjustment process, the debtors have repaid around one tenth of their outstanding liabilities. The share has been similar in reconciliation agreements.
