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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Modes of debt relief for consumers in Poland

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Consumer bankruptcy has been functioning in the Polish legal system since 2008. The serious amendment to the provisions on consumer bankruptcy made by the Act of 30 August 2019 amending the Act – Bankruptcy Law and some other acts (Journal of Laws 2019 item 1802) will certainly have a significant impact on the remarkable increase in the number of bankruptcy cases. Insolvency of natural persons – consumers is a typical social phenomenon, which has a very different background. It can be caused by a sudden change in the life situation related to e.g. deterioration of health, loss of a well-paid job, divorce, death of a spouse, termination of unformal relationship with a partner. Many people are the victims of a culture of consumption, etc. Some debtors have become insolvent because they are the victims of some sort of a life trap, guarantee of someone else's debt, fraud, unsuccessful investment, etc. Gambling, alcoholism and drug addiction are the driving forces of insolvency. A relatively large group of debtors are former entrepreneurs and former members of management boards responsible for the obligations of a capital company. Because the reasons for insolvency are different, legal systems limit the possibility of debt relief only for debtors who meet certain criteria of payment morality. This short study refers only to legal aspects related to debt relief under consumer bankruptcy in Poland.