1. Costs - No Win No Fee! 

Having long standing relationships with all our overseas partners we have agreements to provide these services on a NO WIN NO FEE basis charging the agreed commission rate against monies recovered only. 

2. Coverage in Croatia 

Croatia is divided into 20 counties and the capital Zagreb which has special status. Our local office is in Zagreb where we have operated since 1994 enabling us to recover debts throughout all of Croatia. 

3. Local Experience 

Unlike many of our competitors all cases are handled by the local office or partner. The reasons for this are they speak the debtors' language in this case Croatian is spoken by 95% of the population as their native language. We understand the local cultures and know all the legal processes. These are reasons why Creditreform are the ideal people to help you in collecting debts from overseas. 

4. Statute of Limitation in Croatia 

3 years but there are many special exemptions so whatever the age please contact us and we will advise if we can assist with your claim 
Search a country below for debt collection: 

How to Instruct Us 

We simply require the following details: 
Full name & address of the debtor 
All available contact details of the debtor i.e. contact name(s) / Tel / Mobile / Email(s) 
Amount owed (Invoice(s) or Statement will help) 
PLEASE CALL US ON +44 121 442 5330 FOR FURTHER DETAILS 
Or ask us to call you – just leave us your details: 

Case Study - GBP 21,500 recovered from Croatian Debtor 

Initiation of Case 
 
A UK employment solutions company based in Southampton had a £21,500 debt against a debtor in Split, Croatia. The debt related to employment services provided to the debtor company. Despite having a signed written agreement the debtor company refused to settle our client’s invoices. As a result of this the client sent the debt case to Creditreform together with all supporting documentation. 
 
Debt Collection Processes 
 
Upon receipt of the case we forwarded it to our local Creditreform office in Croatia. They then immediately sent the initial dunning letter to the debtor stating the amount owed and a deadline to pay. As the case was being dealt with during 2020 amidst the pandemic the collection process was made extremely difficult with the debtor ignoring requests, etc. However, through our local office’s expertise and dogged determination we managed to recover all the money owed. 
 
Summary 
 
At times the client was not sure whether we would be able to recover his money but when the funds hit his account he was over the moon and extremely please with our services. 

Croatia Debt Collection – No Win No Fee 

Creditreform operates a global specialist International debt collections service. We have local offices and fully approved expert international debt collection agency partners in every country worldwide. All our International debt collection agency partners and offices operate on a No Win No Fee basis charging an agreed commission against monies recovered only. 
 
Main reasons why a local country debt recovery agency is so important rather than trying to recover from a debt collection agency UK are as follows: 
 
The local International Debt collection Partners know: 
 
The local cultures 
The best methods of initiating debt recovery letters and processes 
The languages 
The laws 
Are in the same time zones 
 
Herewith details of our debt collection service Croatia: 

Location of debt recovery office in Croatia? 

Zagreb. All debt collection letters are sent by the local head office. 

Number of debt collection staff? 

7 employees. Each staff member is allocated a client and all their debt collection letters are personalised in order to effect the best response result s from debtors. 

How long have you been operating a debt recovery service in Croatia? 

We have been operating a European debt collection service on a no win no fee basis in Croatia since 1994. Croatia is included on our debt collection agency list

What type of debt collection services do you provide? Do you do commercial debt recovery (B2B) and consumer debt recovery (B2C)? 

We handle both Business to Business debt recovery cases and Business to Consumer debt collections cases. There is different content for business to business debt collection letter templates and business to consumer debt collection letters templates

Statue of Limitation in Croatia? 

-for goods and services trade – 3 years 
-for transport services – 1 year 
-in case a court verdict is obtained for a certain claim: 10 years 
 
Croatia civil litigation statute of limitations is a law that time limits a plaintiff’s right to bring a claim against a defendant. The statute of limitations in Croatia is 3 years. However, if an action has been taken within this time then the statute of limitations time will be extended to account for this. Once the specified time period elapses then no action can be taken through the legal processes unless the plaintiff is able to prove exceptional circumstances. Other Statute of Limitations include: 
 
Croatia Open Account Years – 3 years 
Croatia Promissory Notes – 3 years 
Croatia Written Contracts – 3 years 
Croatia Oral Agreements – 3 years 

How EU (European Union) laws effect debt collection in Croatia? 

The debt collection in Croatia is handled according to all corresponding EU laws. 
 
Croatia has been a European Union (EU) member country since 2013. 

How many companies registries in Croatia for businesses (i.e. UK has just 1 central registry)? 

In Croatia, besides the Court register, there is also Register of sole proprietorships, 
 
There is 1 company registry in Croatia which is called Ministry of Justice – Business Register - Sudski registar - Pretraga subjekata. 
 
We have access to Croatia Company Registry searches to find out who further background information on all Croatia companies. 

What is the debt collection process in Croatia? 

In order to start the process of a b2b debt collection in Croatia, it is necessary to have credible documents proving the justification of the claim. 
First attempts are made in order to settle the debt by settlement and out off court. 
In case it is not the case, legal actions are taken.. 

Average length of time to collect a debt? 

The average collection time of a claim cannot be determined, as it should be divided into: 
-cases that have been successfully resolved and 
-cases that have been unsuccessfully resolved. 
In addition, the division of successfully resolved cases by peaceful means (by agreement or out of court settlement) and successfully resolved cases in court proceedings should be made. 
Further, question is whether obtaining a judgment in a court proceeding can be considered as a successfully settled case if the creditor cannot collect his claims despite the court judgment. 
Generally speaking the collection time can be from few weeks to several years. 

Can late payment fees / interest to be added to claims? 

Under Croatian law, a creditor can claim interests and costs in addition to basic debt. In Croatian practice, such "benefits“ are mainly collected by state institutions and banks. In other cases it is very difficult to obtain a fair amount of interest and costs. It is customary for Croatian entrepreneurs to take interest and costs as a "side" thing that no one takes seriously until the moment of legal proceedings. 

Details on legal service / process in Croatia? 

It is important to note that court proceedings in Croatia (as in other Balkan countries) are time consuming and costly. It takes about 3-5 years to reach the first verdict in litigation. If there are appeals against a court decision, the case continues in the High court also on average 2-5 years. However, some court proceedings happen to be resolved very quickly, even in the first stage of the proceedings. This is the case where the debtor does not object to the initial motion for enforcement. Then the judgment can be obtained relatively quickly (in a few months), but usually then there is a problem of payment realization. 
 
In Croatia, as in other Balkan countries corruption is widespread. According to all polls in the last twenty years, the citizens of Croatia have labeled the the judicary system as the most corrupt part of the country, despite Croatia's accession to the EU in 2013. 
Therefore, every effort should be made to try to resolve the case without legal action. 

Croatia Business Credit Reports 

Creditreform provides over 88 million international business credit reports throughout Europe and 200 million international business credit reports worldwide. Total businesses registered (number) in Croatia is in excess of 1,000,000. Through our online databases you can download Croatian Company Searches instantly. This can be done prior to trading to make sure the company you will be dealing with can meet the commitment or once the debt becomes overdue to ensure the debtor can meet the amount owed. 

Croatia Skip Tracing Agents 

Creditreform’s debt collection company service also uses expert local Belgium tracing agent services to locate any absconded debtor. This debtor tracing service is provided on a No Find No Fee basis only charging for a successful trace. 

Specialist Debt Recovery Experts 

There are many unique requirements to recovering international debts in all countries including Estonia debt collection services which differ from the UK and therefore it is very important that cases are handled directly by our expert international debt collection agencies and not from debt collectors UK. This method of international debt collection sets Creditreform aside from the competition who in many cases try and recover debts from a UK debt collector only. Using the local offices and partners enables us to achieve a far greater success rate and our No Win No Fee service together with competitive commission rates against monies recovered only ensures you get the best service. 

Croatia Debt Collection Partners in the following Croatia Cities 

Which countries border Croatia? 

Croatia is bordered in the north by Slovenia and Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia in east. It has a short border with Montenegro, and it shares maritime borders with Italy

Who are the main trading partners for Croatia? 

The main trading markets for Croatia are Italy, Germany, Russia, China, Slovenia and Austria

What is the legal system in Croatia? 

The Croatia legal system is based on the Germanic Civil Law. 

What is the name of the Government Gazette in Croatia? 

The Gazette in Croatia is called the Narodne novine - Official Gazette. 

What is the Supreme Court in Croatia? 

The Supreme Court in Croatia is called the 'Supreme Court of Croatia' 

Croatia Debt Collection Agency FAQs 

1. How does a Debt collection agency in Croatia recover overdue debts? 

The debt collection process is initiated by an introductory letter to your debtor stating the amount owed to you and informing them of our involvement. Letters are then followed up with emails and telephone calls. From our experience the most effective part of this process will be the outsourcing to a third party debt collection agency in Croatia as the debtor now has to resolve the debt and can no longer hide or provide lame excuses. 

2. How long does the debt recovery agency in Croatia take to process a case? 

The debt collection case will be processed immediately up receipt and a letter sent normally by email and post. You will receive an automated confirmation by return. 

3. What is the success rate for debt collection agencies in Croatia? 

The success rate of the debt recovery case depends on a number of factors including the solvency of the debtor and whether the case has a legitimate dispute. Our aim is to recover every debt that is recoverable. 

4. Does the debt recovery agency in Croatia operate a No Win No Fee debt collection? 

We take on all debt collection cases on No Win No Fee basis only charging the agreed commission against monies recovered. 

5. Why use a local debt recovery agency in Croatia? 

The reasons for using a local Croatia debt collection agency than processing from a different country is the debt collector in Croatia speaks the local language, knows the local laws and operates in the same time zones. 

6. Are there any debts too old or too small for Croatia debt collection? 

We will assess all debt cases, irrelevant of age and size and then advise the best processes to recover these through the Croatia debt collector. 

7. How do I instruct the debt collectors in Croatia? 

Instructing the debt collectors Croatia is a simple process. You just email details of the debt, debtor and amount to be recovered and the case can be initiated. 

8. What evidence do I need to provide when instructing the Croatia debt collector? 

When instructing the debt collector in Croatia just provide copies of invoices/statements, debtor contact details and any relevant information you may have to assist with the recovery process. 

9. Who does the debtor pay? 

In general the debt collector in Croatia will request payments to be sent directly to the client but if not possible for any reasons will take payment directly. If payment is taken then cleared funds will be processed and sent to client straight away. 

10. Can I instruct multiple cases? 

You can send unlimited debt case instructions. Our systems will automate volume cases to meet your requirements. 

11. Can you trace debtors in Croatia? 

Through our network of skip tracing agents we have an extremely high success rate of locating your absconded debtor. 

12. How long does the debt collection process take? 

On average the debt collections process takes 90 days to resolve an amicable debt recovery case. There are a number of factors that can delay this process but we will keep you informed every step of the way. 

13. What are my options if debt collection in Croatia is not successful? 

If the debt recovery service is not successful we will advise you of your options including legal actions. Please note no legal actions or other processes will be taken without prior instruction from you.