On the way to a fairer enforcement system?

The public then wonders how it is possible that debts are paid from the back, why one debtor is chased by 10 or more bailiffs at the same time, how employers lose hundreds of thousands or even millions of crowns annually on enforcement administration, or how a bailiff can enter practically anywhere with a locksmith as they please.

Over the past few years, this system has moved closer to Western European standards. Most recently thanks to the major enforcement amendment, which has been in effect since this January. According to new data, more than 713,000 residents in the Czech Republic are still under enforcement.

Why watch the episode?

• The situation in debt collection and enforcement is not just a marginal issue. It is a fundamental social problem that negatively affects individuals, regions, the state, and the protection of democracy. We will show what absurdities and systemic traps in debt issues we all end up paying for at the end of the day.
• In connection with recent developments in energy prices, rising inflation, and interest rates, we expect a huge deepening of the problem. You will learn how (un)prepared the system is, how it has evolved over the last 20 years, and what challenges await us in the (near) future.

Who are the moderators

Gabriela Vondrušová

Gabriela Vondrušová currently works at the Institute for Overindebtedness Prevention and Solutions on systemic changes in the area of debt and enforcement. She is most involved in the development of the anti-enforcement program in companies – helping them become more productive. She has always enjoyed connecting business with (nonprofit) projects that improve the world around us. That’s why in recent years she worked with the international organization Ashoka, which seeks and supports social innovators, and contributed to the development of sustainable tiny housing ideas and the creation of a coworking-community center from a former brownfield outside Prague.

Radek Hábl

Radek Hábl graduated from the University of Economics in Prague and then spent 12 years in various financial roles in the private sector. In 2014, he moved to the nonprofit sector and three years later launched the unique project Mapa exekucí, a tool that brings enforcement data to the local level. Two years ago, together with colleagues, he founded the Institute for Overindebtedness Prevention and Solutions, which focuses on household debt, enforcement, and insolvency issues and strives for systemic changes in this area. He also raises awareness on this topic through his Twitter profile. Since 2018, he has been a member of the Ashoka Fellow network and since 2020 has served on the Government Council for Human Rights.