Lenders use domestic helpers' access cards to harass employers for debts

Financial companies are demanding foreign domestic helpers hand over employers’ resident access cards as loan collateral, exposing households to debt harassment – a situation even affecting lawmakers, a Sing Tao Probe report revealed.

Employer threatened after helper’s multiple loans

Cheng (a pseudonym), a finance professional and mother of a primary six boy, hired a foreign domestic worker in February last year.

Months later, she received WhatsApp messages from a lending company demanding repayment for loans the helper had taken out.

The messages included profanity and a video of the helper stating her name and acknowledging the debt.
 

After repaying the initial debt, the helper promised to stop borrowing but soon took out more loans.

Starting in October, Cheng received repeated demands from different lenders, with debts ranging from HK$1,000 to HK$7,000.

The collectors escalated their intimidation, sending her a photo of a vandalized apartment and warning, “Look at what happened to this home. Think carefully, we know your address.”

Cheng later discovered that her helper lost her building access card four times in two months.

She learned that some lenders require domestic helpers to surrender these cards as collateral, ensuring easy access for debt collectors to reach the employer’s home.

After firing the helper in January, Cheng sent the termination documents to the lenders, but new collection calls persisted until she threatened to involve police.

Lawmaker targeted after firing problematic helper

Lawmaker Judy Chan Ka-pui, who has two young children, faced similar harassment.

A domestic helper she hired in December last year was dismissed after three weeks due to poor performance.

In April, Chan received a letter from a lender claiming the former worker owed over HK$25,000.

Though the harassment stopped after she provided termination documents, Chan remains uneasy.

“My biggest concern is that the helper still has my address and knows my children’s routines,” she said. “I worry about who the lenders might send to my home.”

Government proposes crackdown on predatory lending

The government is currently reviewing regulations on licensed money lenders, with a public consultation running until August 22. Proposed measures include capping unsecured loans for low-income borrowers.

Legislator Frankie Ngan Man-yu, who has long tracked the issue, said the consultation specifically addresses excessive borrowing by domestic workers. 

“First, there should be a borrowing limit – no more than one month’s salary, meaning a maximum of HK$5,000,” he said.

Additionally, all lenders would be required to join a centralized credit database to prevent overborrowing.

(Ayra Wang)