India, Aug. 8 -- Borrowers who default on personal, home or vehicle loans no longer have to worry about the risk of their mobile phones or laptops being disabled by banks as a recovery tool, besides recovery agents hounding them.

Issuing this strict instruction, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has prohibited recovery agents from using abusive, threatening or intimidating language. Anonymous calls, repeated harassment, public humiliation or threats involving a borrower's family, assets or reputation are strictly forbidden. Besides restricting the use of device-locking technology, the rules also lay down fresh standards for recovery agents, the handling of borrower information, and the use of technology during the recovery process.

The RB...