ORS Chapter 697 - Oregon Statutes

Chapter 697 — CollectionAgencies; Check-Cashing Businesses; Debt Management Service Providers

 

2009 EDITION

 

 

DEBTCOLLECTION & MANAGEMENT; CHECK CASHING

 

OCCUPATIONSAND PROFESSIONS

 

COLLECTIONAGENCIES

 

697.005     Definitionsfor ORS 697.005 to 697.095

 

697.015     Registrationrequirement

 

697.031     Registrationprocedure; bond or letter of credit; fees; procedures for out-of-statecollection agencies; rules

 

697.039     Revocation,suspension or refusal to issue or renew registration

 

697.045     Statusof accounts and claims assigned to agency; rights of assignor; appearance insmall claims or justice court; registration as condition of access to courts

 

697.053     Registrationexclusive regulation; local fees authorized

 

697.058     Agencyrecords; business office; trust accounts; reporting requirements; audit oftrust accounts; cost of audit; exemptions

 

697.063     Statusof business records and bank accounts following revocation of registration;liquidation; expenses and attorney fees

 

697.085     Rules

 

697.086     Rulesfor collection of child support payments

 

697.087     Injunction;damages; attorney fees; limitation on actions

 

697.091     Feesor compensation received in violation of law; disposition

 

697.093     Enforcement

 

697.094     Ordersissued under ORS 697.093

 

697.095     Civilpenalties

 

697.105     Feefor collection of debt owed public body; notice to debtor; amount

 

697.115     Feefor collection of commercial debt; amount; limit

 

EXCHANGEFACILITATORS

 

(Temporaryprovisions relating to exchange facilitators are compiled as notes followingORS 697.115)

 

CHECK-CASHINGBUSINESSES

 

697.500     Definitionsfor ORS 697.500 to 697.555

 

697.502     Exemptionsfrom licensing and record-keeping requirements

 

697.504     Licensingrequirement

 

697.510     Licenseapplication form and contents; waiver; rules

 

697.512     Applicationfee and investigation fee; rules

 

697.514     Applicationreview and license issuance; expiration and renewal; grounds for denial; rules

 

697.520     Prohibitedpractices; effect on charges for dishonored payment instruments

 

697.522     Receipt;contents

 

697.524     Endorsementand deposit of payment instruments

 

697.526     Noticeof fees and charges; filing with department

 

697.528     Records;retention; examination costs; rules

 

697.530     Prohibitedconduct

 

697.540     Suspensionor revocation of license; grounds; notice and hearing

 

697.542     Powersof director; cease and desist order

 

697.550     Rules

 

697.555     Civilpenalties; restitution

 

DEBTMANAGEMENT SERVICE PROVIDERS

 

697.602     Definitionsfor ORS 697.602 to 697.842

 

697.612     Registrationrequirement; exceptions

 

697.632     Registrationprocedure; fees; rules

 

697.642     Bondrequirement

 

697.652     Writtenagreement and budget analysis requirement; contents and form of agreement;waiver of requirements void

 

697.662     Prohibitedpractices

 

697.672     Requirementto make, keep and maintain records; rules

 

697.682     Trustaccounts for client funds; statements

 

697.692     Fees;rules

 

697.702     Interferencewith records of debt management service provider

 

697.707     Requireddisclosures

 

697.718     Liabilityfor consumer’s ascertainable loss; limitation on time to commence action

 

697.722     Executionor attachment of trust account funds

 

697.732     Examinations;investigations; costs; access; public disclosure requirements and exemptions

 

697.752     Groundsfor denial, revocation or suspension of registration

 

697.762     Enjoiningviolations; attorney fees; damages

 

697.822     Remedynot exclusive

 

697.825     Enforcement;orders

 

697.832     Civilpenalties

 

697.840     Rules

 

697.842     Dispositionof moneys received by director

 

PENALTIES

 

697.990     Penalties

 

697.992     Jurisdictionof courts

 

COLLECTIONAGENCIES

 

      697.005Definitions for ORS 697.005 to 697.095. As used in ORS 697.005 to 697.095:

      (1)(a)“Collection agency” means:

      (A)A person directly or indirectly engaged in soliciting a claim for collection,or collecting or attempting to collect a claim that is owed, due or asserted tobe owed or due to another person or to a public body at the time the personsolicits, collects or attempts to collect the claim;

      (B)A person that directly or indirectly furnishes, attempts to furnish, sells oroffers to sell forms represented to be a collection system even if the formsdirect the debtor to make payment to the creditor and even if the forms may beor are actually used by the creditor in the creditor’s own name;

      (C)A person that, in attempting to collect or in collecting the person’s ownclaim, uses a fictitious name or any name other than the person’s own thatindicates to the debtor that a third person is collecting or attempting tocollect the claim;

      (D)A person in the business of engaging in the solicitation of the right torepossess or in the repossession of collateral security due or asserted to bedue to another person; or

      (E)A person that, in the collection of claims from another person:

      (i)Uses any name other than the name regularly used in the conduct of the businessout of which the claim arose; and

      (ii)Engages in any action or conduct that tends to convey the impression that athird party has been employed or engaged to collect the claim.

      (b)“Collection agency” does not include:

      (A)An individual engaged in soliciting claims for collection, or collecting orattempting to collect claims on behalf of a registrant under ORS 697.005 to697.095, if the individual is an employee of the registrant.

      (B)An individual collecting or attempting to collect claims for not more thanthree employers, if all collection efforts are carried on in the name of theemployer and the individual is an employee of the employer.

      (C)A person that prepares or mails monthly or periodic statements of accounts dueon behalf of another person if all payments are made to the other person and noother collection efforts are made by the person preparing the statements ofaccounts.

      (D)An attorney-at-law rendering services in the performance of the duties of anattorney-at-law.

      (E)A licensed certified public accountant or public accountant rendering servicesin the performance of the duties of a licensed certified public accountant orpublic accountant.

      (F)A bank, mutual savings bank, consumer finance company, trust company, savingsand loan association, credit union or debt consolidation agency.

      (G)A real estate licensee or escrow agent licensed under the provisions of ORSchapter 696, as to any collection or billing activity involving a real estatetransaction or collection escrow transaction of the licensee or escrow agent.

      (H)An individual regularly employed as a credit person or in a similar capacity byone person, firm or corporation that is not a collection agency as defined inthis section.

      (I)A public officer or a person acting under order of a court.

      (J)A person acting as a property manager in collecting or billing for rent, fees,deposits or other sums due landlords of managed units.

      (K)A person that is providing billing services. A person is providing billingservices for the purposes of this subparagraph if the person engages, directlyor indirectly, in the business or pursuit of collection of claims for anotherperson, whether in the other person’s name or any other name, by any meansthat:

      (i)Is an accounting procedure, preparation of mail billing or any other meansintended to accelerate cash flow to the other person’s bank account or to anyseparate trust account; and

      (ii)Does not include any personal contact or contact by telephone with the personfrom whom the claim is sought to be collected.

      (L)A person that is providing factoring services. A person is providing factoringservices for the purposes of this subparagraph if the person engages, directlyor indirectly, in the business or pursuit of:

      (i)Lending or advancing money to commercial clients on the security of merchandiseor accounts receivable and then enforcing collection actions or procedures onsuch accounts; or

      (ii)Soliciting or collecting on accounts that have been purchased from commercialclients under an agreement whether or not the agreement:

      (I)Allows recourse against the commercial client;

      (II)Requires the commercial client to provide any form of guarantee of payment ofthe purchased account; or

      (III)Requires the commercial client to establish or maintain a reserve account inany form.

      (M)An individual employed by another person that operates as a collection agencyif the person does not operate as a collection agency independent of that employment.

      (N)A mortgage banker as defined in ORS 86A.100.

      (O)A public utility, as defined in ORS 757.005, a telecommunications utility, asdefined in ORS 759.005, a people’s utility district, as defined in ORS 261.010,and a cooperative corporation engaged in furnishing electric or communicationservice to consumers.

      (P)A public body or an individual collecting or attempting to collect claims owed,due or asserted to be owed or due to a public body, if the individual is anemployee of the public body.

      (Q)A person that receives an assignment of debt in any form without an obligationto pay the assignor any of the proceeds resulting from a collection of all or aportion of the debt.

      (R)A person for whom the Director of the Department of Consumer and BusinessServices determines by order or by rule that the protection of the publichealth, safety and welfare does not require registration with the department asa collection agency.

      (2)“Collection system” means a scheme intended or calculated to be used to collectclaims sent, prepared or delivered by:

      (a)A person who in collecting or attempting to collect the person’s own claim usesa fictitious name or any name other than the person’s own that indicates to thedebtor that a third person is collecting or attempting to collect the claim; or

      (b)A person directly or indirectly engaged in soliciting claims for collection, orcollecting or attempting to collect claims owed or due or asserted to be owedor due another person.

      (3)“Claim” means an obligation for the payment of money or thing of value arisingout of an agreement or contract, express or implied.

      (4)“Client” or “customer” means a person authorizing or employing a collectionagency to collect a claim.

      (5)“Debtor” means a person owing or alleged to owe a claim.

      (6)“Debts incurred outside this state” means an action or proceeding that:

      (a)Arises out of a promise, made anywhere to the plaintiff or a third party forthe plaintiff’s benefit, by the defendant to perform services outside of thisstate or to pay for services to be performed outside of this state by theplaintiff;

      (b)Arises out of services actually performed for the plaintiff by the defendantoutside of this state or services actually performed for the defendant by theplaintiff outside of this state, if the performance outside of this state wasauthorized or ratified by the defendant;

      (c)Arises out of a promise, made anywhere to the plaintiff or a third party forthe plaintiff’s benefit, by the defendant to deliver or receive outside of thisstate or to send from outside of this state goods, documents of title or otherthings of value;

      (d)Relates to goods, documents of title or other things of value sent from outsideof this state by the defendant to the plaintiff or a third person on theplaintiff’s order or direction;

      (e)Relates to goods, documents of title or other things of value actually receivedoutside of this state by the plaintiff from the defendant or by the defendantfrom the plaintiff, without regard to where delivery to carrier occurred; or

      (f)Where jurisdiction at the time the debt was incurred was outside of this state.

      (7)“Out-of-state collection agency” means a collection agency located outside ofthis state whose activities within this state are limited to collecting debtsincurred outside of this state from debtors located in this state. As used inthis subsection, “collecting debts” means collecting by means of interstatecommunications, including telephone, mail or facsimile transmission from thecollection agency location in another state on behalf of clients locatedoutside of this state.

      (8)“Person” means an individual, firm, partnership, trust, joint venture,association, limited liability company or corporation.

      (9)“Public body” means:

      (a)The state and any branch, department, agency, board or commission of the state;

      (b)A city, county, district or other political subdivision or municipal or publiccorporation or an instrumentality thereof; and

      (c)An intergovernmental agency, department, council, joint board of controlcreated under ORS 190.125 or other like entity that is created under ORS190.003 to 190.130 and that does not act under the direction and control of anysingle member government.

      (10)“Registered” or “registrant” means a person registered under ORS 697.005 to697.095 or registered or licensed as a collection agency under the laws ofanother state.

      (11)“Statement of account” means a report setting forth amounts billed, invoices,credits allowed or aged balance due. [1981 c.85 §2; 1987 c.373 §43; 1993 c.744 §20;1995 c.622 §1; 1999 c.468 §1; 2001 c.917 §5; 2009 c.134 §1]

 

      697.010 [Amended by1959 c.525 §1; 1963 c.580 §58; 1975 c.364 §1; 1977 c.185 §4; repealed by 1981c.85 §17]