47-18-5523 - Fees and other charges. [Effective July 1, 2010.] - Tennessee Statutes

47-18-5523. Fees and other charges.   [Effective July 1, 2010.]

(a)  A provider may not impose directly or indirectly a fee or other charge on an individual or receive money from or on behalf of an individual for debt-management services except as permitted by this section.

(b)  A provider may not impose charges or receive payment for debt-management services until the provider and the individual have signed an agreement that complies with §§ 47-18-5519 and 47-18-5528.

(c)  If an individual assents to an agreement, a provider may not impose a fee or other charge for educational or counseling services, or the like, except as otherwise provided in this subsection (c) and § 47-18-5528(d). The administrator may authorize a provider to charge a fee based on the nature and extent of the educational or counseling services furnished by the provider.

(d)  Subject to adjustment of dollar amounts pursuant to § 47-18-5532(f), the following rules apply:

     (1)  If an individual assents to a plan that contemplates that creditors will reduce finance charges or fees for late payment, default or delinquency, the provider may charge:

          (A)  A fee not exceeding fifty dollars ($50.00) for consultation, obtaining a credit report, setting up an account, and the like; and

          (B)  A monthly service fee, not to exceed ten dollars ($10.00) times the number of creditors remaining in a plan at the time the fee is assessed, but not more than fifty dollars ($50.00) in any month;

     (2)  If an individual assents to an agreement that contemplates that creditors will settle debts for less than the principal amount of the debt, a provider may charge:

          (A)  Subject to § 47-18-5519(d), a fee for consultation, obtaining a credit report, setting up an account, and the like, in an amount not exceeding the lesser of four hundred dollars ($400) or four percent (4%) of the debt in the plan at the inception of the plan; and

          (B)  A monthly service fee, not to exceed ten dollars ($10.00) times the number of creditors remaining in a plan at the time the fee is assessed, but not more than fifty dollars ($50.00) in any month;

     (3)  A provider may not impose or receive fees under both subdivisions (d)(1) and (2); and

     (4)  Except as otherwise provided in § 47-18-5528(d), if an individual does not assent to an agreement, a provider may receive for educational and counseling services it provides to the individual a fee not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100) or, with the approval of the administrator, a larger fee. The administrator may approve a fee larger than one hundred dollars ($100) if the nature and extent of the educational and counseling services warrant the larger fee.

(e)  If, before the expiration of ninety (90) days after the completion or termination of educational or counseling services, an individual assents to an agreement, the provider shall refund to the individual any fee paid pursuant to subdivision (d)(4).

(f)  Except as otherwise provided in subsections (c) and (d), if an agreement contemplates that creditors will settle an individual's debts for less than the principal amount of the debt, compensation for services in connection with settling a debt may not exceed the applicable settlement fee limits in subdivisions (f)(1) and (2), the terms of which shall be clearly disclosed in the agreement.

     (1)  With respect to an agreement that provides for a flat settlement fee based on the overall amount of included debt, the total aggregate amount of fees charged to any individual under this part, including fees charged under subdivisions (d)(2)(A) and (B), may not exceed seventeen percent (17%) of the principal amount of debt included in the agreement at the inception of the agreement. The flat settlement fee authorized under this subdivision (f)(1) shall be assessed in equal monthly payments over at least half the length of the plan, as estimated at the plan's inception, unless the payment of fees is voluntarily accelerated by the individual in a separate record and at least half of the overall amount of outstanding debt covered by the agreement has been settled.

     (2)  With respect to agreements in which fees are calculated as a percentage of the amount saved by an individual, a settlement fee may not exceed thirty percent (30%) of the excess of the outstanding amount of each debt over the amount actually paid to the creditor, as calculated at the time of settlement. Settlement fees authorized under this subdivision (f)(2) shall become billable only as debts are settled, and the total aggregate amount of fees charged to any individual under this part, including fees charged under subdivisions (d)(2)(A) and (B), may not exceed twenty percent (20%) of the principal amount of debt included in the agreement at the agreement's inception.

     (3)  A provider may not impose or receive fees under both subdivisions (f)(1) and (2).

(g)  Subject to adjustment of the dollar amount pursuant to § 47-18-5532(f), if a payment to a provider by an individual under this part is dishonored, a provider may impose a reasonable charge on the individual, not to exceed the lesser of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) and the amount permitted by law other than this part.

[Acts 2009, ch. 469, § 1.]