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Federal
Laws
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STATE
LAWS
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A—C—D—F—H—I—M—N—O—P—T—V—W
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| ARIZONA
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A collection agency cannot attempt to contact a debtor at their
place of employment unless a reasonable attempt has been first
made to contact the individual at their residence, and such
attempt has failed.
A collection agency shall not inform a debtor that by failing
to contact the agency, the debtor has waived any right of
defense, or that the collection agency may circumvent the
legal process or misrepresent any of the remedies available
to a collection agency to the debtor.
A collection agency shall not threaten to contact or contact
a debtor’s neighbors, friends, relatives, employers or other
third parties to inform them of the debt to ask they pressure
the debtor or to ask that they pay the debt.
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| ARKANSAS
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The
State Board of Collection Agencies has the authority to revoke
or suspend an agency’s license, or refuse to grant a license
to an applicant for a collection agency license if a debtor
is contacted at their place of employment by mail or telephone.
The license will not be revoked or suspended if a good faith
attempt has been made to contact the debtor at their place of
residence by mail or telephone, and the mail was returned or
the call was not answered.
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| COLORADO
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It
is harassing conduct to place telephone calls without providing
meaningful disclosure of the caller’s identity in the first
sixty seconds after the other party to the call is identified
as the debtor.
A collection agency shall not contact a consumer at their
place of employment if the agency knows or has reason to know
that the consumer’s employer prohibits such communication.
A collection agency shall not contact a consumer by telephone
at the consumer’s place of employment if the consumer informs
the agency in writing to cease such contact.
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| CONNECTICUT
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Without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to
the consumer collection agency or the express permission of
a court of competent jurisdiction, a consumer collection agency
may not contact a consumer at their place of employment if the
agency knows or has reason to know the employer prohibits such
communication.
Use of any business, company, or organization name other
than the true name of the consumer collection agency’s business,
company or organization is prohibited as a false or misleading
representation.
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| DISTRICT
OF COLUMBIA |
A
collector shall not use any company name other than the true
name of the collection agency when communicating with a consumer.
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| FLORIDA
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No
consumer collection agency shall communicate or threaten to
communicate with a debtor’s employer before a final judgment
against the debtor is obtained, unless the debtor has given
their permission in writing to do so. A collector is not prohibited
from telling a debtor that their employer will be contacted
if a final judgement is awarded.
No service provider or their representative can collect or
attempt to collect money from an HMO subscriber for services
covered by an HMO, and no provider or their representative
can bring an action against an HMO subscriber in an attempt
to collect money owed the provider by the HMO.
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| HAWAII
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No
collection agency shall use any name other than its true name
in its efforts to collect a debt. |
| IDAHO
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If the person designated as the agency’s manager is not normally
available in the Idaho office, the collection agency’s activities
to collect a debt must begin with a written notice to each debtor.
The notice shall provide a mailing address and toll-free telephone
number where the designated person may be contacted during normal
business hours.
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| ILLINOIS
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It
is impermissible conduct for a collector, when making a demand
for payment, to fail to disclose the creditor’s name and, if
the debtor requests, where payment is to be made and the creditor’s
address.
In any communications with a debtor, a collection agency
must state the specific reason for the communication, the
creditor’s name and the registered name of the collection
agency. If the communication is in writing, the date must
be given. The identity of the collector making the contact
must be given in an oral communication.
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| IOWA
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A
debt collector may only use the true name of the business, company
or organization the collector represents in its representations
to debtors.
A collector may communicate with a debtor’s employer no
more than once in a three-month period in order to gain the
employer’s debt counseling services for the debtor.
A collector may contact a debtor’s employer once in any one-month
period only to verify employment, but not to reveal any information
about the debt.
Not more than once in any three-month period, a collector
may communicate the fact of a debt with a minor’s parents,
the trustee of any property of a debtor, the conservator of
the debtor or the debtor’s property, or the debtor’s guardian.
A collector may respond to inquiries from a parent, trustee,
conservator or guardian.
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| MAINE
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A
collector shall not communicate with a consumer at their place
of employment if the collector knows or has reason to know that
the consumer’s employer prohibits the consumer from receiving
a communication, unless the consumer has given prior consent
or the collector has the express permission of a court of competent
juridiction.
A collector
may not communicate with any person about a debt other than
the consumer (including the consumer’s spouse, the consumer’s
parent or guardian, if the consumer is a minor, an executor
or administrator), their attorney, a consumer reporting agency
if the law permits, the creditor, the creditor’s attorney or
the collector’s attorney. A collector may communicate with
others if the consumer has given their direct consent to the
collector to do so; a court of competent jurisdiction has expressly
authorized such communication; or to effectuate a post-judgement
judicial remedy.
A collection agency shall not use any business, company
or organization name other than the true name of the collection
agency in connection with the collection of any debt.
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| MARYLAND
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A
collection agency shall not attempt to collect a debt from any
person who has subscribed to a health maintenance organization
on behalf of a health care provider.
A health care provider or their representative may not maintain
an action against a subscriber of any health maintenance organization.
A health care provider or their representative may attempt
to collect any co-payment or co-insurance sums a subscriber
to a health maintenance organization may owe and any payment
or charges for services not covered by the subscriber’s contract
with a health maintenance organization.
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| MASSACHUSETTS
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It is an
unfair or deceptive act or practice for a collection agency
to call any debtor by telephone, initiated by the collection
agency, more than twice in each seven-day period to the debtor’s
residence and more than twice in a 30-day period to any place
other than the debtor’s residence. (A creditor may treat a
debtor’s billing address as their place of residence.)
It is an unfair or deceptive practice for a collection agency
to visit a debtor’s household at times other than the debtor’s
normal waking hours. If the normal waking hours are not known,
a collection agency shall not visit at any time other than
between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. In no event shall visits
initiated by a collection agency exceed one in any 30-day
period. Visits where no person in a household is contacted.
A debtor may consent, in writing, to more frequent visits.
It shall be an unfair or deceptive act for a collection
agency to visit the debtor’s place of employment, excluding
those visits which are solely for the purpose of repossessing
any collateral or property of the creditor. It shall also
be an unfair or deceptive act for a collection agency to confront
a debtor concerning a debt, initiated by a collection agency,
in:
- a public
place, excluding courthouses;
- the
collection agency’s place of business;
- any
other places agreed to by a debtor;
- the
offices of any attorney for the debtor; or
- places
where a conversation between representatives of the collection
agency and a debtor cannot be reasonably overheard by any
other person not authorized by the debtor.
It shall
be an unfair or deceptive act for a collection agency to place
any calls to the debtor’s place of employment if the debtor
has made an oral or written request to the collection agency
not to contact them at their place of employment. Any oral request
shall be valid for only 10 days unless the debtor provides written
confirmation postmarked or delivered to the agency within seven
days of the oral request. A debtor may also terminate such
a request by written communication to the collection agency.
Unless a debtor has requested has requested, in writing,
that a collection agency not contact them at their place of
employment, a collection agency is required to send the following
written notice to a debtor within 30 days after the agency’s
first communication about a debt at their place of employment.
NOTICE
OF IMPORTANT RIGHTS
YOU
HAVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE A WRITTEN OR ORAL REQUEST THAT TELEPHONE
CALLS REGARDING YOUR DEBT NOT BE MADE TO YOU AT YOUR PLACE
OF EMPLOYMENT. ANY SUCH ORAL REQUEST WILL BE VALID FOR ONLY
TEN DAYS UNLESS YOU PROVIDE WRITTEN CONFIRMATION OF THE REQUEST
POSTMARKED OR DELIVERED WITHIN SEVEN DAYS OF SUCH REQUEST.
YOU MAY TERMINATE THIS REQUEST BY WRITING TO THE COLLECTION
AGENCY.
After the
initial notice has been sent, a copy of the notice shall be
sent to the debtor every six months thereafter as long as the
collection activity by the agency continues, and the debtor
has not made a written request to not contact them at their
place of employment.
It shall be an unfair or deceptive act for a collection
agency to visit the debtor’s place of employment, excluding
those visits which are solely for the purpose of repossessing
any collateral or property of the creditor.
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| MINNESOTA
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No
licensed collection agency or collector shall communicate with
a debtor by using a recorded message with an automatic dialing
announcing device, unless the recorded messages is immediately
preceded by a live operator. The live operator must disclose
the collection agency’s name and that the message intends to
solicit payment. The operator obtain the debtor’s consent to
hear the message.
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| NEBRASKA
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No
person collection a loan shall communicate with a borrower at
their place of employment if the collector has received an actual
notice that the borrower’s employer prohibits such communication.
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| NEW
HAMPSHIRE |
A
collector shall not place telephone calls without disclosing
the name of individual making the call and the name of the person
for whom the collector is attempting to collect the debt.
A collector is not prohibited from leaving a message for
the debtor at their place of residence that contains no information
about the debt but that request they contact the collector.
A debt collector may send a single letter to a debtor’s
place of employment if otherwise unable to locate the debtor.
A debt collector may make a telephone call to the debtor
at their place of employment if the collector has been unable
to contact the debtor at their place of residence, provided
that the debtor does not inform the collector they do not
wish to be contacted at work. The collector shall not inform
the employer of the nature of the call unless asked.
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| NEW
YORK CITY |
A debt
collector communication or attempts to communicate with consumer
shall not be done with excessive frequency. Unless a
collector ;has information to the contrary, a collector shall
assume that communicating with a consumer more than twice
during a seven-day period is excessively frequent. Excessively
frequent communications do not include:
- communication
between a collector and a consumer when the collector
is responding to the consumer’s oral or written communication.
- returned
unopened mail.
- a message
left with a third party for the consumer responsible for
a debt as long as the message is limited to a telephone
number, the collector’s name and a request that the consumer
call the collector; or
- any
communication required by law.
A collector
shall not misrepresent or use any business, company or organization
name other than the true name of their business, company or
organization when collecting a debt. If the general public
knows the collector’s company, business or organization name
by another name, that name may be used if using the true name
would be confusing to the consumer.
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| NORTH
CAROLINA |
All
licensed collection agencies are required to use their true
name and address in all correspondence with debtors.
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| NORTH
DAKOTA |
No
debt collector may use any name while engaged in the collection
of claims other than the debt collector’s true name.
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| OREGON
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It
is unlawful for a debt collector, when communicating with a
debtor orally, to fail to disclose the name of the individual
making the contact and the true purpose of the communication
within the first 30 seconds.
No debt collector shall communicate or threaten to communicate
with the debtor at their place of employment without the debtor’s
permission. The debt collector may write to the debtor at
their place of employment if no home address is reasonably
available and if the envelope does not reveal that the communication
is from a collector other than a provider of the goods, services,
or credit from which the debt was incurred.
No debt collector shall communicate or threaten to communicate
with the debtor at their place of employment without the debtor’s
permission. The debt collector may telephone the debtor’s
place of employment without informing any other person of
the nature of the call, but only if the collector had made
an unsuccessful attempt to telephone the debtor at their place
of residence during the day or during the evening between
6 p.m. and 9 p.m. A debt collector may not contact the debtor
at their place of employment if the debtor has notified the
collector not to call their place of employment or if the
collector knows or has reason to know the debtor’s employer
prohibits the debtor from receiving such communication.
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| PENNSYLVANIA
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A creditor
or debt collector nay not call a debtor without disclosing their
identity, including their name, the name of their company or
firm, and any other information necessary to identify the caller.
When contacting a third party (other than the debtor), the debt
collector shall give their name and, if expressly requested,
the name of the callers employer.
A debt collector may not abuse or harass a debtor by telephone.
A rebuttable presumption of abuse or harassment is created
if the creditor or debt collector continues to call the debtor
during any seven-day period after a communication with a debtor.
Reasonable follow-up activity may be sufficient evidence to
rebut a presumption of abuse or harassment.
It is an unfair or deceptive act for a collector to continue
making visits to a debtor’s household during any 30-day period
after a discussion about a debt.
It is an unfair or deceptive act for a debt collector:
- to
discuss a debt if that communication could be overheard
by any third party not authorized by the debtor; or
- to
confront a debtor at the creditor’s or collector’s place
of business, at any place agreed to by the debtor, or at
any public place.
A debt collector
shall not communicate with a debtor if the collector knows that
the debtor is being represented by an attorney about the debt
and the collector can obtain the attorney’s address, unless:
- the
attorney has failed to respond within a reasonable time
(14 calendar days) to the creditor’s or debt collector’s
communication about the debt;
- the
debtor’s attorney has authorized the debt collector to communicate
with the debtor;
- contact
is necessary to perfect or preserve rights against the debtor
or to perfect or preserve collateral securing a debt; or
- direct
contact is required by state or federal law, regulation
or court order.
It is an
unfair or deceptive act for a debt collector to contact a debtor
at their place of employment unless:
- the
collector or creditor has been unable to discuss a debt
in the prior 30 days, either by telephone or during a personal
visit; and
- the
creditor or collector does not know or has no reason to
know that the debtor’s employer prohibits such contacts.
A debt collector
shall not call a debtor’s place of employment by telephone if
the debtor has notified the debt collector, in writing, that
they are not to place such calls.
A debt collector may not mail a communication to a debtor’s
place of employment unless the current billing address is
that place of employment or if the debtor consents to such
contact.
A debt collector may not visit the debtor’s place of employment,
unless the debtor has requested, in writing, such a visit.
Unless the debtor expressly prohibits it, a debt collector
may contact the debtor’s spouse about a debt, provided that
the spouse authorizes any additional communications.
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| TEXAS
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A
creditor may not represent that a debt is being collected by
an independent debt collection business, when the debt is being
collected by an organization that is controlled by the person
to who the debt is owed. A creditor is not prohibited from
owning and operating its own bona fide collection agency.
No debt collector shall fail to disclose the name of the
person to whom the debt was assigned or is owned in any communication
in which a demand for payment is made. (The disclosure is
not required of person collecting or servicing first lien
mortgages or credit card debts.)
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| VERMONT
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It
is an unfair practice to use any business, company or organization
name other than the true name of the collector’s company, business
or organization.
It is an unfair act for a collector to place a telephone
call to the debtor without disclosing the name of the company
the collector represents.
It is an unfair act for a collector to place a telephone
call to the debtor at their place of employment contrary to
the instructions of the debtor.
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| WASHINGTON
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No licensed
collection agency shall communicate with a debtor or spouse
more than three times in a single week.
No licensed collection agency shall communicate with a debtor
at his or her place of employment more than one time in a
single week.
A licensed collection agency may communicate the existence
of a claim to a debtor’s employer if:
- the
agency has notified or attempted to notify the debtor in
writing at their last known address or place of employment
about a claim, and the debtor has failed to pay the claim
or has failed to agree to make acceptable payments; and
- the
debtor has not disputed any part of the claim in writing.
- the
collection agency may only communicate with a debtor’s employer
once about a debt which has not been reduced to judgment,
unless the debtor’s employer has agreed to additional communication.
In order
to locate a debtor or to locate the assets of a debtor, a
licensed collection agency may communicate the existence of
a claim to any person who may reasonably know the debtor’s
whereabouts or the location of the debtor’s assets, if the
claim has been reduced to judgment or, if not reduced to judgment,
when:
- the
collection agency has notified or attempted to notify the
debtor about the claim in writing at their last known address
or last known place of employment and the debtor after a
reasonable time has failed to pay the claim or has failed
to agree to make payments in a manner acceptable to the
licensee; and
- the
debtor has not disputed any part of the claim in writing.
No licensed
collection agency shall communicate with a debtor at his or
her place of employment more than one time in a single week.
No licensed collection agency shall communicate with a debtor
or spouse between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:30 a.m.
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| WEST
VIRGINIA |
No
collector shall use the name of any business, company, or organization
other than the true name of the business, company or organization
when attempting to collect a debt.
No collector shall place a telephone call to a consumer
or a third party at any place, including the consumer’s place
of employment and falsely state that the call is “urgent”
or an “emergency”.
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| WISCONSIN
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A
collection agency is not permitted to use collect wires or collect
telephone calls unless the agency identifies itself by having
the operator advise the debtor that the call is from a collection
agency.
No collector shall contact a debtor by telephone at their
place of employment after a debtor has requested or demanded
that such collection efforts cease.
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| WYOMING
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No collector shall place a telephone call without meaningful
disclosure of the caller’s identity, unless the collector is
placing the telephone call for the purpose of acquiring location
information.
Without the consumer’s prior consent, given directly to
the licensed collection agency, or express permission of a
court, the collector shall not communicate with a consumer
at their place of employment if the collector knows or has
reason to know the consumer’s employer prohibits the communication.
A debt collector shall not use any business, company or
organization name other than the true name of the collector’s
business, company or organization.
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