(1) A
licensee shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws
when collecting a delinquent small loan. A licensee may charge a
one-time fee as determined in rule by the director to any
borrower in default on any loan or loans where the borrower's
check has been returned unpaid by the financial institution upon
which it was drawn. A licensee may take civil action under Title 62A RCW to collect upon a check that has been dishonored. If the
licensee takes civil action, a licensee may charge the borrower
the cost of collection as allowed under RCW 62A.3-515, but may
not collect attorneys' fees or any other interest or damages as
allowed under RCW 62A.3-515. A licensee may not threaten
criminal prosecution as a method of collecting a delinquent small
loan or threaten to take any legal action against the borrower
which the licensee may not legally take.
(2) Unless invited by the borrower, a licensee may not visit
a borrower's residence or place of employment for the purpose of
collecting a delinquent small loan. A licensee may not
impersonate a law enforcement official, or make any statements
which might be construed as indicating an official connection
with any federal, state, county, or city law enforcement agency,
or any other governmental agency, while engaged in collecting a
small loan.
(3) A licensee may not communicate with a borrower in such a
manner as to harass, intimidate, abuse, or embarrass a borrower,
including but not limited to communication at an unreasonable
hour, with unreasonable frequency, by threats of force or
violence, or by use of offensive language. A communication shall
be presumed to have been made for the purposes of harassment if
it is initiated by the licensee for the purposes of collection
and:
(a) It is made with a borrower or spouse in any form,
manner, or place, more than three times in a single week;
(b) It is made with a borrower at his or her place of
employment more than one time in a single week or made to a
borrower after the licensee has been informed that the borrower's
employer prohibits such communications;
(c) It is made with the borrower or spouse at his or her
place of residence between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:30 a.m.;
or
(d) It is made to a party other than the borrower, the
borrower's attorney, the licensee's attorney, or a consumer
reporting agency if otherwise permitted by law except for
purposes of acquiring location or contact information about the
borrower.
(4) A licensee is required to maintain a communication log
of all telephone and written communications with a borrower
initiated by the licensee regarding any collection efforts
including date, time, and the nature of each communication.
(5) If a dishonored check is assigned to any third party for
collection, this section applies to the third party for the
collection of the dishonored check.
(6) For the purposes of this section, "communication"
includes any contact with a borrower, initiated by the licensee,
in person, by telephone, or in writing (including e-mails, text
messages, and other electronic writing) regarding the collection
of a delinquent small loan, but does not include any of the
following:
(a) Communication while a borrower is physically present in
the licensee's place of business;
(b) An unanswered telephone call in which no message (other
than a caller ID) is left, unless the telephone call violates
subsection (3)(c) of this section; and
(c) An initial letter to the borrower that includes
disclosures intended to comply with the federal fair debt
collection practices act.
(7) For the purposes of this section, (a) a communication
occurs at the time it is initiated by a licensee regardless of
the time it is received or accessed by the borrower, and (b) a
call to a number that the licensee reasonably believes is the
borrower's cell phone will not constitute a communication with a
borrower at the borrower's place of employment.
(8) For the purposes of this section, "week" means a series
of seven consecutive days beginning on a Sunday.
[2009 c 13 § 1; 2003 c 86 § 11.]