ORS Chapter 697
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]