New West Virginia Consumer Notice Requirement Takes Effect June 6, 2014
West Virginia Governor Earl Tomblin signed into law a bill that will require debt collectors to provide a boilerplate consumer notice when collecting on debt that is beyond the statute of limitations. The new notice requirement takes effect on June 6, 2014.
As originally introduced the bill would have completely eliminated the “contractual right” to collect on debt that is beyond the statute of limitations. DBA International retained a West Virginia lobbying firm to assist our efforts in fighting this proposal. When it became clear that passage was inevitable, DBA was successful in negotiating the substitute notice language in its place, thereby preserving the legal right to seek voluntary payments on debt outside of court.
This statutory provision is virtually identical to the California and Connecticut notice requirements for debt that is beyond the statute of limitations that were adopted in 2013 and are predicated on the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) suggested notice language on this subject matter.
Specifically, when attempting to collect a debt that is beyond the statute of limitations, the law makes it an unfair or unconscionable collection practice for a debt collector to fail to provide the following disclosure in its “initial written communication” with the consumer:
- When collecting on a debt that is not past the date for obsolescence provided for in Section 605(a) of
the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U. S. C. 1681c:”The law limits how long you can be sued on a debt. Because of the age of your debt, (INSERT
OWNER NAME) cannot sue you for it. If you do not pay the debt, (INSERT OWNER NAME) may report
or continue to report it to the credit reporting agencies as unpaid”; and - When collecting on debt that is past the date for obsolescence provided for in Section 605(a) of the Fair
Credit Reporting Act, 15 U. S. C. 1681c:”The law limits how long you can be sued on a debt. Because of the age of your debt, (INSERT
OWNER NAME) cannot sue you for it and (INSERT OWNER NAME) cannot report it to any credit
reporting agencies.
If your company owns accounts that belong to West Virginia residents, please make sure that you take the necessary steps to ensure compliance with this new statutory provision. A copy of the law can be found here. Please note that West Virginia’s collection laws apply to debt buyers as well as originating creditors and third party collection agencies.
April 2, 2014