West Virginia Code 46B-4-8 – Unfair or unconscionable means
No debt collector shall use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any claim. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 46B-4-8
- Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
- Consumer: means a natural person who acquires, or seeks to acquire, the right to possession and use of consumer goods from a dealer. See West Virginia Code 46B-1-5
- Debt collector: means any person or organization engaging directly or indirectly in debt collection. See West Virginia Code 46B-1-5
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Rental agreement: means the bargain, with respect to the rental of consumer goods under a rent-to-own agreement, of the dealer and the consumer as found in their language or by implication from other circumstances including course of dealing or usage of trade or course of performance as provided in this chapter. See West Virginia Code 46B-1-5
- Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
(1) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form that specifies that a consumer's obligation is one incurred for necessaries of life where the original obligation was not in fact incurred for such necessaries;
(2) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form containing an affirmation of any obligation by a consumer who has been declared bankrupt without clearly disclosing the nature and consequences of such affirmation and the fact that the consumer is not legally obligated to make such affirmation;
(3) The collection or the attempt to collect from the consumer all or any part of the debt collector's fee or charge for services rendered;
(4) The collection of or the attempt to collect any interest or other charge, fee or expense incidental to the principal obligation unless such interest or incidental fee, charge or expense is expressly authorized by the written rental agreement and by statute; and
(5) Any communication with a consumer whenever it appears that the consumer is represented by an attorney and the attorney's name and address are known, or could be easily ascertained, unless the attorney fails to answer correspondence, return phone calls or discuss the obligation in question or unless the attorney consents to direct communication.