§ 13-11-19 — Debt-settlement contract

North Dakota § 13-11-19

• Jurisdiction: North Dakota
• Title 13: Debtor and Creditor Relationship
• Ch. 13-11: Debt-Settlement Providers

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1. A debt-settlement provider may not provide debt-settlement service to a consumer
without a written contract signed and dated by both the consumer and the
debt-settlement provider.
2. Any contract for the provision of debt-settlement service entered in violation of this
section is voidable.
3. A contract between a debt-settlement provider and a consumer for the provision of
debt-settlement service must disclose all of the following clearly and conspicuously:
a. The name and address of the consumer.
b. The date of execution of the contract.
c. The legal name of the debt-settlement provider, including any other business
names used by the debt-settlement provider.
d. The corporate address and regular business address, including a street address,
of the debt-settlement provider.
e. The telephone number at which the consumer may speak with a representative of
the debt-settlement provider during normal business hours.
f. A complete list of the consumer's accounts, debts, and obligations to be included
in the provision of debt-settlement service, including the name of each creditor
and principal amount of each debt.
g. A description of the services to be provided by the debt-settlement provider,
including the expected time frame for settlement for each account, debt, or
obligation included in subdivision f.
h. An itemized list of all fees to be paid by the consumer to the debt-settlement
provider, and the date, approximate date, or circumstances under which each fee
will become due.
i. A good-faith estimate of the total amount of all fees and compensation, not to
exceed the amounts specified in section 13-11-21, to be collected by the
debt-settlement provider from the consumer for the provision of debt-settlement
service contemplated by the contract.
j. A statement of the proposed savings goals for the consumer, stating the amount
to be saved per month or other period, time period over which savings goals
extend, and the total amount of the savings expected to be paid by the consumer
pursuant to the terms of the contract.
k. The amount of money or the percentage of debt the consumer must accumulate
before a settlement offer will be made to each of the consumer's creditors.
I. The written individualized financial analysis required by section 13-11-18.
m. The contents of the "Consumer Notice and Rights Form" provided in section
13-11-17.
n. A written notice to the consumer that the consumer may cancel the contract at
any time until after the debt-settlement provider has fully performed each service
the debt-settlement provider contracted to perform or represented that the
debt-settlement provider would perform, and upon that event:
(1) The consumer is entitled to a full refund of all unearned fees and
compensation paid by the consumer to the debt-settlement provider, and a
full refund of all funds provided by the consumer to the debt-settlement
provider for a consumer settlement account, except for funds actually paid
to a creditor on behalf of the consumer, under the terms of the contract for
debt-settlement service; and
(2) All powers of attorney granted to the debt-settlement provider by the
consumer must be considered revoked and voided.
o. A form the consumer may use to cancel the contract pursuant to the provisions of
section 13-11-20. The form must include the name and mailing address of the
debt-settlement provider and shall disclose clearly and conspicuously how the
consumer can cancel the contract, including applicable addresses, telephone
numbers, facsimile numbers, and electronic mail addresses the consumer can
use to cancel the contract.

4. If a debt-settlement provider communicates with a consumer primarily in a language
other than English, then the debt-settlement provider shall furnish to the consumer a
translation of all the disclosures and documents required by this chapter in that other
language.