No collection agency shall use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any claim in any of the following ways:

(1) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form that a debtor or alleged debtor’s obligation is one incurred for necessities of life where the original obligation was not in fact incurred for these necessities;

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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 443B-19

  • Collection agency: includes :

    (1) Any person using any name other than the person's own in collecting the person's own claims with the intention of conveying, or which tends to convey the impression that a third party has been employed;

    (2) Any person who, in the conduct of the person's business for a fee, regularly repossesses any merchandise or chattels for another; and

    (3) Any person who regularly accepts the assignment of claims or money due on accounts or other forms of indebtedness and brings suits upon the assigned claims or money due on accounts or other forms of indebtedness in the person's own name; provided that any suits shall be initiated and prosecuted by an attorney who shall have been appointed by the assignee. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 443B-1

  • Communication: means directly or indirectly conveying information regarding a debt to any person by any means. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 443B-1
  • Debtor: means any person or the person's spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, parent (if the person is a minor), guardian, executor, or administrator obligated or allegedly obligated to pay a debt. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 443B-1
  • 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.
(2) The seeking or obtaining of any written statement or acknowledgment in any form containing an affirmation of any obligation by a debtor or alleged debtor who has been declared bankrupt, without clearly disclosing the nature and consequences of the affirmation and the fact that the debtor or alleged debtor is not legally obligated to make the affirmation;
(3) The collection of or the attempt to collect from a debtor or alleged debtor all or any part of the collection agency’s fees or charges 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 the interest or incidental fee, charge, or expense is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the obligation and legally chargeable to the debtor or alleged debtor; or unless the interest or incidental fee, charge, or expense is expressly authorized by law; and
(5) Any communication with a debtor or alleged debtor whenever it appears that the debtor or alleged debtor is represented by an attorney and the attorney’s name and address are known.