                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PROHIBITED PRACTICES (§ 59.1-335.5)

A credit services business, and its salespersons, agents and representatives,
and independent contractors who sell or attempt to sell the services of a credit
services business, shall not do any of the following:

1. Charge or receive any money or other valuable consideration prior to full and
complete performance of the services that the credit services business has
agreed to perform for or on behalf of the consumer, unless the consumer has
agreed to pay for such services during the term of a written subscription
agreement that provides for the consumer to make periodic payments during the
agreement&#8217;s term in consideration for the credit services business&#8217;s
ongoing performance of services for or on behalf of the consumer, provided that
such subscription agreement may be cancelled at any time by the consumer;

2. Charge or receive any money or other valuable consideration solely for
referral of the consumer to a retail seller or to any other credit grantor who
will or may extend to the consumer, if the credit that is or will be extended to
the consumer is upon substantially the same terms as those available to the
general public;

3. Make, or counsel or advise any consumer to make, any statement that is untrue
or misleading and which is known, or which by the exercise of reasonable care
should be known, to be untrue or misleading, to a consumer reporting agency or
to any person who has extended credit to a consumer or to whom a consumer is
applying for an extension of credit, with respect to a consumer&#8217;s
creditworthiness, credit standing, or credit capacity;

4. Make or use any untrue or misleading representations in the offer or sale of
the services of a credit services business or engage, directly or indirectly, in
any act, practice, or course of business which operates or would operate as a
fraud or deception upon any person in connection with the offer or sale of the
services of a credit services business; or

5. Advertise, offer, sell, provide, or perform any of the services of a credit
services business in connection with an extension of credit that meets any of
the following conditions:
			a. The amount of credit is less than $5,000;
			b. The repayment term is one year or less;
			c. The credit is provided under an open-end credit plan; or
			d. The annual percentage rate exceeds 36 percent. For purposes of this
section, &#8220;annual percentage rate&#8221; has the same meaning as in the
federal Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. &#xA7; 1601 et seq.) and its
implementing regulations, as they may be amended from time to time.

HISTORY: 1989, cc. 651, 655; 2010, c. 421; 2020, cc. 1215, 1258.