225 ILCS 429/120

(225 ILCS 429/120)

Sec. 120. Debt settlement contract.

(a) A debt settlement provider shall not provide debt settlement service to a consumer without a written contract signed and dated by both the consumer and the debt settlement provider.

(b) Any contract for the provision of debt settlement service entered into in violation of the provisions of this Section is void.

(c) A contract between a debt settlement provider and a consumer for the provision of debt settlement service shall disclose all of the following clearly and conspicuously:

(1) The name and address of the consumer.

(2) The date of execution of the contract.

(3) The legal name of the debt settlement provider, including any other business names used by the debt settlement provider.

(4) The corporate address and regular business address, including a street address, of the debt settlement provider.

(5) The telephone number at which the consumer may speak with a representative of the debt settlement provider during normal business hours.

(6) 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.

(7) 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 item (6) of this subsection (c).

(8) 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.

(9) A good faith estimate of the total amount of all fees and compensation, not to exceed the amounts specified in Section 125 of this Act, to be collected by the debt settlement provider from the consumer for the provision of debt settlement service contemplated by the contract.

(10) 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 goal extends, and the total amount of the savings expected to be paid by the consumer pursuant to the terms of the contract.

(11) 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.

(12) The written individualized financial analysis required by Section 110 of this Act.

(13) The contents of the "Consumer Notice and Rights Form" provided in Section 115.

(14) 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 he or she would perform, and upon that event:

(A) the consumer shall be 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

(B) all powers of attorney granted to the debt settlement provider by the consumer shall be considered revoked and voided.

(15) A form the consumer may use to cancel the contract pursuant to the provisions of Section 135 of this Act. The form shall 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.

(d) 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 Act in that other language.

(Source: P.A. 96-1420, eff. 8-3-10.)