Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act
| Date | Chamber | What was voted on | Result | Yes–No | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 18, 2002 | House · vote #395 | On Passage | Passed | 215–201 | See who voted → |
| Sep 18, 2002 | House · vote #394 | On Motion to Recommit with Instructions | Failed | 190–227 | See who voted → |
Prohibits a rental-purchase agreement from containing: (1) a confession of judgment; (2) a negotiable instrument; (3) a wage assignment; (4) a claim of a property interest in any goods, except those provided by the agreement; (5) a waiver of legal claim or remedy; (6) a requirement that, in the event the property subject to the agreement is lost, stolen, damaged, or destroyed, the consumer pay an amount exceeding certain guidelines; (7) an authorization for the merchant or an agent to enter the consumer's premises without the consumer's consent or to commit any other breach of the peace in connection with repossession of the rental property or collection of any alleged obligation due under the agreement; (8) a requirement that the consumer purchase insurance or a liability damage waiver covering the subject property, except as regulations permit; or (9) a requirement that the consumer pay more than one late fee for an unpaid or delinquent periodic payment.
Sets forth consumer protections governing: (1) statements of accounts; (2) renegotiations and extensions; (3) point of sale disclosures; and (4) rental purchase advertising.
Establishes civil and criminal liability for violations of this Act.
Declares that an action for civil liability may be brought against a merchant's assignee only if the violation is apparent on the face of a rental-purchase agreement to which it relates, including, but not limited to, a disclosure that can be determined to be incomplete or inaccurate from the face of the agreement.
Grants enforcement powers to the Federal Trade Commission and to State attorneys general.
Preempts State laws relating to characterization of a transaction to the extent that they: (1) are inconsistent with this Act; (2) regulate a rental-purchase agreement as a form of consumer credit; (3) impute to a rental-purchase agreement the creation of a debt or extension of credit, or (4) require the disclosure of a percentage rate calculation, including a time-price differential, an annual percentage rate, or an effective annual percentage rate.
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.