(720 ILCS 5/17-5) (from Ch. 38, par. 17-5)
Sec. 17-5. Deceptive collection practices.
A collection agency as defined in the Collection Agency Act or any
employee of such collection agency commits a deceptive collection practice
when, with the intent to collect a debt owed to an individual or a corporation or
other entity, he, she, or it does any of the following:
(a) Represents falsely that he or she is an attorney, a policeman, a sheriff or
deputy sheriff, a bailiff, a county clerk or employee of a county clerk's
office, or any other person who by statute is authorized to enforce the law
or any order of a court.
(b) While attempting to collect an alleged debt, misrepresents to the
alleged debtor or to his or her immediate family the corporate, partnership or
proprietary name or other trade or business name under which the debt
collector is engaging in debt collections and which he, she, or it is legally
authorized to use.
(c) While attempting to collect an alleged debt, adds to the debt any
service charge, interest or penalty which he, she, or it is not entitled by law to add.
(d) Threatens to ruin, destroy, or otherwise adversely affect an alleged
debtor's credit rating unless, at the same time, a disclosure is made in
accordance with federal law that the alleged debtor has a right to inspect
his or her credit rating.
(e) Accepts from an alleged debtor a payment which he, she, or it knows is not owed.
Sentence. The commission of a deceptive collection practice is a Business Offense
punishable by a fine not to exceed $3,000.
(Source: P.A. 96-1551, eff. 7-1-11.)
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