Washington Collection Agency Laws

Want to learn more about state by state debt recovery? What about debt recovery in Washington? Following is some important information on Washington debt collection laws including: Washington Statutes, Washington Judgments, Washington Garnishments, Washington Interest Rates, Washington Bad Check Laws and Washington Collection Agency Requirements. INTEREST RATE Legal: 12% Judgment: 12% STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS (IN YEARS) Open Acct.: 3 Written Contract: 6 Domestic Judgment: 10 Foreign Judgment: 10 BAD CHECK LAWS (CIVIL PENALTY) Lesser of check amount or 12% interest, collection costs up to $40. If taken to court, reasonable attorney's fees, 3 x value, or up to $300. Now have 6 years to enforce a bad check. GENERAL GARNISHMENT EXEMPTIONS Greater of 75% or $64 wk. (40 x state min. hourly wage). COLLECTION AGENCY BOND & LICENSE Bond: $6000 general, $4000 specialty License: Yes Fee: $100 - Investigation $100 - Original $100 - Renewable $50 - Branch Office Exemption for out-of-state collectors: Contact state authorities. Out-of-state agencies may qualify for lesser licensing fees. Out-of-state collectors are no longer required to have resident office and instate trust accounts if they don't have instate client. Bond is not required if held in home state.