Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 85.djvu/704

 674

^7^stat^j68.^ 9-505.' ° ^ *

j

PUBLIC LAW 92-200-DEC. 17, 1971

[85 STAT.

paid 60 percent or more of the cash price and has not signed after default a statement renouncing his rights in the collateral. "(4) If the creditor takes possession or voluntarily accepts surrender of goods which were not the subject of the sale but in which he has a security interest to secure a debt arising from a sale of goods or services or a combined sale of goods and services and the cash price of the sale was $2,000 or less, the debtor is not personally liable to the creditor for the unpaid balance of the debt arising from the sale and the creditor's duty to dispose of the collateral is governed by the provisions on disposition of collateral in section 9-505 of subtitle I of title 28, District of Columbia Code. ''(5) If the creditor takes possession or voluntarily accepts surrender of goods in which he has a security interest to secure a debt arising from a direct installment loan and the net proceeds of the loan paid to or for the benefit of the debtor are $2,000 or less, the consumer is not personally liable to the lender for the unpaid balance of the debt arising from the loan and the lender's duty to dispose of the collateral is governed by the provisions on disposition of collateral in section 9-505 of subtitle I of title 28, District of Columbia Code. " (6) The consumer sihall be liable in damages to the creditor if the debtor has wrongfully damaged the collateral or if, after default and demand, the debtor has wrongfully failed to make collateral available to the creditor. "(7) If the creditor elects to bring an action against the buyer for a debt arising from a consumer credit sale of goods or services, when under this section he would not be entitled to a deficiency judgment if he repossessed the collateral, and obtains judgment— " (A) he may not repossess the collateral, and " (B) the collateral is not subject to levy or sale on execution or similar proceedings pursuant to the judgment. " (f)(1) If it is the understianding of the creditor and the debtor at the time an extension of credit is made that delay in making repayment or failure to make repayment could result in the use of violence or other criminal means to cause harm to the person, reputation, or property of any person, the repayment of the extension of credit is unenforceable through civil judicial processes again^ the debtor. "(2) If it is shown that an extension of credit was made at an annual rate exceeding 45 per centum and that the creditor then had a reputation for the use or threat of use of violence or other criminal means to cause harm to the person, reputation, or property of any person to collect extensions of credit or to punish the nonrepayment thereof, there is prima facie evidence that the extension of credit was unenforceable under paragraph (1) of this subsection. " (g)(1) With respect to a consumer credit sale, or direct installment loan, if the court as a matter of law finds^— " (A) the agreement to have been unconscionable at the time it was made, or to have been induced by unconscionable conduct, the court may refuse to enforce the agreement, or " (B) any clause of the agreement to have been unconscionable at the time it was made, the court may refuse to enforce the agreement, or may enforce the remainder of the agreement without the unconscionable clause, or may so limit the application of any unconscionable clause as to avoid any unconscionable result. "(2) If it is claimed or appears to the court that the agreement or any clause thereof may be unconscionable the parties shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to present evidence as to its setting, purpose, and effect to aid the court in making the determination. "(3) For the purpose of this section, a charge or practice expressly permitted by this section is not in and of itself unconscionable in the absence of other practices and circumstances.

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