(a) Credit balances. When a credit balance in excess of $1 is created
on a credit account (through transmittal of funds to a creditor in
excess of the total balance due on an account, through rebates of
unearned finance charges or insurance premiums, or through amounts
otherwise owed to or held for the benefit of the consumer), the creditor
shall—
(1) Credit the amount of
the credit balance to the consumer’s account;
(2) Refund any part of the remaining credit
balance within seven business days from receipt of a written request
from the consumer;
(3)
Make a good faith effort to refund to the consumer by cash, check,
or money order, or credit to a deposit account of the consumer, any
part of the credit balance remaining in the account for more than
six months. No further action is required if the consumer’s current
location is not known to the creditor and cannot be traced through
the consumer’s last known address or telephone number.
(b) Account termination.
(1) A creditor shall not terminate
an account prior to its expiration date solely because the consumer
does not incur a finance charge.
(2) Nothing in paragraph (b)(1) of this
section prohibits a creditor from terminating an account that is inactive
for three or more consecutive months. An account is inactive for purposes
of this paragraph if no credit has been extended (such as by purchase,
cash advance or balance transfer) and if the account has no outstanding
balance.
(c) Timely settlement of estate debts.
(1) General rule.
(i) Reasonable
policies and procedures required. For credit card accounts under
an open-end (not home-secured) consumer credit plan, card issuers
must adopt reasonable written policies and procedures designed to
ensure that an administrator of an estate of a deceased accountholder
can determine the amount of and pay any balance on the account in
a timely manner.
(ii) Application to joint accounts. Paragraph (c) of this section does not apply to the account of a
deceased consumer if a joint accountholder remains on the account.
(2) Timely statement of balance.
(i) Requirement. Upon request by the administrator
of an estate, a card issuer must provide the administrator with the
amount of the balance on a deceased consumer’s account in a timely
manner.
(ii) Safe harbor. For purposes of paragraph
(c)(2)(i) of this section, providing the amount of the balance on
the account within 30 days of receiving the request is deemed to be
timely.
(3) Limitations after receipt of request from administrator.
(i) Limitation on fees and increases in annual percentage
rates. After receiving a request from the administrator of an
estate for the amount of the balance on a deceased consumer’s account,
a card issuer must not impose any fees on the account (such as a late
fee, annual fee, or over-the-limit fee) or increase any annual percentage
rate, except as provided by section 226.55(b)(2).
(ii) Limitation
on trailing or residual interest. A card issuer must waive or
rebate any additional finance charge due to a periodic interest rate
if payment in full of the balance disclosed pursuant to paragraph
(c)(2) of this section is received within 30 days after disclosure.
