South Carolina § 39-5-850 - Prohibited activities.

§ 39-5-850. Prohibited activities.

No person subject to this article shall do any of the following:

(1) share with an employer any fees, voluntary tips, gratuities, or other donations that were received from or charged to a consumer for earned wage access services;

(2) charge a late fee, interest, or any other penalty or charge for failure to repay outstanding proceeds;

(3) accept payment of outstanding proceeds, fees, voluntary tips, gratuities, or other donations from a consumer via credit card or charge card;

(4) charge a deferral fee or any other charge in connection with deferring the collection of any outstanding proceeds beyond the original scheduled repayment date;

(5) solicit a consumer to delay repayment of outstanding proceeds for the purpose of increasing the total nonmandatory payments that the provider may collect;

(6) report a consumer's payment or failed repayment of outstanding proceeds to a consumer credit reporting agency or a debt collector;

(7) require a credit score to determine a consumer's eligibility for earned wage access services;

(8) advertise, display, distribute, broadcast, televise, or cause or permit to be advertised, displayed, distributed, broadcasted, or televised in any manner whatsoever any false, misleading, or deceptive statement or representation regarding the conditions of the earned wage access services offered and provided by the provider;

(9) compel or attempt to compel payment by a consumer of outstanding proceeds, fees, voluntary tips, gratuities, or other donations to the provider through any of the following means:

(a) a suit against the consumer in a court of competent jurisdiction;

(b) use of a third party to pursue collection from the consumer on the provider's behalf; or

(c) sale of outstanding amounts to a third-party collector or debt buyer for collection from the consumer;

(10) provide proceeds in an amount that exceeds the consumer's earned but unpaid income, provided that this limitation shall not apply to any provision of proceeds that exceeds the consumer's earned but unpaid income due to administrative or technical errors so long as repayment of such proceeds provided due to an error otherwise complies with the repayment provisions of this article.

However, the limitations in this item shall not preclude the use by a provider of any of these methods to compel payment of outstanding amounts or fees incurred by a consumer through fraudulent or other unlawful means, nor shall they preclude a provider from pursuing an employer for breach of its contractual obligations to the provider.

HISTORY: 2024 Act No. 190 (S.700), SECTION 1, eff November 21, 2024.