Topic: Advertising & Marketing
-
Our marketing department wants to hold a drawing that will be open to customers and noncustomers. We would like to use the information we receive, such as names and addresses, for marketing purposes. Is that possible, and are there any privacy concerns?
—
by
We believe you may use the information you receive from the drawing participants for marketing purposes, provided that you clearly and conspicuously disclose that you are collecting the participants’ contact information for marketing purposes. Because you will not be disclosing the contact information to third parties, the drawing should not trigger federal or Illinois privacy…
-
Can we hold a promotional drawing in our bank lobby that is open to children under age 12 only? The drawing would be open to non-customers, and there would be no other requirements to enter.
—
by
Although we cannot offer legal advice, we believe that this promotional drawing could be structured to comply with federal law’s prohibition against banks conducting lotteries and the Illinois Criminal Code’s general prohibitions on gambling. We do not believe that limiting participants based on age will pose any problems, provided that no other requirements apply. Federal…
-
We would like to place a radio ad for our HELOCs. We want to promote an introductory fixed rate, which will revert to a variable rate after the introductory period ends. How should this be disclosed in the ad? Do we need to make the FDIC and Equal Housing Lender disclosures?
—
by
Regulation Z’s advertising requirements require certain disclosures about the fixed introductory rate to be included in your radio advertisement. However, other lengthier disclosures relating to the annual percentage rate (APR) do not have to be included in the radio advertisement, as explained below. We also address the “Member FDIC” and “Equal Housing Lender” disclosures below.…
-
Can we mail out a solicitation to our business customers’ customers? For example, our customer, XYZ Company, received a check from ABC Company. Can we pull the mailing address off of the ABC Company check and use that to mail solicitations?
—
by
We strongly caution you to exercise caution before adopting this practice, as it runs the risk of violating Illinois privacy law. The Illinois Banking Act’s privacy provisions prohibit banks from disclosing certain customer information to third parties without the customer’s consent. 205 ILCS 5/48.1(c)(1). The customer information protected by the Illinois Banking Act includes “any…
-
We are considering entering into a joint marketing agreement with a credit card company. If we comply with the joint marketing exception under federal law, will we be in compliance with Illinois law?
—
by
Yes. If you are complying with the joint marketing agreement exception under the federal privacy regulations, you will be in compliance with Illinois law. As you noted, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) released an interpretive letter in 2001, Interpretive Letter 01-01, which details how federal and Illinois financial privacy laws interact,…
-
Our current privacy notice states that “our joint marketing partners may include financial services companies.” If we will be marketing credit card services under a joint marketing agreement, is that disclosure specific enough?
—
by
You may want to consider revising the privacy notice. As to joint marketing agreements, your disclosure should include a “a separate statement of . . . the categories of third parties with whom you have contracted.” 12 CFR 1016.6(a)(5). The instructions for the model privacy notice suggest that this disclosure should be stated as follows:…
-
Can we advertise a checking account as “free” if the account would impose a monthly paper statement fee on customers who do not opt-in to e-statements?
—
by
No, we do not believe that you could advertise such an account as “free.” Before using electronic statements, your institution must obtain each customer’s opt-in, as required by the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (E-SIGN) Act, 15 USC 7001(c)(1), and the Illinois Financial Institutions Electronic Documents and Digital Signature Act, 205 ILCS 705/10(a). Without…
-
We’d like to offer small cash incentives to employees for referring customers to certain types of deposit accounts and credit life insurance for automobile loans. Are there any regulations that limit the sales incentives we can give our employees?
—
by
We are not aware of any limitations on paying referral fees to employees for selling certain types of deposit accounts. While Regulation Z’s loan originator (LO) compensation rules limit referral fees that can be paid to bank employees, those rules apply only to residential loans, and we do not believe that they would apply to…
-
Are we required to print a loan originator’s NMLS number on our bank’s billboard advertisements?
—
by
No, we do not believe that a mortgage loan originator’s unique identifier would have to be stated or printed in your bank’s billboard advertisements. The SAFE Act regulations require that a mortgage loan originator (MLO) “provide his or her unique identifier to a consumer: (1) Upon request; (2) Before acting as a mortgage loan originator;…