Topic: Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN)
-
We want to start imaging our mortgage files. Do we need to keep anything in paper format?
—
by
Disclaimer: The Electronic Commerce Security Act (ECSA) was repealed and replaced with the Uniform Electronic Transaction Act (UETA), effective June 25, 2021. Please note that this change may affect the continued accuracy of this guidance as it pertains to the ECSA. We do not believe that financial institutions need to retain hard copies of documents…
-
We are considering imposing a fee when mailing paper statements on our senior accounts. Is that a good idea, considering that many seniors don’t have computer access?
—
by
We agree that the bank should consider UDAAP concerns in analyzing the paper statement fee for senior citizen deposit accounts. Although we are not aware of any laws or regulations that would prohibit such a fee, as we discuss below, there is a chance that an examiner could see such a fee as unfair or…
-
We are adding a new free checking account that will require customers to receive e-statements. Do we need to disclose that if a customer refuses e-statements, that they will be ineligible for the free account?
—
by
The electronic statement agreement for the free checking account would have to disclose the consequences of the consumer’s withdrawal of the consent to electronic disclosures, including the change to a different account type and any additional fees that would apply after the withdrawal of the consumer’s consent. We are not aware of any provision that…
-
We are launching e-statements. How specific do the disclosures have to be as far as hardware and software requirements? Our disclosures state that customers should have internet access, and e-mail account, and Adobe Reader for reading .pdf documents.
—
by
We believe that a few additional items would have to be added to the Electronic Statement disclosures. The federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (ESIGN) Act and the Illinois Financial Institutions Electronic Documents and Digital Signature Act require the following items of information in electronic statement disclosures (15 USC 7001(c)(1)
-
Does Illinois law require financial institutions to provide receipts, and would the E-SIGN Act apply if there is no law requiring us to provide a certain disclosure?
—
by
We are not aware of any Illinois laws that require financial institutions to issue receipts. Further, we do not see any reason that the federal E-SIGN Act (or similar Illinois laws) would prevent an institution from issuing receipts via e-mail. The E-SIGN Act states that “a signature, contract, or other record relating to such transaction…
-
Our bank is in the process of scanning deposit account file documents. Are we required to keep the original signature cards and if so, how long must they be retained?
—
by
Disclaimer: The Electronic Commerce Security Act (ECSA) was repealed and replaced with the Uniform Electronic Transaction Act (UETA), effective June 25, 2021. Please note that this change may affect the continued accuracy of this guidance as it pertains to the ECSA. We do not believe that financial institutions need to retain hard copies of documents that…
-
We just started electronically imaging our records; which documents should we save as hard copies?
—
by
We do not believe that financial institutions need to retain hard copies of documents that are stored electronically, with the exception of the documents that you noted would be continued to be stored in tangible form (original loan agreements and mortgages and any other documents recorded with a county recorder). The Illinois Financial Institutions…
-
Does Illinois have any requirements as far as a customer signing loan disclosures and scanning them back to the bank?
—
by
Disclaimer: The Electronic Commerce Security Act (ECSA) was repealed and replaced with the Uniform Electronic Transaction Act (UETA), effective June 25, 2021. Please note that this change may affect the continued accuracy of this guidance as it pertains to the ECSA. We do not see any problems with accepting scanned versions of customer signatures on loan…
-
I understand that record retention laws dictate retention periods, but are there any laws that govern retention periods for original documents (rather than copies or electronic versions)?
—
by
We do not believe that you are required to keep the original versions of any documents if you choose to store them electronically. The Illinois Financial Institutions Electronic Documents and Digital Signature Act states that if a bank keeps documents in electronic form in the regular course of business, then an electronic version of a…
-
Can we send disclosures to residential real estate loan applicants electronically?
—
by
The Illinois Financial Institutions Electronic Documents and Digital Signature Act and the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (ESIGN) Act allow banks to send “information relating to a transaction” required by law in electronic form (after sending the required notices and obtaining the consumer’s consent). 205 ILCS 705/10(c)