Doctor’s Associates Inc.; On May 15, 2018, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (Consumer Finance) received a Petition for Declaratory Statement from Doctor’s Associates Inc. The petition seeks a declaratory statement from the Office on ...

 

DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES

Finance

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Florida Office of Financial Regulation has received the petition for declaratory statement from Doctor’s Associates, Inc. The petition seeks the agency’s opinion as to the applicability of Chapter 559, Florida Statutes, as it applies to the petitioner.

On May 15, 2018, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (Consumer Finance) received a Petition for Declaratory Statement from Doctor’s Associates, Inc. The petition seeks a declaratory statement from the Office on whether Petitioner's proposed business model (of entering into franchise agreements with Florida franchisees and collects royalties, franchise fees, and advertising fees pursuant to such agreements. Petitioner will soon also begin collecting additional fees from Florida franchisees on behalf of a third party. The third party is a technology company that is providing software to certain Florida franchisees. Petitioner will be collecting the fees representing payments for the software owed to the third party from such Florida franchisees. Petitioner is not offering or extending credit to its Florida franchisees. Rather, it is collecting current amounts owed by the Florida franchisees to a third party on said third party's behalf and remitting such amounts to said third party) requires registration as a commercial collection agency under Chapter 559, Florida Statutes.

A copy of the Petition for Declaratory Statement may be obtained by contacting: Agency Clerk, Office of Financial Regulation, P.O. Box 8050, Tallahassee, Florida 32314-8050, [phone], [e-mail].

Please refer all comments to: Agency Clerk, Office of Financial Regulation, P.O. Box 8050, Tallahassee, Florida 32314-8050, [phone], [e-mail].