Hansen v. Central Adjustment Bureau, Inc.
| Decision Date | 01 July 1977 |
| Docket Number | No. 76-2077,76-2077 |
| Citation | 348 So.2d 608 |
| Parties | Henning HANSEN, Appellant, v. CENTRAL ADJUSTMENT BUREAU, INCORPORATED, a Foreign Corporation, authorized to do business in Florida, Appellee. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
William S. Isenberg, Fort Lauderdale, for appellant.
Alan J. Kerben, Tampa, for appellee.
Plaintiff appeals an order dismissing with prejudice count two of his amended complaint. We find the complaint to be defective, but hold that plaintiff should be allowed an opportunity to amend.
Summarily stated, the complaint alleges that the defendant mailed to the plaintiff an envelope with a window-type opening, in which, directly above plaintiff's name and address, appeared the word "Debtor"; that this was done with the intent of conveying the meaning that plaintiff was a confirmed and habitual debtor; that the words on the envelope were read by employees of the defendant as well as employees of the postal system, thereby exposing plaintiff to ridicule and distrust.
The applicable statute provides:
In collecting consumer claims, whether or not licensed by the division, no person shall:
(16) Mail any communication to a debtor in an envelope or postcard with words typed, written, or printed on the outside of the envelope or postcard calculated to embarrass the debtor. An example of this would be an envelope addressed to "Deadbeat, John Doe."
Section 559.72, Florida Statutes (1975).
The defendant contended that the word "Debtor," visible on the outside of the envelope addressed to the plaintiff, could in no way be construed to be a word calculated to embarrass the plaintiff. The defendant refers to the example given in the statute, of an envelope addressed to "Deadbeat, John Doe", and argues that there is a manifest difference between the words "Deadbeat" and "Debtor", and that as a matter of law the use of the word "Debtor" in the context of the statute is not actionable.
We disagree; the use of the word "Debtor" may or may not be actionable depending upon the circumstances. For example: the contents of the letter may have been accidently folded so as to inadvertently cause the word to appear in the window of the envelope. On the other hand, the use of the word may have been a calculated attempt by the defendant to embarrass the plaintiff. While the term "Debtor" may have a legal meaning which is without derogatory connotation, for the general public the word is loaded with unpleasant associations and emotional overtones. It connotes one who is...
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...as to state a cause of action. Sapp v. City of Tallahassee, 348 So.2d 363, 366 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977); Hansen v. Central Adjustment Bureau Incorporated, 348 So.2d 608, 610 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977); and Anthony v. Jacksonville Transportation Authority, 383 So.2d 650 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980). Although we ......
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