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HomeCommercial CodeDiv. 9Ch. 4§ 9404 Account Debtor Defenses

§ 9404 Account Debtor Defenses

Commercial Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 9404 Account Debtor Defenses

Key Takeaways

  • •If someone owes you money and you sell that debt to someone else, the person who owes the money can still use their old excuses or complaints to pay less or nothing.
  • •The person who owes money can only use these excuses to reduce what they owe, not to get extra money from the new owner of the debt.
  • •If the debt is for personal stuff (like a family car or home loan), other rules might apply instead of this one.
  • •This rule doesn’t apply to medical insurance debts.

Example

You buy a used car on a payment plan from a dealer, but the car breaks down right away. The dealer sells your debt to a collection company.

You can tell the collection company the car was broken and refuse to pay, or pay less, because the dealer didn’t fix it. But you can’t ask the collection company for extra money to fix the car.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 9404 Account Debtor Defenses

(a) Unless an account debtor has made an enforceable agreement not to assert defenses or claims, and subject to subdivisions (b) to (e), inclusive, the rights of an assignee are subject to both of the following: (1) All terms of the agreement between the account debtor and assignor and any defense or claim in recoupment arising from the transaction that gave rise to the contract. (2) Any other defense or claim of the account debtor against the assignor which accrues before the account debtor receives a notification of the assignment signed by the assignor or the assignee. (b) Subject to subdivision (c) and except as otherwise provided in subdivision (d), the claim of an account debtor against an assignor may be asserted against an assignee under subdivision (a) only to reduce the amount the account debtor owes. (c) This section is subject to law other than this division which establishes a different rule for an account debtor who is an individual and who incurred the obligation primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. (d) In a consumer transaction, if a record evidences the account debtor’s obligation, law other than this division requires that the record include a statement to the effect that the account debtor’s recovery against an assignee with respect to claims and defenses against the assignor may not exceed amounts paid by the account debtor under the record, and the record does not include such a statement, the extent to which a claim of an account debtor against the assignor may be asserted against an assignee is determined as if the record included such a statement. (e) This section does not apply to an assignment of a health care insurance receivable. (Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 210, Sec. 56. (SB 95) Effective January 1, 2024.)

Last verified: January 23, 2026

Key Terms

assigneeaccount debtorassignordefense or claimnotification of the assignment

Related Statutes

  • § 9403 Assignment Claim Enforcement
  • § 9406 Payment Obligation After Assignment
  • § 9405 Contract Assignment Modifications
  • § 10401 Lease Performance Assurance Rights
  • § 10402 Lease Contract Repudiation Rights

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Commercial Code. Section 9404.
View Official Source