All funds received by a licensee or its agents from the sale of checks, drafts, money orders, or other commercial paper serving the same purpose and for the purpose of paying bills, invoices, or accounts of an obligor, equal in amount to the face value of such instruments or equal to the amount to be paid, shall constitute trust funds owned by and belonging to the person from whom they were received or a licensee who has paid the checks, drafts, money orders or other commercial paper serving the same purpose, for which the funds of such persons have been received by the agent but not transmitted to such licensee or deposited in the trust account of such licensee. If a licensee or an agent of a licensee shall commingle such funds with those of his own, all assets of such agent shall be impressed with a trust in favor of said purchaser or the licensee in an amount equal to the aggregate funds received or which should have been received by the agent from such sale. Such trust shall continue until an amount equal to said funds is separated from those of the agent and transmitted to the licensee or deposited in the trust account of licensee. An amount equal to all such trust funds shall be deposited in a bank or banks in an account or accounts in the name of the licensee designated “trust account,” or by some other appropriate name indicating that the funds are not the funds of the licensee or of its officers, employees, or agents. Such funds, or, in the event of commingling of such funds by licensee or its agent with those of the licensee or its agent, an amount of funds of such licensee or of its agent equal thereto, shall constitute trust funds as herein provided and shall not be subject to attachment, levy of execution or sequestration by order of court except by a payee, or bona fide assignee, or bona fide holder in due course of a check, draft, or money order sold by a licensee, or except by an obligor for whom a licensee is acting as an agent in paying bills. Funds in said account, together with funds and checks on hand and in the hands of agents held for the account of the licensee, at all times shall be at least equal to the aggregate liablity of the licensee on account of checks sold and bills, invoices, and accounts accepted for payment.

Upon request of the commissioner, a licensee shall furnish to the commissioner an authorization for examination of financial records of any such trust fund account, maintained in a financial institution, in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section 7473 of the Government Code.

Nothing in this law shall be construed to prevent a purchaser, a holder in due course, the payee of a check, draft or money order sold by the licensee in the usual course of his business, or an obligor for whom the licensee is acting as an agent in paying bills of the obligor, from taking any legal action necessary to enforce any claims which said purchaser, holder in due course, payee, or obligor may desire to take including the right to levy attachment or execution.

In the event a license under this law shall be suspended or terminated the licensee shall immediately deposit in said trust account an amount which with funds therein contained shall be equal to the outstanding checks sold and bills unpaid.

(Amended by Stats. 1976, Ch. 1320.)