House Bill 1139e1

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                                          HB 1139, First Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to consumer finance; amending

  3         s. 516.031, F.S.; authorizing a delinquency

  4         charge on consumer finance loans under certain

  5         circumstances; amending s. 520.07, F.S.;

  6         revising the disclosure requirements for retail

  7         installments contracts; providing an effective

  8         date.

  9

10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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12         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section

13  516.031, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         516.031  Finance charge; maximum rates.--

15         (3)  OTHER CHARGES.--

16         (a)  In addition to the interest, delinquency, and

17  insurance charges herein provided for, no further or other

18  charges or amount whatsoever for any examination, service,

19  commission, or other thing or otherwise shall be directly or

20  indirectly charged, contracted for, or received as a condition

21  to the grant of a loan, except:

22         1.  An amount not to exceed $10 to reimburse a portion

23  of the costs for investigating the character and credit of the

24  person applying for the loan;

25         2.  An annual fee of $25 on the anniversary date of

26  each line-of-credit account;

27         3.  Charges paid for brokerage fee on a loan or line of

28  credit of more than $10,000, title insurance, and the

29  appraisal of real property offered as security when paid to a

30  third party and supported by an actual expenditure;

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                                          HB 1139, First Engrossed



  1         4.  Intangible personal property tax on the loan note

  2  or obligation when secured by a lien on real property;

  3         5.  The documentary excise tax and lawful fees, if any,

  4  actually and necessarily paid out by the licensee to any

  5  public officer for filing, recording, or releasing in any

  6  public office any instrument securing the loan, which fees may

  7  be collected when the loan is made or at any time thereafter;

  8         6.  The premium payable for any insurance in lieu of

  9  perfecting any security interest otherwise required by the

10  licensee in connection with the loan, if the premium does not

11  exceed the fees which would otherwise be payable, which

12  premium may be collected when the loan is made or at any time

13  thereafter;

14         7.  Actual and reasonable attorney's fees and court

15  costs as determined by the court in which suit is filed; or

16         8.  Actual and commercially reasonable expenses of

17  repossession, storing, repairing and placing in condition for

18  sale, and selling of any property pledged as security; or.

19         9.  A delinquency charge not to exceed $10 for each

20  payment in default for a period of not less than 10 days, if

21  the charge is agreed upon, in writing, between the parties

22  before imposing the charge.

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24  Any charges, including interest, in excess of the combined

25  total of all charges authorized and permitted by this chapter

26  constitute a violation of chapter 687 governing interest and

27  usury, and the penalties of that chapter apply. In the event

28  of a bona fide error, the licensee shall refund or credit the

29  borrower with the amount of the overcharge immediately but

30  within 20 days from the discovery of such error.

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                                          HB 1139, First Engrossed



  1         Section 2.  Subsection (2) and subsections (3) of

  2  section 520.07, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

  3         520.07  Requirements and prohibitions as to retail

  4  installment contracts.--

  5         (2)  The contract shall contain the following:

  6         (a)  Amount financed.--The "amount financed," using

  7  that term, and a brief description such as "the amount of

  8  credit provided to you or on your behalf."  The amount

  9  financed is calculated by:

10         1.  Determining the cash price, and subtracting any

11  down payment;

12         2.  Adding any other amounts that are financed by the

13  creditor and that are not part of the finance charge,

14  including any additional amount financed in a retail

15  installment contract to discharge a security interest, lien,

16  or lease interest on a motor vehicle traded in in connection

17  with the contract; and

18         3.  Subtracting any prepaid finance charge.

19         (b)  Finance charge.--The "finance charge," using that

20  term, and a brief description such as "the dollar amount the

21  credit will cost you."

22         (c)  Total of payments.--The "total of payments," using

23  that term, and a descriptive explanation such as "the amount

24  you will have paid when you have made all scheduled payments."

25         (d)  Total sale price.--In a credit sale, the "total

26  sale price," using that term, and a descriptive explanation,

27  including the amount of any down payment, such as "the total

28  price of your purchase on credit, including your down payment

29  of $....."  The total sale price is the sum of the cash price,

30  the items described in subparagraph (a)2., and the finance

31  charge disclosed under paragraph (b).


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                                          HB 1139, First Engrossed



  1         (e)  The number of scheduled payments, the amount of

  2  each payment, and the date of the first payment.

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  4  Except for the requirement in subsection (3) that a separate

  5  written itemization of the amount financed be provided, a

  6  contract which complies with the federal Truth in Lending Act,

  7  15 U.S.C. ss. 1601 et seq., or any accompanying regulations

  8  shall be deemed to comply with the provisions of this

  9  subsection and subsection (3). However, in any proceeding to

10  enforce the provisions of this section, the burden of alleging

11  and proving compliance with the federal Truth in Lending Act

12  shall be on the party claiming compliance.

13         (3)  The seller shall provide a separate written

14  itemization of the amount financed, which itemization shall

15  disclose the following:

16         (a)  The cash price;

17         (b)  The amount of down payment;

18         (c)  The difference between the amounts disclosed under

19  paragraphs (a) and (b);

20         (d)  The amounts, if any, included for insurance and

21  other benefits, specifying the types of coverages and

22  benefits; and

23         (e)  Any taxes and official fees not included in the

24  cash price; and

25         (f)  The number of scheduled payments, the amount of

26  each payment, and the date of the first payment.

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28  The itemization required by this subsection may appear on a

29  disclosure statement separate from all other material, or it

30  may be placed on the same document with the contract or other

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                                          HB 1139, First Engrossed



  1  information so long as it is clearly and conspicuously

  2  segregated from everything else on the document.

  3         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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