§ 520.35 — Revolving accounts

Florida § 520.35

• Jurisdiction: Florida
• Title: XXXIII
• Ch. 520: RETAIL INSTALLMENT SALES

Text

(1) Every revolving account shall be in writing and shall be completed prior to the signing thereof by the retail buyer. The printed portion, other than instructions for completion, of any revolving account executed on or after January 1, 1960, shall be in at least 6-point type. Any such account shall contain the names of the seller and the buyer, the place of business of the seller, the residence or place of business of the buyer as specified by the buyer, and substantially the following notice: Notice to the Buyer a. Do not sign this before you read it or if it contains any blank spaces. b. You are entitled to an exact copy of the paper you sign. A copy of any such account executed on or after January 1, 1960, shall be delivered or mailed to the retail buyer by the retail seller prior to the date on which the first payment is due thereunder. Any acknowledgment by the buyer of delivery of a copy of the account shall be in a size equal to at least 6-point type and, if contained in the account, shall appear directly above or adjacent to the buyer’s signature. No account executed on or after January 1, 1960, shall be signed by the buyer when it contains blank spaces to be filled in after it has been signed. The buyer’s acknowledgment, conforming to the requirements of this subsection, of delivery of a copy of an account shall be presumptive proof, in any action or proceeding, of such delivery and that the account, when signed, did not contain any blank spaces as herein provided. Every account executed on or after January 1, 1960, shall state the amount of, or the method of calculating, the finance charge to be charged and paid pursuant thereto or shall state that a finance charge not in excess of that permitted by this law will be charged and paid pursuant to such account. A revolving account agreement is considered to be signed or accepted by the buyer if, after a request for a revolving account, the agreement or application for a revolving account is in fact signed by the buyer, or if that revolving account is used by the buyer or by another person authorized by the buyer to use it. The seller bears the burden of proving authorized use.

(2)(a) The retail seller under a revolving account shall promptly supply the retail buyer thereunder with a statement as of the end of each monthly period (which need not be a calendar month), or other regular period agreed upon by the retail seller and the retail buyer, in which there is any unpaid balance thereunder, which statement shall recite the following: 1. The unpaid balance under the account at the beginning and end of the period, using the terms “previous balance” and “new balance”; 2. Unless otherwise furnished by the retail seller to the retail buyer by sales slip, memorandum, or otherwise, the cash price and the date of each purchase during the period; 3. The payments made by the retail buyer to the retail seller and any other credits to the retail buyer during the period, using the terms “payments” and “credits”; 4. The amount of the finance charge itemized, if any. The items need not be stated in the sequence or order set forth in this paragraph, and additional items may be included to explain the computations made in determining the amount to be paid by the retail buyer. (b) A statement which complies with the federal Truth in Lending Act, 15 U.S.C. ss. 1601 et seq., or any accompanying regulations shall be deemed to comply with the provisions of this subsection. However, in any proceeding to enforce the provisions of this section, the burden of alleging and proving compliance with the federal Truth in Lending Act shall be on the party claiming compliance.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, the seller under a revolving account may charge, receive, and collect a finance charge which may not exceed 15 cents per $10 per month, computed on all amounts unpaid under the revolving account from month to month (which need not be a calendar month) or other regular period, and a delinquency charge not to exceed $10 for each payment in default for a period of not less than 10 days, if the charge is agreed upon, in writing, between the parties before imposing any charge. If the amount of the finance charge so computed is less than $1 for any such month, a finance charge of $1 for any such month may be charged, received, and collected. If the regular period is other than such monthly period or if the unpaid amount is less than or greater than $5, the permitted finance charge shall be computed proportionately. Such finance charge may be computed for all unpaid balances within a range of not in excess of $10 on the basis of the median amount within such range, if as so computed such finance charge is applied to all unpaid balances within such range.

Legislative History

s. 6, ch. 59-414; s. 10, ch. 69-370; s. 3, ch. 76-168; s. 1, ch. 77-457; s. 21, ch. 80-256; s. 2, ch. 81-318; s. 5, ch. 83-123; s. 1, ch. 84-180; ss. 13, 35, 36, ch. 90-103; s. 4, ch. 91-429; s. 1, ch. 95-234; s. 1, ch. 97-174.