Information on payday loan documents and regulation

These small loans, also called "cash advance loans", "check advance loans," or "deferred deposit check loans," are a frequent pitfall for consumers. A fee anywhere from $15-$30 per $100 borrowed is charged for an average loan of $300. With rates so high and the term of the loan so short there's no wonder that a very high percentage of these loans are rolled over by the borrower again and again so that the accumulated fees equal an effective annualized interest rate of 390% to 780% APR depending on the number of times the principal is rolled over.

Whether or not the "choice of law provision" in your payday loan contract, in which you and the lender agreed that the contract would be governed by the laws of another state, is valid and binding depends greatly on your state of residence, and how your states' courts have interpreted such contract provisions.

Several states, such as Illinois and Wisconsin, limit the application of choice of law provisions. Some states allow the provisions as long as there is no major conflict with the public policy of the consumer's home states. Some states require that a substantial connection exist between the chosen state and the agreement (i.e., one of the parties resides or does business in the chosen state), while some states generally uphold choice of law provisions unless the contract is illegal or void for some other reason. If you are concerned about the choice of law provision in your payday loan agreement, you should consult with an attorney licensed in your state, who should be familiar with your states courts' views on choice of law provisions in consumer contracts.

Valid choice of law provisions can allow lenders to charge you interest and fees that may be otherwise prohibited by your state law. However, if you default on a payday loan, and the creditor decides to file a lawsuit against you to try to collect, the lender generally must sue you in the state where you currently live, or the state in which you actually signed the loan agreement. For most consumers, these two places are the same, but if you have recently moved to a different state, the lender could possibly file suit against you in the state where you lived when you borrowed the money. Thankfully for consumers, choice of law provisions do not generally allow creditors to sue consumers in the state chosen in the contract.

Many states have already spoken to the issue of choice of law provisions in consumer credit contracts, such as payday loans, as well as to the legality of payday loans in general. If you are a resident of one of the twelve states where payday loans are illegal once the effective rate passes the usury cap in that state, you may be able to free yourself form the payday loan trap. Usury laws dictate the maximum interest that many lenders may legally charge. If the payday lenders follow their normal business model the loan will most assuredly pass the limit very early. New York State even has a criminal statute that sanctions the lender if the rate exceeds 25%. If you are in one of those states, the loan may be void, and you may be only liable for the principal amount borrowed. In addition, there are eight states whose payday loan regulating statutes require lenders to set up an installment repayment plan if an account reaches the maximum number of rollovers allowed by law and the debtor declares that he/she is unable to pay the balance due. Such a repayment plan may help you in paying off these loans. You can find a summary of your states' pay day loan statutes at www.paydayloaninfo.org, a website developed by the Consumer Federation of America. If you go to the same site and click on consumer help, you will find a comprehensive discussion of the best strategies of how to cope with and get out of the payday loan trap.

Bills.com also offers more information on the Payday Loan Information page, and has answered reader questions about payday loans in California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, Texas, and Virginia.

If you do not repay a payday loan, the payday loan company has several legal remedies, including wage garnishment, levy, and lien. See the Bills.com resource Collections Advice to learn more about the rights of creditors and debtors.

I wish you the best of luck in repaying these payday loans. I hope this information helps you Find. Learn. Save.

Best,

Bill

www.Bills.com