§ 7-4-18. Criminal Penalty for Excessive Interest

1. Any person, company, or corporation who shall reserve, charge, or take for any loan or advance of money, or forbearance to enforce the collection of any sum of money, any rate of interest greater than 5 percent per month, either directly or indirectly, by way of commission for advances, discount, exchange, or the purchase of salary or wages; by notarial or other fees; or by any contract, contrivance, or device whatsoever shall be guilty of a misdemeanor; provided, however, that regularly licensed pawnbrokers, as defined in Code Section 44-12-130, are limited in the amount of interest they may charge only by the limitations set forth in Code Section 44-12-131.
2. This Code section shall not be construed as repealing or impairing the usury laws now existing but shall be construed as being cumulative thereof.
3. Nothing contained in Code Section 7-4-2 or 7-4-3 shall be construed to amend or modify the provisions of this Code section.
4. Notwithstanding the foregoing, fees and other charges agreed upon by a financial institution and depositor, as defined in Code Section 7-1-4, in a written agreement governing a deposit, share, or other account, including, but not limited to, overdraft and nonsufficient funds, delinquency or default charges, returned payment charges, stop payment charges, or automated teller machine charges, shall not be considered interest.

History. Ga. L. 1908, p. 83, §§ 1, 2; Civil Code 1910, §§ 3444, 3445; Penal Code 1910, § 700; Code 1933, §§ 57-117, 57-9901; Ga. L. 1983, p. 1146, § 5; Ga. L. 2000, p. 1526, § 1; Ga. L. 2014, p. 213, § 2/HB 824.

Editor’s notes.

Ga. L. 2014, p. 213, § 3/HB 824, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: “It is not the intent of the General Assembly to affect the law applicable to litigation pending as of February 19, 2014.”

Law reviews.

For comment on Zink v. Davis Fin. Co., 61 Ga. App. 39 , 5 S.E.2d 588 (1939), see 2 Ga. B.J. 57 (1940).

For comment on Georgia Inv. Co. v. Norman, 231 Ga. 821 , 204 S.E.2d 740 (1974), see 26 Mercer L. Rev. 321 (1974).

For note discussing whether a holder in due course takes free of claims of violations of the usury laws, see 12 Ga. L. Rev. 814 (1978).

For note, “State-Imposed Interest Rate Ceilings and Home Equity Loan Scandal in Georgia,” see 11 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 591 (1995).

For article, “Business Associations,” see 53 Mercer L. Rev. 109 (2001).

Cross references.

Illegal payday loans, § 16-17-1 et seq.