Sec. 203.5. Delinquency Charges — (1) With respect to a consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation, the parties may contract for a delinquency charge of not more than the following:

(a) Five dollars ($5) on any installment or minimum payment due that is not paid in full not later than ten (10) days after its scheduled due date, in the case of a consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation that is made before July 1, 2019. The amount of five dollars ($5) in this subdivision is subject to change under IC 24-4.5-1-106. In addition, the parties may provide by contract for a delinquency charge that is subject to change. If the parties provide by contract for a delinquency charge that is subject to change, the lender shall disclose in the contract that the amount of the delinquency charge is subject to change under IC 24-4.5-1-106 or this section.

(b) In the case of a consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation that is made after June 30, 2019, the following:

(i) Five dollars ($5) on any installment or minimum payment due that is not paid in full not later than ten (10) days after its scheduled due date, if installments under the consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation are due every fourteen (14) days or less. The amount of five dollars ($5) in this clause is not subject to change under IC 24-4.5-1-106.

(ii) Twenty-five dollars ($25) on any installment or minimum payment due that is not paid in full not later than ten (10) days after its scheduled due date, if installments under the consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation are due every fifteen (15) days or more. The amount of twenty-five dollars ($25) in this clause is not subject to change under IC 24-4.5-1-106.

(iii) Twenty-five dollars ($25) on any installment or minimum payment due that is not paid in full not later than ten (10) days after its scheduled due date, in the case of a consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation that is payable in a single installment that is due at least thirty (30) days after the consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation is made. The amount of twenty-five dollars ($25) in this clause is not subject to change under IC 24-4.5-1-106.

     (2) A delinquency charge under this section may be collected only once on an installment however long it remains in default. With regard to a delinquency charge on consumer loans made under a revolving loan account, the delinquency charge may be applied each month that the payment is less than the minimum required payment on the account. A delinquency charge may be collected any time after it accrues. A delinquency charge may not be collected if:

(a) the installment has been deferred and a deferral charge (IC 24-4.5-3-204) has been paid or incurred;

(b) a charge for a skip-a-payment service under IC 24-4.5-3-202(1)(i) has been paid or incurred, as provided in IC 24-4.5-3-202(1)(i)(iii); or

(c) a charge for an optional expedited payment service under IC 24-4.5-3-202(1)(j) has been paid or incurred, as provided in IC 24-4.5-3-202(1)(j)(v).

     (3) A creditor may not, directly or indirectly, charge or collect a delinquency charge on a payment that:

(a) is paid not later than ten (10) days after its scheduled due date; and

(b) is otherwise a full payment of the payment due for the applicable installment period;

if the only delinquency with respect to the consumer loan, refinancing, or consolidation is attributable to a delinquency charge assessed on an earlier installment.

     (4) If two (2) or more installments, or parts of two (2) or more installments, of a precomputed loan are in default for ten (10) days or more, the lender may elect to convert the loan from a precomputed loan to a loan in which the finance charge is based on unpaid balances. A lender that makes this election shall make a rebate under the provisions on rebates upon prepayment (IC 24-4.5-3-210) as of the maturity date of the first delinquent installment, and thereafter may make a loan finance charge as authorized by the provisions on loan finance charges for consumer loans (IC 24-4.5-3-201) or supervised loans (IC 24-4.5-3-508). The amount of the rebate shall not be reduced by the amount of any permitted minimum charge (IC 24-4.5-3-210). Any deferral charges made on installments due at or after the maturity date of the first delinquent installment shall be rebated, and no further deferral charges shall be made.

As added by P.L.247-1983, SEC.17. Amended by P.L.181-1991, SEC.4; P.L.115-1992, SEC.2; P.L.14-1992, SEC.27; P.L.122-1994, SEC.20; P.L.45-1995, SEC.10; P.L.280-2019, SEC.3; P.L.129-2020, SEC.6.