| gen. |
late charge (A fee to compensate a lender for the additional administrative expenses and general inconvenience suffered when payments are not received on time.If the late charge is excessive,the courts will construe it as a penalty,and penalties are illegal. Many industries have had to reduce their customary late charges because of class-action litigation resulting in millions of dollars of refunds and reimbursement for attorneys' fees. The Complete Real Estate Encyclopedia Alexander Demidov) |
