Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...Florida Statutes Chapter 538 requires that secondhand dealers entering title loan contracts maintain physical possession of the motor vehicle title and that the owner maintain possession of, or control over, the motor vehicle throughout the transaction. § 538.06(5) (West 1998)....

...title lender or there has been no payment made on account within 60 days. § 538.16(1) (West 1998). A secondhand dealer engaged in a motor vehicle title loan transaction may repossess the motor vehicle upon failure of the owner to redeem the title. § 538.06(5)(d) (West 1998)....

...vehicle.” FLA. STAT. § 538.03(1)(i) (1999). Such loans are not subject to Florida’s usury law and its eighteen percent per year interest ceiling. FLA. STAT. § 687.03 (1999). Cash Cow could charge up to twenty-two percent per month. FLA. STAT. § 538.06(5)(e) (1999). The second type of consumer loans were “check cashing” loans....

...§ 538.17. [7] The repealed Florida statute also required precious metal dealers to retained their records for 1 year. Fla.Stat. § 538.011(1). The current Florida statute requires a precious metal dealer to "maintain transaction records for 5 years." Id. § 538.06(3)....

...Florida Statutes Chapter 538 requires that secondhand dealers entering title loan contracts maintain physical possession of the motor vehicle title and that the owner maintain possession of, or control over, the motor vehicle throughout the transaction. F.S. § 538.06(5). A secondhand dealer engaged in a motor vehicle title loan transaction may repossess the motor vehicle upon failure of the owner to redeem the title. § 538.06(5)(d) (West 1998)....

...ard Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33312 Dear Sheriff Jenne: You ask the following question: Is it a crime for a secondhand dealer engaging in a title loan transaction to charge a repossession fee in addition to the twenty-two percent interest provided in section 538.06 , Florida Statutes, and to retain any proceeds from the sale of such motor vehicle in excess of the amount due on the loan? In sum: A secondhand dealer engaging in a title loan transaction who knowingly charges a repossession fee or other fee in addition to the twenty-two percent maximum monthly interest provided in section 538.06 , Florida Statutes, or retains any proceeds from the sale of such motor vehicle in excess of the amount due on the loan, is subject to criminal prosecution pursuant to section 538.07 (1), Florida Statutes....

...ect exacts an interest rate higher than that allowed by law. 3 In 1995, however, the Legislature amended Part I, Chapter 538 , Florida Statutes, regulating the activities of secondhand dealers, to provide for motor vehicle title loan transactions. 4 Section 538.06 (5), Florida Statutes, allows secondhand dealers to engage in title loan transactions in which the secondhand dealer may retain possession of only the title to the motor vehicle, while the motor vehicle owner retains possession or control over the vehicle....

...The statute specifically prohibits a secondhand dealer from engaging in pawn transactions and title loan transactions from the same location, as well as the use of the words "pawn" or "pawnbroker" in any title loan transaction, documentation, advertisement, sign, or display. 5 Section 538.06 (5)(e), Florida Statutes, authorizes a second-hand dealer who accepts a motor vehicle title in a title loan transaction to charge a maximum fee of twenty-two percent per month....

...Subsection (5)(f) of the statute expressly provides: "No charges other than those charges permitted in paragraph (e) shall be allowed , and said charges shall be fully disclosed, conspicuously in writing, and initialed by the motor vehicle owner at the initiation of the transaction." (e.s.) Thus, section 538.06 , Florida Statutes, constitutes a narrow exception to the usury provisions of Chapter 687 , Florida Statutes. The statute, however, limits the charges that may be collected by a secondhand dealer in a title loan transaction to a maximum fee of twenty-two percent per month and specifically prohibits any other charges being imposed. While section 538.06 (5)(d), Florida Statutes, authorizes a secondhand dealer in a motor vehicle title loan transaction to repossess the motor vehicle upon failure of the owner to redeem the title, nothing in section 538.06 , or elsewhere in Part I of Chapter 538 , Florida Statutes, authorizes the imposition of a repossession charge. 6 The imposition of such an additional charge, or any other charge not provided for by statute, violates the manifest intent of the Legislature expressed in section 538.06 (5)(f), Florida Statutes, that no other charges be imposed in addition to a maximum amount equal to twenty-two percent per month....

...Stat., which defines "secondhand goods" to include motor vehicles. 5 See, ss. 538.15 (4) and (5), Fla. Stat. 6 See , s. 538.16(1), Fla. Stat., stating that the property is subject to sale if title has not been redeemed from the title lender or there has been no payment made on account within 60 days. And see , s. 538.06 (5)(d), Fla....

...679.504 relating to disbursement of the excess proceeds would be applicable. In contrast, s. 679.504(1)(b), Fla. Stat., which permits a secured party to use proceeds from the sale to pay for the costs of retaking, holding, and preparing for the sale of the property, conflicts with the Legislature's clear statement in s. 538.06 (5)(f), Fla. Stat., that no fees other than the maximum twenty-two percent per month may be collected. Pursuant to s. 671.304 , Fla. Stat., the provisions of s. 538.06 would prevail....