Fifty cents a fair late payment fee
Both ANZ and the plaintiffs in the class action over penalty fees are likely to appeal after the Federal Court ruled partly in favour of each party in a piece of landmark litigation delivered yesterday.Justice Michelle Gordon ruled in Paciocco v ANZ yesterday that that the bank's credit card late payment fee was "extravagant, exorbitant and unconscionable".However, she found no problem in law with the other charges contested by the plaintiffs. These included honour, dishonour, non-payment and over-limit fees.Justice Gordon concluded that the losses or damages incurred by ANZ ranged from as low as 50 cents to A$5.50. The actual fees charged by the bank ranged from $20 to $35.IMF Bentham, which is funding the claim managed by law firm Maurice Blackburn, said that late payment fees represented about a quarter of the value of claims on ANZ and other banks.