Virginia allows extortionate statute against debtors

Statute provision created 2005, subsequently amended to make it even worse for consumers:

Basically, what it says is that, if you have a credit card, the issuer can change the terms of the agreement in any way it wishes, whether you like it or not, and whether you signed up for it originally or not, unless the original contract (still have your copy?) specifically states that it may not be so changed. For example, if a bank suddenly decided it needed to make a one-time charge of $10,000.00 on each credit card bill in order to meet its profit expectations, it could lawfully do so and the credit card holders would be legally liable to pay that money, and anyone who didn't pay could have paycheck and bank accounts garnished and his house taken to satisfy the debt.

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... D. Unless the contract or plan referred to in subsection A otherwise expressly provides, a bank or savings institution may amend such contract or plan in any respect at any time and from time to time, whether or not the amendment or the subject of the amendment was originally contemplated or addressed by the parties or is integral to the relationship between the parties. Without limiting the foregoing, such amendment may change terms by the addition of new terms or by the deletion or modification of existing terms, whether relating to plan benefits or features, the periodic rate or rates used to calculate finance charges, the manner of calculating periodic rate finance charges or outstanding unpaid indebtedness, variable schedules or formulas, finance charges other than periodic rate finance charges, other charges or fees, collateral requirements, methods for obtaining or repaying extensions of credit, attorney's fees, plan termination, the manner for amending the terms of the contract or plan, arbitration or other alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, or other matters of any kind whatsoever. Unless the contract or plan otherwise expressly provides, any amendment may, on and after the date upon which it becomes effective as to a particular borrower, apply to all then outstanding unpaid indebtedness in the borrower's account under the contract or plan, including any such indebtedness that arose prior to the effective date of the amendment. A contract or plan may be amended pursuant to this subsection regardless of whether the contract or plan is active or inactive or whether additional borrowings are available thereunder. Any such amendment may become effective as determined by the bank or savings institution, subject to compliance by the bank or savings institution with any applicable provisions under the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and the regulations promulgated thereunder, as in effect from time to time. Any notice of an amendment sent by the bank or savings institution may be included in the same envelope with a periodic statement or as part of the periodic statement or in other materials sent to the borrower.

Virginia Code 6.1-330.63
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By the way, the National Banking Act says that a bank may charge whatever interest is allowed in the state in which that bank has it's office (not the state in which the consumer lives). That's why they're all located in Delaware or South Dakota, neither of which has any limit on allowable interest. So the imposition of a 5000% interest charge on your credit card account would be enforceable in a Virginia court. And that applies to the current balance, regardless of what the terms that applied at the time you incurred the debt originally.

They can, using this statute, bind you to whatever new and different terms and conditions they can think up; e.g., they could impose a $2500 "processing fee" for every transaction not made in person in their main office, say, in South Dakota. They can't take your first-born child, though, because that would be against public policy.

Surprise!! Merry Christmas!!