Is this legal?

[tRoN]

So I get an invoice from a property management company.

Please find attached your Tax invoice/Statement.

Please note the following:

Please note that cash payments of R2000 or more attract a basic bank handling fee of R5.80 per deposit, plus a fee of 44 cents per R100.
Rent and levy payments are due on the first of every month. Late payment may result in interest and/or administration fees being raised.

If I pay cash, then I have to pay "their" bank charges.

If I pay by EFT then I incur my "own" bank charges.

Is this legal? Can they force you to pay their bank charges?

 

[HavocXphere]

Not legal. Cash is legal tender (unless you pay it in a wheelbarrow of 50cents) and they are by law required to accept it as full payment of the outstanding amount.

 

[stricken]

Unless bound by a contract that stipulates this, no

 

[Beachless]

Nope not legal. There is a maximum acceptable amount for coins though. As far as I know they can give a discount for cash or DO etc but if you are invoiced cash is an acceptable form of payment.

 

[tRoN]

I though as much. It's like asking a customer to pay extra if they use a credit card rather than discounting an amount if they offer cash.

Who do I complain to? Who is the regulator?

 

[herbertk]

Only issue is when you pay with say 50c pieces... I think the limit is like R 50 for instances on 50c pieces otherwise it has to be accepted as legal tender.

 

[DJTza]

Cash is legal tender, if your rent is R2000 for example, they can't charge you more because you paid with cash. They should have worked that into your rent to begin with if they are that stingy.

What you do now, is you pay them R1950 in notes, and R50 in 50c coins, just to prove a point.