Usury Act 1660

Usury Act 1660

Act of Parliament
Parliament of England
Long title	An Act for restraining the taking of Excessive Usury.
Citation	12 Cha. 2. c. 13
Territorial extent	England and Wales
Dates
Royal assent	29 August 1660
Commencement	29 September 1660 [a]
Repealed	10 August 1854
Other legislation
Amends	Usury Act 1623
Amended by	Usury Act 1714 Usury Act 1840 Usury Act 1841 Usury Act 1843 Usury Act 1845 Usury Act 1850
Repealed by	Usury Laws Repeal Act 1854
Relates to	Usury Act 1623
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted

The Usury Act 1660 was an act of the Parliament of England (12 Cha. 2. c. 13) with the long title "An Act for restraining the taking of Excessive Usury". ^[1]

The purpose of the act was to reduce the maximum interest rate from 8% (imposed in 1624 by the Usury Act 1623 (21 Jas. 1. c. 17)) to 6%. The legislation had been enacted in 1651 under the Commonwealth, but this act was passed to confer legality on the measure following the Restoration of Charles II. ^[2]

Legacy

It was amended by the Usury Act 1714 (13 Ann. c. 15), which further reduced the interest rate to 5%; the Usury Act 1840 (3 & 4 Vict. c. 83); the Usury Act 1841 (4 & 5 Vict. c. 54); the Usury Act 1843 (6 & 7 Vict. c. 45); the Usury Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c. 102); and the Usury Act 1850 (13 & 14 Vict. c. 56). It was repealed by section 1 of the Usury Laws Repeal Act 1854 (17 & 18 Vict. c. 90); the last act is also known as An Act to repeal the Laws relating to Usury and to the Enrolment of Annuities.

Notes

1. Section 1.

References

1. 'Charles II, 1660: An Act for restraining the taking of Excessive Usury.', Statutes of the Realm: volume 5: 1628-80 (1819), pp. 236-37. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=47261. Date accessed: 07 March 2007.
2. 'Book 1, Ch. 14: From the Restoration to the Fire', A New History of London: Including Westminster and Southwark (1773), pp. 210-30. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=46731. Date accessed: 07 March 2007.