Delinquency and Default

A charge-off is the creditor's accounting decision to treat a seriously unpaid account as a likely loss.

Default means a borrower has failed to meet the credit agreement at a level the lender treats as serious or formal.

Delinquency means a required payment is late and the account is no longer current.

Late-payment and default terms that explain what happens when an account leaves normal repayment and becomes a serious risk problem.

A late payment means the borrower did not make the required payment by the due date.

Past due means a required payment or balance remains unpaid after its due date.

Re-aging is a change in how a delinquent account is treated after the borrower brings it back under more acceptable payment terms.