North Carolina prejudgment interest rate
United States North Carolina prejudgment interest differs for contract and noncontract awards.
→ All North Carolina judgment & prejudgment interest rates
Fixed by statute
2026 North Carolina prejudgment interest at a glance
- Current rate
- 8% per year
- Effective date
- July 9, 2026
- Controlling authority
- N.C. Gen. Stat. §24-5
- Rate basis
- Fixed by statute
- Source checked
- July 9, 2026
- Recorded history
- 1 data point
N.C. Gen. Stat. §24-5 does not use one rate for every award. A contract award generally bears the contract rate from breach when that rate is stated; otherwise the legal rate applies. A qualifying consumer contract uses the lower of the contract and legal rates. In a noncontract action, only compensatory damages receive pre-entry interest from filing.
When North Carolina prejudgment interest applies
Prejudgment interest is claim-type-restricted, not universal. In contract actions under G.S. 24-5(a), the contract award bears interest from breach and the factfinder must separate principal from interest. Penal bonds instead bear interest from judgment entry under G.S. 24-5(a1). In other actions, G.S. 24-5(b) limits pre-entry interest to the compensatory-damages portion and starts it when the action is filed.
When it starts accruing
A qualifying contract award runs from breach. A penal-bond award starts only at judgment. In other actions, §24-5(b) runs interest on the compensatory-damages portion from filing; punitive damages and other noncompensatory amounts are not folded into that branch.
Simple or compound
Section 24-5 supplies the branch and annual rate, but this page does not assert one universal compounding or payment-allocation method for every contract and noncontract judgment.
→ Compare with the North Carolina post-judgment interest rate (interest after judgment)
Prejudgment interest under N.C. Gen. Stat. 24-5 — 8% (simple interest). This is PREjudgment interest (accruing before entry of judgment) and is separate from North Carolina’s post-judgment rate; availability is limited by claim type (see the page). Verify against the statute text. Not legal advice.
Current recorded observation
| Effective date | Rate | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| July 9, 2026 | 8% | Statute |
Source & provenance
Observation recorded July 9, 2026 (00:00 UTC) from the cited source (North Carolina General Assembly (official)):
https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_24/GS_24-5.html
Cite this page
StatuteRates. “North Carolina Prejudgment Interest Rate.” StatuteRates.com. Accessed today. https://statuterates.com/rates/north-carolina-prejudgment-rate/ Rate recorded under N.C. Gen. Stat. §24-5, effective July 9, 2026.