• 26Feb

    Banks Slammed for Not Lending Money

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    Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor has slammed leading high street banks for not lending money. Find out how to borrow money affordably without relying on your bank.

    The cost of borrowing money from your bank has increased dramatically in recent years in the wake of the credit crunch. Credit card interest rates stand at a 12 year high, unsecured loans at a 9 year high and the cost of borrowing on agreed overdraft limits has risen 2% in just two years.

    Commenting on the announcement of RBS’ losses and the fact that the bank is paying out £1.3 billion in bonuses Vince Cable said that RBS rewarding individual bankers is like a football team paying their striker for scoring when they’ve just been relegated.

    “The Government has to get a grip and explain how it will exercise its 84% shareholding in RBS to benefit the taxpayer,” he said. “At present we are seeing very little. Part nationalized banks are for lending, not bonuses.”

    If you are in need of borrowing money till payday and your bank is not agreeing to lend you money, either because you have a poor credit history or simply because you are deemed unsuitable to lend to in the current economic climate, if you work, an instant cash payday loan could be a cheaper option for you than being stung by unauthorised overdraft charges by your bank or putting it all on your credit card.

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  • 25Feb

    Cost of Raising Kids Puts Strain on Family Budgets

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    The cost of raising a child from birth to the age of 21 now costs on average over £200,000, putting increased pressure on family budgets. The research from LV= has found that the cost of bringing up a child has risen 43 per cent in the last seven years.

    Three in four parents have been forced to cut back on spending due to the ongoing economic crisis with whole families feeling the pinch – one in eight parents say their children have asked for less pocket money.

    The annual survey from LV= on the Cost of a Child, now in its seventh year, shows that, for the first time, parents are likely to have to shell out more than £201,000 on raising a child from birth to the age of 21. This equates to £9,610 a year, £800 a month or £26 a day.

    Family Budgets: Getting Credit for the Short-Term

    Childcare and education remain the biggest expenditures, costing parents a mammoth £54,696 and £52,881 respectively over their child’s lifetime.

    “Every parent will know how expensive it can be to raise a little one, and as parents, we know we don’t begrudge a single penny of it,” said Mike Rogers, LV= Group Chief Executive.

    “But I suspect many new and prospective mums and dads will be a little shocked to see the potential financial burden ahead of them.”

    New research has found that ten per cent of the adult population – five million people – are permanently living on their bank overdraft and are at risk of penalty charges for going overdrawn on their bank accounts.

    “With rising inflation, it is going to be difficult for many to break the habit of living in the red, and it may be that more people will fall back into this position as living costs increase,” said Kevin Mountford from moneysupermarket.com.

    For those in need of a short-term cash loan to pay for school or university fees, or simply for unexpected emergencies that often arise when raising kids, instead of incurring excessive bank overdraft charges, an easy cash online pay day loan could offer a more flexible form of short term credit.

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  • 24Feb

    Easy Cash Loans Could Save On Bank Overdraft Charges

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    New research has found that ten per cent of the adult population – five million people – are permanently living on their bank overdraft, are at risk of penalty charges and could benefit from an easy cash loan.

    The figures from moneysupermarket.com come at a time when confidence in Britain’s banks is at a real low and the cost of borrowing money on agreed overdraft charges, loans and credit cards continues to rise. More worryingly for many though is the fact that 38 per cent of UK bank customers have relied on their overdrafts until pay day over the last 12 months.

    However, these figures do demonstrate an improvement on 12 months ago, when the same research found 17 per cent of British adults were permanently overdrawn and 52 per cent relied on their overdraft at least once every 12 months.

    The fact that many people are now no longer as reliant on their overdrafts to live could be testament to people living a more frugal and financially stable lifestyle, but it could also be down to customers using alternative ways of paying. Moneysupermarket.com revealed last week that over 14 million Brits are using their credit cards to fund day to day expenses. (Read More: Payday Loans Latest: Men Spend More on Credit Cards)

    Short Term Cash Loans for those who need Money Fast

    Others, on the other hand continue to look for alternative forms of short-term credit lending, such as pay day loans, rather than pay extortionate bank overdraft charges if they go over agreed overdraft limits. An investigation carried out by the Daily Mail in February revealed that the cost of an unauthorised overdraft with the leading banks worked out to be more expensive than taking out a payday loan. Hefty penalty charges alongside additional fees and interest mean going overdrawn on your bank account can result in 3,000% APR.

    ” With rising inflation, it is going to be difficult for many to break the habit of living in the red, and it may be that more people will fall back into this position as living costs increase,” concluded Kevin Mountford from moneysupermarket.com.

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  • 23Feb

    Trouble Paying Overdraft Interest

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    New research shows that many Brits continue to have trouble paying overdraft interest as the cost of the average agreed overdraft interest rate has risen by nearly 2% in two years.

    The research from Moneynet.co.uk suggests that while much of the media focus over the last two years has fallen on the current account market and the level of unauthorised bank charges and penalty fees, the cost of borrowing money via agreed overdraft charges has increased in the background.

    The cost of borrowing on agreed overdraft charges has risen, but so too has the cost of borrowing on credit cards and loans, which are both at their highest levels for the best part of a decade. Banks continue to be reluctant to lend money till payday and beyond to all but the most credit-worthy of customers.

    Moneynet.co.uk claim that in February 2008 someone who was overdrawn by £1,000 for 6 months of the year would pay £69.25 in interest charges which equates to an average interest rate of 13.85%. That same scenario today would see costs increased by more than 10% as the £1,000 for 6 months would cost £76.63 – or an average interest rate of 15.32%.

    “No doubt lenders will point to increased risk and default levels as a result of the spike in unemployment seen during the recession,” said Andrew Hagger from the site. “However as and when the economy returns to a stronger footing and unemployment falls, I’m not convinced that the cost of borrowing will recede.”

    With savings rates falling whilst the cost of loans, credit cards and overdrafts are heading in the opposite direction, many people are disillusioned with financial services providers in the UK. Research published last week by Money.co.uk claims that just 7% of Britons trust their banks. Read More: Brits Lose Trust in Banks

    If you are having trouble paying interest on your overdraft or are in need of a short-term loan for a specific one-off emergency, instead of going overdrawn on your bank account and incurring massive penalty charges or instead of maxing out on your credit card at a time when interest repayment rates are costly, a pay day loan could offer a more flexible answer to your short-term cash needs.

    Please remember that pay day loans are short term loans – if you do not think you can pay them back quickly then other forms of loans are more likely to be better for your circumstances.

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  • 22Feb

    Debt Freedoom Day

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    Pay day loans news: New figures reveal that as a nation we spent the first 50 days of 2010 just to earn enough money to pay off the interest on our debts – so today is the first day where what we earn can actually be used to re-pay the actual debt itself!

    Saturday 20th February marked this year’s Debt Freedom Day, according to the professional financial advice website unbiased.co.uk. The company report that credit card debt increased by £4billion in 2009 to over £54billion, while personal loan debt has remained constant over the past year, despite the banks tightening their lending criteria.

    With the base rate still at a historic low of 0.5%, now is a good opportunity for people to service their debt and get back in control of their finances.

    “It may come as a shock that Debt Freedom Day actually only marks the day when we have paid off the interest on our debts, rather than the actual debt itself!” commented Karen Barrett, Chief Executive of Unbiased.co.uk.

    “Debts can quickly mount up to a considerable sum and this date demonstrates that debt is something that we need to take control of and actively manage.”

    Research from moneysupermarket.com has found that one in five of us carry more than three credit cards and that 17 per cent of credit card holders use their card at least once a day, with a further 28 per cent using their card at least once a week. Read More: Brits Reliant on Credit Cards.

    Standard unsecured loan rates are at a 9 year high, (Read More: Unsecured Loans at 9 Year High.) and interest on credit cards is at its highest for 12 years too. Banks and lenders are still not keen on lending money to anyone they see as a risk. But if you need a short-term quick cash loan and are having difficulty getting access to low cost credit then a pay day loan could be the answer to your short-term cash needs.

  • 19Feb

    Getting a Loan from Banks More Difficult than Ever

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    Payday Loans News: The latest figures show that getting a loan from a bank is now more difficult than ever and for those who can manage to get a loan, more costly than at any time in a decade. We review your short-term options for making your money last till payday.

    The total flow of net consumer credit was slightly up in December, the latest figures from the Bank of England have revealed, but then declined in January as the availability of credit has become tight.

    Standard unsecured loan rates currently stand at a 9 year high, (Read More: Unsecured Loans at 9 Year High.) and interest on credit cards is at its highest for 12 years too. (Read More: Credit Card Interest at 12 Year High).
    Banks and lenders remain reluctant to lend money to anyone they see as a risk. But if you need a short-term quick cash loan, there are options available.

    How do I get a Loan Till Payday?

    Instead of going overdrawn on your bank account and incurring massive penalty charges from your bank, or instead of maxing out on your credit card at a time when interest repayment rates are costly, a pay day loan could be the answer to your short-term cash needs.

    While pay day loans do carry a higher than usual APR % to cover the administrative costs of the loans and the increased risk involved in lending to people with a less than perfect credit rating, customers should not be confused by the APR ratings. The yearly calculation of APR is in many ways the wrong way to judge the true cost of a pay day loan because they are short term loans for relatively small amounts of money, designed to be repaid quickly and tide you over till pay day only.

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  • 18Feb

    Role of collection agencies in debt collection

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    Find out how collection agencies help creditors. Know whom you should contact in case of FDCPA violations.

    The role of collection agencies in debt collection is vital. These are the firms or agencies that take up the responsibility of collecting debts on behalf of creditors. If you have availed credit or you owe money to your creditor, you are expected to pay up. However, due to unavoidable circumstances if you are not able to do the same, the creditor will send you notification, mails and letters urging you to pay up. In case you don’t, it is likely that he will sell the debt to a collection agency for a few dollars.

    Once the debt account is sold by the creditor to the collection agencies, it is the responsibility of the agency to collect debts. The creditor may also hire collection agencies to recover his money.

    There is a set of rules that govern the collection activities of these agencies. These norms are mentioned in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act commonly known as the FDCPA.

    Given below are few rules that the collection agencies need to follow while collecting debts. As per the FDCPA, any deviation from the following leads to violation of the FDCPA by the collection agencies. The rules are as follows –

     They are supposed to make debt collection calls only between 8AM and 9PM.

     The collection agencies are not supposed to contact friends, relatives etc except for verifying contact details of the debtor

     Using abusive language or misbehaving with the debtor is not allowed

     Asking you to pay more than you owe is not permitted

     Threatening the debtor to file lawsuit is prohibited

     Trying to collect debt from you even if it is well past the Statute of Limitation is not permitted.

    What you need to do in case of FDCPA violation?

    If collection agencies do not comply with the norms laid down as per the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you can sue them. Instances of FDCPA violation can be reported to the Attorney General of the state in which you live. You can also file a complaint with the FTC or the Federal Trade Commission and report unethical activities of collection agencies. These rules have been implemented keeping in mind the interest of consumers. So, if you find that you are not being dealt with properly, report the same.

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  • 18Feb

    Payday Loans Latest: Men Spend More on Credit Cards

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    Payday Loans Latest: Over 14 million Brits are using their credit cards to fund day to day expenses, and men are worse than women, new research suggests.

    But while the stereotype of women hitting the credit card to splash out on the latest fashions is a popular one, major research undertaken for price comparison website moneysupermarket.com suggests that men are more likely to spend on credit cards than women.

    Whilst more than one in four men (26 per cent) has three or more credit cards, just 16 per cent of women have exposed themselves to this level of credit, in fact a third of women don’t have a credit card at all, compared to a quarter of men.

    Only half of all female credit card holders (49 per cent) flash their plastic more than once a month, but half the boys (49 per cent) use theirs on a weekly basis.

    “Our research shows that men are consistently more reliant on credit cards than women,” said Peter Harrison from the website.

    “It also shows that women are more savvy when shopping for credit, with more women choosing their credit card based on the incentives offered.”

    How Many Credit Cards Do Most People Have in Britain?

    One in five Brits carry more than three credit cards and that 17 per cent of credit card holders use their card at least once a day, with a further 28 per cent using their card at least once a week, but a payday loan that does not require a credit check could be a far better option for those in employment.

    Payday loans online are fast, cheap and easy to apply for online and many people prefer these short-term loans over credit cards because massive credit card limits do nothing but encourage people to spend more than they can afford to.

    Research published this week by Moneyfacts.co.uk has found that the cost of lending on a credit card is now at a 12 year high. Additionally, traditional loan rates also cost more now as banks and credit card companies appear reluctant to lend to anyone that may be deemed a risk.

  • 17Feb

    Problems Paying Winter Energy Bills As Prices Soar

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    New research published today shows that 73% of the UK is worried about the cost of their energy bills after the winter cold snap. Follow our top tips on how to cut your energy bills, as well as options on borrowing money until payday to pay unexpected bills.

    The latest research from price comparison website Confused.com reveals that the recent ‘Big Freeze’ has made the majority of Brits more aware of their energy useage. But on top of this, a staggering amount of people are still falling foul of bad habits that will send their bills through the roof making and putting more pressure on their short-term cash needs.

    Whilst the spotlight on energy providers during the recession appears to have made the nation savvier than they’ve ever been when it comes to their consumption, it appears that central heating is still the first port of call for keeping warm in homes across the nation. The average home owner is turning up the heat to a staggering 22.6c, hotter than Miami in January.

    "In order to minimise the impact of unnecessarily high bills, it’s important to realise that winter doesn’t stop when you go through your front door,” said Gareth Kloet, head of energy at the website.

    “Jumpers and extra layers that keep you warm outdoors do work just as well inside and do not load your energy bills.”

    Payday Loans More Affordable Than Overdraft Charges

    Latest figures show that the cold winter weather has cost an estimated £35.21 million in home insurance claims. And additional 20% of the population does not have home insurance either, thereby increasing the massive financial burden the cold snap will face on numerous households.

    If you are in need of borrowing money until payday – either to pay your expensive heating bills, or to help restore your home after a burst water leak then an instant cash payday loan could be a cheaper option than being stung by unauthorised overdraft charges by your bank or putting it all on your credit card, storing up money problems for the future.

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  • 16Feb

    Short Term Credit and Latest Credit Card Rates

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    The latest news on credit card rates reveals that the cost of borrowing on a credit card is now at a 12 year high, prompting many to look around for alternative short term credit options.

    Increased competition in the credit card market at the end of the 1990s meant that interest rates on credit cards started to fall, dropping to their lowest level in 2006. But since 2006 as the economic downturn began to bite, credit card rates have steadily increased, with the average rate today hitting a 12 year high of 18.8%.

    The research, published by Moneyfacts.co.uk, coincides with similar research carried out by the company earlier in February, which shows that the cost of an average loan is at a nine year high. Read More: Unsecured Loans at 9 Year High.

    “The UK continues to suffer from a high level of unemployment and providers are worried about the increased risk of customers not repaying their debts,” said Michelle Slade from the website.

    This increased risk continues to be passed on to both new and existing credit card customers through higher rates.

    “Borrowers with £5,000 debt on the card, who just repay the minimum each month, will now repay an additional £2,289 over the life of the debt than they would have in February 2006.”

    Slade also added that other charges such as balance transfer, cash withdrawal and foreign transfer fees also continue to go up, leaving customers paying more across the board.

    “Card companies are reassessing their existing customer base, resulting in numerous customers seeing a rise in their rate. Many such customers who would previously have switched to another provider are now finding it’s not so easy to do so,” concluded Slade.

    Increase Cost of Credit Cards Makes Payday Loans More Affordable

    As a result of the spiralling costs of using a credit card, as well as the reluctance of many companies to lend to individuals they perceive as a risk, more and more cash strapped Brits in employment are opting instead for payday loans to solve their emergency money worries.

    If you face an unexpected bill or are overdrawn on your bank account and face hefty overdraft charges and need to sort out your money situation quickly, a payday loan could be the best option for you. You can access up to £750, with no credit check needed and you can apply quickly online.

    Many customers prefer payday loans over credit cards as they know beforehand exactly how much they have to pay back at the end of the month, compared to the ‘never-never’ of credit card limits.

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