An article regarding Cash Converters expected to announce a major loss for the previous financial year.
So sad, too bad.
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An article warning consumers that payday lenders Cigno and Gold-Silver Standard Finance have changed their name to MyFi.
Different name, same bottom-feeding grubs.
We’ve joined the Stop the Debt Trap Alliance with other consumer groups to call on the government to take action against dodgy payday lenders.
Plus, here’s some advice on why you should avoid payday loans:
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An article regarding consumer groups calling on the government to act on the bottom-feeding payday lenders.
You really have to laugh at George Christensen’s ludicrous statement.
“The Nationals MP George Christensen was one of those opposed to the crackdown, saying the industry played an important role for those who were “desperate” for financial help.”
I was not aware that marijuana had been legalised in Qld.
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I just received an email from the Consumer Action Law Centre regarding their campaign against payday lenders along with a request to send an email to our local Federal M P, which I have done.
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Another article regarding payday lenders.
.
.
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.Another article regarding the predatory practices of the disgusting, bottom-feeding lenders.
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The title does not reflect that this appears to be the equivalent of a payday loan to an employer, and those who profit want to push it out to the public service.
Reading the description beyond the commercial origins, the employer contracts the ‘supply-chain’ finance company to pay the payroll, and some time later the supply-chain finance company collects the money from the employer with interest. Seems like yet another service that creatively siphons a few more dollars from the economy and puts them into its pockets. Cheap credit? or allowing marginal enterprises to keep at it for a while longer?
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This one even perhaps worth a Shonky (offer in the pic ran from 27th to 29th of November 2019)? Highpoint Shopping Centre (part of The GPT Group property potfolio) helping their customers to buy more.
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The latest newsletter from the Consumer Action Law Centre.
https://mailchi.mp/consumeraction/fairness-must-drive-consumer-policy-in-2020?e=86eb265901
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I am really concerned about the impact that payday lending will have on our community during COVID-19. I recently received an email from Scott Pape (the Barefoot Investor) on this topic and he is very passionate about protecting the community from people looking to exploit this situation.
Because he explains it much better than I can, I am going to copy his full email here, in the hopes that the CHOICE community can look into it and do something about it. I really don’t want people being any worse off financially, emotionally or physically at the end of this than they will be already just with the impacts of COVID-19.
Very interested in your thoughts.
From Scott Pape on 22 March:
"So, I have some bad news.
I’ve spent this week fighting a virus.
It’s dangerous, it’s destructive … and it’s about to explode, and potentially infect millions of people.
Let me explain: it’s a financial cousin of the coronavirus which I’m calling the ‘Payday Lending Pandemic’.
See, this weekend, in kitchens and living rooms across the country, people are stressing out about their finances:
The single mum who works as a waitress, who just had her hours cut, and has no food in the fridge to feed her kids.
The small business owner who sits with his wife, worried about how he’ll pay his loyal staff and make the rent.
The father who drives an Uber to feed his family, who gets a nasty cough — but has no sick pay or entitlements.
They’re all terrified.
Yet there’s a small group of multi-millionaire businessmen who are rubbing their greedy little hands with glee:
Payday lenders.
See, up until now they’ve made their fortunes by preying on the mentally disabled, the addicted and the sick.
Yet this corona crisis is about to open the payday loan market up to millions of brand-new customers.
In a moment, I’m going to ask you — yes you — to help me stop them. But first I want to explain how dangerous and contagious this Payday Lending Pandemic is:
This week the Reserve Bank cut the cash rate to 0.25% … yet payday lenders can legally charge their customers an outrageous 407.6% per annum (not a typo) for a one month loan.
And, while they’re marketed as ‘short-term loans up to $2,000’, the reality is these loans are designed to put vulnerable people into a long-term debt spiral, where one loan is used to pay off another. And another. And another.
After all, the payday lenders know that when all else fails they have a guaranteed payer:
You.
Or, more accurately, Centrelink (which we collectively pay for through our taxes).
The payday predators can swoop in and snatch their clients’ Centrelink payments before they can spend it on food, medicine or schoolbooks. And that’s exactly what they do (they also pull the same trick with people’s wages).
Okay, ready?
Now I’m going to make you feel really angry.The Government knows that payday lending and consumer leases (hello Radio Rentals) are on the nose.
And that’s why, four-and-a-half years ago, they decided to do something about it.
So they launched … drum roll … a REVIEW.
Bam! Pow!
And surprise, surprise, that review came back and recommended that these mongrels have a muzzle put on their lending practices, otherwise known as the Small Amount Credit Contract reforms (SACC for short).
Done and dusted, right?
Oh, no, no, senor!
In fact, the Government has sat on the recommended reforms for nearly four years, and as late as last week they said they still need more time to consider.
What the hell is going on?
I’ll tell you what the hell is going on.
The businessmen who own these payday lending outfits are seriously rich, and seriously powerful.
In fact, they’re so rich, and so powerful, that they employ an army of lobbyists to influence our politicians.
And these lobbyists are good.
They’ve tied this thing up in knots for years and NOTHING has happened. Which is exactly what they’re paid to do.
Meanwhile the payday lenders can continue making hundreds of millions of dollars off the backs of battlers.
And here’s where it gets downright disgusting:
With the corona-crisis, the Government is (rightly) handing out billions of dollars in an effort to stimulate the economy and look after society’s most vulnerable.
However, some of this stimulus will actually end up stimulating the pockets of the multi-millionaire payday lenders.
That sucks, right?
Now of course there have been some heroes — not-for-profit consumer advocates — fighting the good fight against these predators, and their lobbyists.
Truthfully, though, it’s like they’ve been in the ring with Mike Tyson … for almost five years.
I met up with one of these battle-scarred boxers — Gerard Brody, CEO of the Consumer Action Law Centre.
“After all this time we’ve almost given up”, says Gerard.
“We can’t even get so much as a meeting with the responsible Minister. The Assistant Treasurer, Michael Sukkar, is in charge of implementing these reforms, but it feels like he just doesn’t care.”
So the lobbyists have won, right?
Wrong.
Ding, ding — it’s time for you and me to get in the ring.
We may not be able to do anything about this damn coronavirus, but we can sure as hell wash our hands of this Payday Lending Pandemic. Even better, I’ve found us a vaccine, and his name is the Michael Sukkar MP.
I just reckon the honorable member needs a little reminder of just who he’s working for.
We the people.
So, given I’ve been ‘social distancing’, I’ve had a bit of time on my hands. Maybe too much time. Enough time to track down his personal email address:
Michael.Sukkar.MP@aph.gov.au
Now here’s where you come in.
I need you to send Michael Sukkar an email right now.
In the subject line you could write: “Look after the little people, not the lobbyists”.
And in the body of the email you could write: “Do your job and put a muzzle on these mongrels right now!”
Now look, I don’t want to be a hater. I honestly believe that every politician — on both sides of the aisle — wants to look after Aussies who are under a huge amount of financial stress right now. And I know that if enough people email Michael Sukkar this weekend then he’ll take notice of us.
I’ll be back next week to answer all your questions about the corona-crisis. And I genuinely hope that, when I do, I’ll be able to tell you that millions of hard-up Aussies have dodged the Payday Lending Pandemic (even if we have to blow up the Government’s email server to do it).
It’s time to wash our hands of this pandemic — and if there’s anyone up to the job, it’s Michael Sukkar.
Tread Your Own Path!
P.S. If you’re reading this you’re probably in social isolation, so you too have some time on your hands. Instead of reading scary headlines, let’s make some ourselves.
Please, spend 30 seconds — right now — and send an email to Michael.Sukkar.MP@aph.gov.au.
As a society we will be judged by how we look after our most vulnerable.
Let’s fight for them."
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Please read through this, & if you feel strongly enough about it, send off an email. It may not directly affect you, but it could be a small kindness to try and protect others who are caught up in the fallout from this pandemic…
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An email from Stop The Debt Trap requesting supporters sign their latest petition.
View this email in your browser
XXXX,
The Government had four years to act, and they did nothing. Now we’ve reached a point where thousands of people risk falling into a dangerous debt trap due to their inaction.
With millions of people out of work due to the Covid-19 health crisis, we’re already hearing reports of people receiving unsolicited marketing messages from payday lenders. In one of the text messages we’ve seen, the lender suggests that people use their car as security to get approved for a loan.
Predatory lenders know that many in our community are being affected by the Covid-19 emergency and they’ll be seeking to take advantage of the fall-out. There’s only one course of action to protect people during this crisis: Prime Minister Morrison and Treasurer Frydenberg need to shut down predatory lending.
Over the past month, we’ve witnessed extraordinary measures taken by the Government to ensure the safety of our community. Entire industries have been shut down overnight. Newstart support payments, which the Government had previously refused to increase, were doubled. It’s clear that in these unprecedented times, we need unprecedented action to keep our communities safe.
For years, the Government was warned that predatory lending was a ticking time bomb. Yet despite review after review, they took no action – now we’re at crisis point. The Government needs to shut down these predatory companies to shield our community from financial disaster.
Right now, millions of people are in a very precarious position and predatory lenders are in a prime position to profit from them. We cannot let them get away with it.
Alycia, for the Stop the Debt Trap Alliance
  
Copyright © 2020 Consumer Action Law Centre, All rights reserved.
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Melbourne, Victoria 3000
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And the link to the petition.
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Calls to ban payday lenders during the coronavirus pandemic.
Better still, why not ban them permanently?
And another article regarding these bottom-feeding grubs.
An article regarding an expose of the disgusting payday lenders to be broadcast on A Current Affair tonight.
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Saw the show and as regards the problems of this type of lending it is a powerful reminder of why most of us would like to see this industry more tightly regulated.
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An update on the expose.
Another article regarding payday lenders.
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It remains challenging to explain the lack of interest from the regulators and our appointed leadership.
Perhaps they see the practice of short term loans as being beneficial to business? Just as obscene as the extreme interest rates on credit card debt.
There is an assumption many of those who revert to short term loans, payday lenders do not have financial alternatives, making a poor situation much worse.
For those who can afford the penalty interest or have sufficient financial security to always pay on time in full, do these short term loan/lending businesses provide any real benefit compared to using a CC?
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A cynic may rightly view that lack of attention as their support for yet another layer being able to skim ‘profits’ off the top and distribute it to the right pockets. Ask them about it and they reply they are pro- laissez faire free enterprise capitalism, very efficient since no red tape involved.
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