Although some people may suffer by using these companies in desperate situations, they serve a purpose and their APR isn't really representative of the amount you pay.
I also hate the attitude of 'bankers caused the credit crunch because they lent me money I couldn't'. Blame culture
Inclined to agree with Addickted and Rizzo in the sense that stupid people make stupid decisions, however things are not always black and white.
Circumstances can change very quickly in the modern world, with job losses coinciding with inflation and a sharp rise in key domestic bills. Sometimes desperate people make desperate decisions. You have a family to provide for and struggling to do so, you don't always take the most sensible approach i can imagine.
Public transport is ridiculously expensive, rarely on time and not practical in all places.
I live 55 miles from work - public transport would take me around 4 hours each way
Four hours to travel 55 miles by public transport? Does it involve a ferry crossing?
What would you do if your circumstances changed and you couldn't afford to run a car then? Change job? Get a cheaper car? Get a moped?
Plenty of people on this board live similar distances from work and they seem to manage with public transport. Trains, buses, underground, more buses.
If you can't afford to buy and run a car, then you can't afford to buy and run a car. There's no shame in it. What you should not do is to borrow money to buy a depreciating asset when you still have to pay for the essentials in life.
na ur right fella...u got an answer for everything
I just know the answer isn't to borrow more and more when you can't afford it. If only some of our glorious leaders practiced the same laws of Economics, then we wouldn't be so in the shit.
Cheap credit is far too easy and a lot of people have no idea how to manage it. Just ask that idiot Brown.
Cheap credit (and 0%) is good, its available to most of us but as per normal the poor have to pay the most. Hence they get saddled with debt that traps them
I really hope you don't have to have that decision to make mate.
I'm lucky enough to have people around me that could help out should I ever get into trouble financially but not everyone has that luxury. I think to say its your own fault is a bit narrow minded and you've no idea has desperate people get.
and what if her work requires equipment? or she's a rep?
see, people think they know every situation and they dont
Budget responsibly. Buy a cheaper car.
Every rep I know has a company car.
how do you cope with being so perfect?
Please do try and find a flaw in my synopsis. Life's a bitch and then you die.
Cheap and easy credit over the past 10 to 15 years has and will cause no end of anxiety, stress, worry, concern, failed relationships, suicide, depression and more. I see it every day.
Domestic financial management should be compulsory as part of the National Curriculum.
I really hope you don't have to have that decision to make mate.
I'm lucky enough to have people around me that could help out should I ever get into trouble financially but not everyone has that luxury. I think to say its your own fault is a bit narrow minded and you've no idea has desperate people get.
Completely agree with this, its all very well playing the "Well, its their own fault card," when you don't have the first clue about the circumstances people find themselves in.
One of my best mates has just had his Dad diagnosed with cancer - for the second time - the bloke in question will now have to give up work while he has treatment which could go on for months.
He only works as a casual labourer so gets no sick pay or entitlements (he is early 60's), his wife also has a low paid job and now they will have to make ends meet on her minimum wage.
Their house is already on the market - but not selling in the current conditions despite being reasonably priced - so they are getting desperate and may well end up taking money from the seedier end of the loan market.
A little more compassion and a little less condescension would be nice, not every person in debt gets there as a result of their own profligacy.
I really hope you don't have to have that decision to make mate.
I'm lucky enough to have people around me that could help out should I ever get into trouble financially but not everyone has that luxury. I think to say its your own fault is a bit narrow minded and you've no idea has desperate people get.
I have had to make it.
I know exactly how desperate some people can get. But borrowing more is not the answer.
10 min walk to bus stop 25 mins on bus to mainline station 50 mins on train to Liverpool street 20 mins walk to London bridge 45 mins to Dartford 20 min walk to office
2hr 50 with no waiting time in between
If I couldn't afford to move or run a car I'd lose my house
It's just not as cut and dried as "don't borrow it".
There is a whole class of credit out there that is all but invisable/unknown to the majority of the public and some of the (legal) practices are extremely depressing when you consider that people have got themselves into a such a state. I've had some dealings recently with a company that lends to low status clients in order to buy vehicles. It's a high rate of APR which you would expect but the security on the loan is an immobiliser that is remotely triggered if you don't maintain repayments (while you are stopped I'd add!). Others link repayment of the loan to the tv set, don't keep up the payments, off goes the tele.
In an ideal world it would be great if people didn't get into such a mess that these sort of deals are remotely attractive but some people just don't have any other alternative than the loanshark on the estate or the corner of the pub. Who, I can assure you, is a lot more unpleasant to deal with, a lot more expensive and will do nothing towards repairing your credit record for the future.
I'm far from a fan of these sorts of companies but when a loanshark's the alternative it's far better to be in a regulated agreement and having some degree of transparency and control over what you're paying back. The explanation re:the Annual Percentage Rate above is simplistic and clearly part of an agenda but because of the math's behind calculating it, very short term loans like this will always look hideously expensive and you are not comparing apples with apples really.
A someone said credit unions are the way to go but have never really taken off in this country.
Comments
I also hate the attitude of 'bankers caused the credit crunch because they lent me money I couldn't'. Blame culture
Circumstances can change very quickly in the modern world, with job losses coinciding with inflation and a sharp rise in key domestic bills. Sometimes desperate people make desperate decisions. You have a family to provide for and struggling to do so, you don't always take the most sensible approach i can imagine.
Every rep I know has a company car.
What would you do if your circumstances changed and you couldn't afford to run a car then? Change job? Get a cheaper car? Get a moped?
Plenty of people on this board live similar distances from work and they seem to manage with public transport. Trains, buses, underground, more buses.
If you can't afford to buy and run a car, then you can't afford to buy and run a car. There's no shame in it. What you should not do is to borrow money to buy a depreciating asset when you still have to pay for the essentials in life.
Cheap credit is far too easy and a lot of people have no idea how to manage it. Just ask that idiot Brown.
Cheap credit (and 0%) is good, its available to most of us but as per normal the poor have to pay the most. Hence they get saddled with debt that traps them
I'm lucky enough to have people around me that could help out should I ever get into trouble financially but not everyone has that luxury. I think to say its your own fault is a bit narrow minded and you've no idea has desperate people get.
Cheap and easy credit over the past 10 to 15 years has and will cause no end of anxiety, stress, worry, concern, failed relationships, suicide, depression and more. I see it every day.
Domestic financial management should be compulsory as part of the National Curriculum.
One of my best mates has just had his Dad diagnosed with cancer - for the second time - the bloke in question will now have to give up work while he has treatment which could go on for months.
He only works as a casual labourer so gets no sick pay or entitlements (he is early 60's), his wife also has a low paid job and now they will have to make ends meet on her minimum wage.
Their house is already on the market - but not selling in the current conditions despite being reasonably priced - so they are getting desperate and may well end up taking money from the seedier end of the loan market.
A little more compassion and a little less condescension would be nice, not every person in debt gets there as a result of their own profligacy.
I know exactly how desperate some people can get. But borrowing more is not the answer.
25 mins on bus to mainline station
50 mins on train to Liverpool street
20 mins walk to London bridge
45 mins to Dartford
20 min walk to office
2hr 50 with no waiting time in between
If I couldn't afford to move or run a car I'd lose my house
It's just not as cut and dried as "don't borrow it".
If, God forbid, you lost your driving license, that is exactly how you'd have to get to work.
In an ideal world it would be great if people didn't get into such a mess that these sort of deals are remotely attractive but some people just don't have any other alternative than the loanshark on the estate or the corner of the pub. Who, I can assure you, is a lot more unpleasant to deal with, a lot more expensive and will do nothing towards repairing your credit record for the future.
I'm far from a fan of these sorts of companies but when a loanshark's the alternative it's far better to be in a regulated agreement and having some degree of transparency and control over what you're paying back. The explanation re:the Annual Percentage Rate above is simplistic and clearly part of an agenda but because of the math's behind calculating it, very short term loans like this will always look hideously expensive and you are not comparing apples with apples really.
A someone said credit unions are the way to go but have never really taken off in this country.