View our latest Impact Report

Please click on the following link to view the ‘final draft’ of the Rushmoor CAB accounts.

RUSHMOOR CAB ACCOUNTS

We are sorry to inform everyone that from October 2011 Rushmoor CAB will have reduced capacity for specialist advice on welfare benefits, housing and debt.

This is because we have been forced to end our legal aid funding contract, which has paid for that work.

We are very proud of the service this funding has provided, but we cannot continue because of the financial risks the contract poses to our organisation.

The position is explained in more detail in a letter from our Chief Officer – click here to view it.  If you are a client who will be affected by the loss of service, you may want to send a letter to your MP.  We have a template prepared here which you can use to help influence future funding for this type of work.

By Pete Castle
July 07, 2011

First published in the Aldershot News & Mail, July 07, 2011

http://www.gethampshire.co.uk/news/s/2095795_cab_debt_warning_over_payday_loans

PEOPLE on low incomes are being targeted by loan companies offering quick cash – but with interest rates up to 3,000%.

That’s the warning from advisors from Aldershot’s Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB), which is telling people to be on their guard against ‘payday loans’ after dealing with some shocking recent cases.

While payday loans can be a quick and easy way to borrow money, with cash credited to bank accounts within 60 seconds of an application, there can be a sting in the tail, CAB advisors said.

If a borrower does not pay back the money within a few days they can be forced to pay back a sum greater than they initially borrowed, due to the astronomical APR (annual percentage rate) int-erest agreed with the loans.

The Aldershot CAB office dealt with one case in May where a client on a low income borrowed £300 from a payday loan company – with an agreement to pay it back in four weeks.

But when the client found she could not afford to pay back the loan quickly, she was hit with a bill and ended up owing at least £1,598 as a result of a loan agreement with an APR of 2,689%.

Jennifer Evans, the CAB’s social policy co-ordinator, said some payday loan companies could be in danger of irresponsible lending.

Some made claims to potential customers that they were happy to agree loans with people who would normally be denied loans from a bank – leaving borrowers at more risk as they will be given money they would not be able to repay.

The Aldershot CAB will be calling on the government to better regulate such companies in the future, she said.

“Applications should be stricter so payday loan companies only lend to people taking into account their ability to pay back, not to people on very low wages or benefits,” Ms Evans said.

She added that regulators should also follow the lead of the CAB and encourage people with poor credit ratings to use credit unions instead of payday loan companies or loan sharks. These provide more affordable loans with realistic payback plans.

The CAB also warned job-seekers to be on their guard when applying for jobs, and to seek their advice if there were problems, after dealing with cases of staff not being paid by security companies.

Three separate employees of two security companies had sought the advice of the CAB employment specialists after claiming they were owed money in unpaid wages totalling £8,600.

The bureau was able to help one man, an African student, to take a company to an employment tribunal, which he won – but he is still yet to be paid any of the £2,362 he was awarded for the company making illegal payment deductions.