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Payday Loan Collection Scams

If you’re one of the millions of payday loan consumers out there, BEWARE!

Collection company agents are scamming payday loan users out of their hard earned cash.

The Kansas Attorney General, Steve Six, reports that Kansas residents are complaining about collectors calling with claims that the consumer took out an Internet based payday loan and never repaid it.

There are unsubstantiated claims by residents of other states as well.

Some of these payday loan collection agents are posing as law enforcement officers! It’s not uncommon for these collectors to threaten consumers with jail.

Payday loan consumers should be aware that their is no debtor’s prison in America.

These scam artists often identify themselves as ACS, National Affidavit Processing Department and United Financial Crime Division. The calls may be originating offshore.

It’s not unusual for the payday loan collection agents to have the ability to provide their victims with personal data including social security numbers and bank account information; even computer IP numbers.

Western Union appears to be the preferred method of payment requested of the consumers.

If contacted, consumers should demand a written notice specifying the amount of the debt, the name of the payday loan company, contact information of the payday loan company, and validation of the debt.

We advise the consumer to immediately determine if the payday loan company is licensed in the consumer’s state! If not, do not pay!

One last point; our readers should not conclude that these collection scams are singularly focused on the payday loan industry. These vultures ply their wares in virtually every financial product offered in the marketplace today.

Magic Numbers - Don’t be misled by payday-loan statistics.

This is an interesting article by Thomas Sowell at the National Review.

It’s a good read! Mr. Sowell begins … “Words are not the only things that enable political rhetoric to magically transform reality. Numbers can be used just as creatively — and many voters are even more gullible about statistics than they are about words, apparently because statistics seem more objective.

The latest congressional crusade is to clamp down on small finance companies that provide “payday loans” and check-cashing services in many low-income neighborhoods, where there are few banks.”

He goes on… “A common practice in making small loans of a few hundred dollars for a few weeks is to charge about $15 per hundred dollars lent. Politicians, the media, community activists, and miscellaneous other busybodies are able to transform these numbers into annual percentage charges of several hundred percent, thereby creating moral melodramas and demands that the government “do something” about such “abuses.”

Read the article in its entirety here: National REview.com

The OLA, Online Lenders Association-a payday loan organization comprised of Internet Payday Loan companies, placed advice about contributing to the Haiti Relief Program.

From their web site: ”

We have all seen and heard about the devastation in Haiti.  As an organization and an industry who knows the hardship of people in need, we wanted to bring you some information about donating to the relief effort.

Congressman Meek has directed us to the InterAction website which lists multiple charities to whom you may wish to contribute.  Click InterAction to access their webpage.

We have been advised that the best way to help is to donate financially to organizations responding to a disaster.  Cash donations allow relief professionals to procure exactly what is needed in a disaster situation and ensure that donations are culturally, dietary, and environmentally appropriate.

You can also click Red Cross to go directly to their donation page.

You can donate $10 to the Red Cross and have it charged to your cell phone bill by texting “HAITI” to “90999.” (There will be no processing fees).”

The Online Lenders Association organized in an effort to provide a sense of standards and guidelines for Internet based payday loan lenders.

As the Online Lenders Association OLA web site states, “All member companies have agreed to a List of Best Practices and Code of Conduct developed by OLA to ensure that consumers are fully informed and fairly treated and are using all lending products and practices responsibly.”