High cost credit sector works "reasonably well", says OFT
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The Office of Fair Trading has published the final report of its review of the £7.5 billion high-cost credit sector, which comprises of pawnbroking, payday loan, home credit and rent-to-buy credit markets.
The report found that, in a number of respects, these markets work reasonably well in that they serve borrowers not catered for by mainstream suppliers, complaint levels are low, and there is evidence that for some products, lenders do not levy charges on customers who miss payments or make payments late.
The report also makes some recommendations for improvements to the functioning of aspects of these markets that work less well.
However, to the extent that problems arise from more deep-seated issues, such as weaknesses in the financial capability of consumers, the OFT recognises that the sorts of recommendations it is making can make only a limited difference.
More radical approaches which are beyond the OFT’s remit would be required if the government or others wanted to tackle the wider social, economic and financial context in which high-cost credit markets exist.
The OFT has also considered the case for price controls for pawnbroking, payday loans, home credit and rent-to-buy credit and concluded that they will not address the problems identified in the high-cost credit sector, which stem from both limited supply options and consumers’ lack of ability to drive competition.
The OFT is concerned that such controls may further reduce supply and considers there to be practical problems with their implementation and effectiveness. These problems include the potential for suppliers to recover income lost through price controls by introducing or increasing charges for late payment and default.
Ray Watson, director of the Credit Group, says: “Our report has found that people who use high-cost credit have limited options and find it difficult to exercise what choice they have to obtain the best deal.
“This means that competition between suppliers is less effective than it might be.
“The recommendations we’re making today would deliver worthwhile improvements to these markets but more radical approaches, outside the remit of the OFT, need to be examined by the government if the fundamental and longstanding issues of lack of consumer power and limited supply are to be tackled.”
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