Payday lenders should face stronger action by regulators, say MPs

The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has condemned the Office of Fair Trading as “ineffective and timid” in its dealings with the payday loans industry and door-to-door lenders.

The committee has highlighted unscrupulous practices at what it calls the “shabby end” of the UK’s credit sector, and pointed to the fact that no fines had been handed out to any of the 72,000 companies and only a handful of licences revoked.

The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee has condemned the Office of Fair Trading as “ineffective and timid” in its dealings with the payday loans industry and door-to-door lenders.

The committee has highlighted unscrupulous practices at what it calls the “shabby end” of the UK’s credit sector, and pointed to the fact that no fines had been handed out to any of the 72,000 companies and only a handful of licences revoked.

The committee has called on the regulator to stop “tiptoeing around” the sector and to intervene more quickly.  It said it expected better regulation to start before 2014.

However the OFT responded that it had a good track record but had to work within the constraints of current legislation.

They said they were "disappointed” that the committee has not taken these constraints into consideration.

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