The loan shark next desk

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When you think of an illegal money lender, perhaps you think of a shady figure in a dark alley, or a faceless contact on a phone screen. You may not picture your next door neighbour, your work colleague, or even your friend. More than one million people in England are currently in debt to an illegal money lender, and two thirds of this group thought they were borrowing from a friend. Loan sharks prey on the financially vulnerable, those with unavoidable expenses, and no other financial choices - in this episode, we learn who they are, and how they’re being stopped. 

Cath and Anna work on the front line of the England Illegal Money Lending Team, working to investigate and prosecute loan sharks in the UK. Their team comprises specialist investigators and Liaise Officers who have experience in all areas of the legal and finance worlds.

Show notes

A huge thank you to my guests Cath and Anna who came on the show to share the work of the England Illegal Moneylending Team (aka Stop Loan Sharks).

We created this episode to put the spotlight on the work the team do, and to shine a light on a couple of worrying facts:

• Around half of all people who use a loan shark are in work
• 1 in 5 people meet their loan shark in the workplace

If you suspect someone is operating as a loan shark, report it by calling this 24/7 helpline: 0300 555 2222.

Here are some links to the research, reports and organisations we covered on the show:

• The Centre for Social Justice report “Swimming with Sharks” is a comprehensive overview of what we know about loan sharks in the UK.
• Fancy getting into some legislation? We talked about the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Feel free to leaf through the details.
• We spoke about the regulation of payday lending (High Cost Short Term Credit) and the dramatic change to the volume and availability of payday loans. Have a look at this freedom of information request to see the figures for yourself. 
• You can also check out the FCA’s 2022 financial lives survey for more information about the breadth of different financial products and how many people tend to use each one.

Finally, the team at Stop Loan Sharks will provide free workplace training to help your staff identify the signs of illegal moneylending in the workplace. Please reach out if you’re interested.

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