does the CAA really back Provident Personal Credit?

makes_no_sense_to_me

Just received a letter saying Provident could help with a loan of £100 to £500 even if we have had previous credit problems etc. It's a local "friendly" service where someone would come to the house to complete the application and then collect weekly payments. What has struck me as odd is that the representative APR is 365.1% yet this company carries the CCA logo at the top of the letter - does the CCA REALLY think that peple in debt could be helped by taking out a loan with this company at that rate of interest?? Anyone else received similar letters with the CCA logo on and been wary??

[Deleted User]

provi offer a service and charge for it,if people dont like it they should consider joining a credit union,sadly not enough do

makes_no_sense_to_me

yes I volunteered at a credit union for a while and found that there weren't many members - however my concern is about the rate of interest being backed by the CCA - Consumer Credit Association - aren't they the people you turn to when in debt for advice?? Why would they back such a high interest rate or is the company using their logo without their knowledge??

SnowTiger

makes_no_sense_to_me wrote: »

What has struck me as odd is that the representative APR is 365.1% yet this company carries the CCA logo at the top of the letter - does the CCA REALLY think that peple in debt could be helped by taking out a loan with this company at that rate of interest??

Like other such organisations, isn't the CCA little more than a trade association set up to look after the interests of its members?

noh

makes_no_sense_to_me wrote: »

............ backed by the CCA - Consumer Credit Association - aren't they the people you turn to when in debt for advice?? Why would they back such a high interest rate or is the company using their logo without their knowledge??

The CCA is a trade association for the "home credit" industry.
It is not a debt advice service.

http://www.ccauk.org/

maurice28

Provident are very expensive, and you wouldn't want to get a loan from them if you had access to any kind of mainstream alternative, but they are at least a reputable company. It is a FTSE-listed business rather than a man with a wad of cash based in a rented office somewhere.

The APR rate is so high because the loans are normally paid back over a period of months, rather than years, which produces an APR rate that is very high. However, this doesn't mean the loans aren't expensive. Looking on the website, a loan of £500 paid back over 6 months would cost you £747.50 (which is an APR of 545.2%)

It's a method of borrowing only to be used by those who have no alternative (credit unions aside which are obviously a better bet) but the company is at least regulated (even if it is through the voluntary CCA).