Loan Genie reports on rising numbers of UK borrowers taking on expensive loans

Dec. 18, 2007 - PRLog -- Expensive personal loans are fast becoming the last resort for ever-greater numbers of UK borrowers, who are getting turned away by high-street lenders.

According to the UK's leading consumer credit company, Provident Financial their high interest loan business is booming as "mainstream lenders tighten their lending criteria and retreat from the non-standard consumer credit market".

Banks have been criticised over the last few year for fueling consumer borrowing and debt with easy credit – which has led to their constriction of lending criteria.

Provident chief executive Peter Crook said:

"The banks are now top-slicing. They are taking better-quality risk and declining those with marginal credit histories. When times are good, banks might take these types of people, but not at the moment.”  

The banks' retreat is a result of bad debt levels on credit cards and personal loans hitting an all-time peak earlier this year. Borrowers may now find they are faced with paying more for their loans.

Notes to editors

Loan Genie allows users to compare loans online, and is part of Genie Group.

Genie Group Ltd is a leading independent provider of internet comparison shopping services in the UK, and was set up in 2004 by Philip Wilkinson (co-founder of Kelkoo UK). Genie Group's unique selling point is 'the Genie', which makes personal recommendations to internet shoppers based on ground-breaking, intelligent technology. This gives Genie Group the ability to provide an enjoyable and satisfying internet shopping experience, and deliver an unmatched quality of sales leads to our affiliate merchants. Genie Group launched its flagship broadband comparison service Broadband Genie in January 2005.

More information can be found at http://www.loangenie.co.uk . Please direct all media enquiries to Ciaron Dunne. Interviews with Philip Wilkinson can be arranged on request.

Website: www.broadbandgenie.co.uk