BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?

Subject: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 20 Oct 11 - 06:55 AM

Can anyone explain to me why responsible people with jobs and settled incomes are being refused mortgages and, Yahoo today is advertising credit cards at 0% for people with no credit rating. Plus this Bright House advert has started appearing on telly. A high street shop offering household items at astronomic rates of interest. No credit history necessary.

World turned upside down.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 20 Oct 11 - 08:23 AM

It doesn't matter to this government. The only people getting really screwed are the poor.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Leadfingers
Date: 20 Oct 11 - 08:56 AM

Despite Cameron's " We are all in this together "

We are all equal , but some are more equal than others is still as true as when George Orwell wrote it

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 02:37 AM

An advertisement (especially on/by Yahoos) doesn't make a loan.

Advertisers, especially those looking for victims for a scam target the most needy and desperate, since they're considered more likely to part with their money on the basis of false hopes.

There also are lots of ads here for help with debts, usually saying you must owe "more than $10,000," and claiming to wipe it all out. The usual pitch is that "you make your payments to the scammers and they wipe out all your debt."

The $10,000 minimum debt assures that your payments are high enough for a quick profit. The scammers keep all the money you send them; and your creditors come and get everything else after they stop receiving any payments.

John

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 02:55 AM

Re the credit cards at 0%, the usual hook here on that kind of ad is that you get a "prepaid card." The "credit limit" is usually low, on the order of a few hundred dollars. You send the issuer the amount you want, plus a "processing fee" that runs 10% to 30% additional. (In other words, you prepay all the possible interest up front, and they've alread got your money so they don't care what you do with the card.)

If you want a $500 card, you pay them $550 to ??? in advance after which you can "charge" up to the limit ($500).

Many such cards here include additional restrictions, such as disallowing "split charges," or of formally allowing sellers to refuse "splits." If you want to spend $20 but your "credit card" only has $18 remaining you're not allowed to charge $18 and pay $2 cash, at most sellers who will even consider accepting the card (and many places won't). That leaves most cards abandoned with a remaining balance, which is an additional "bonus" for the scammers.

Many of these cards won't let you "increase the balance" on an existing card, so you have to buy a new card and just trash what's left on the old one. And many of them add a variable "per transaction" fee that makes it almost impossible for you to keep track of what the balance on one of these cards might be, should be be gullible enough to think you might be able to "come out even."

John

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Musket
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 05:24 AM

Sadly, this makes sense to a generation (and I don't necessarily mean by age) who accept debt as a factor of living. If you do accept it, then deals that put off the inevitable even longer make a weird kind of sense.

It is a sad bad situation but fits in with banking strategy. The object of banking is to make money for your shareholders, same as the obligations of a company making toilet paper. The only reason toilet paper is decent quality fit for purpose isn't to make happy customers, just to make customers come back for more, to the benefit of the shareholders.

In most industries, this makes a serendipitous relationship and life is good. When your product is money though... it takes a degree of responsibility that does not exist in banking circles, and isn't understood in political circles.

Back to my coffee.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 11:41 AM

""It doesn't matter to this government. The only people getting really screwed are the poor.""

Does that knee never stop jerking Richard?

Pay Day loans and usurious interest rates have been around since long before May 2010.

Since, in fact, Prudent Gordon did away with the last restraints on financial dealings.

Now the government has a dilemma; whether to allow this to continue, or to force the Nation's poorest into the arms of loan sharks.

If you default on payment, which would you advocate?....seizure of goods by a bailiff, or a couple of broken legs, courtesy of your friendly local shark?

I think most governments would be very happy to go live in your simple world where every problem and every evil can be instantly solved by decree.

Don T.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 06:32 PM

I've nothing against anyone having a loan. I just don't understand why the banks are giving these high risk clients preference over people with a salary coming in.   Surely if we could get the stagnant property market moving - it would be to the advantage of the country.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: DrugCrazed
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 06:59 PM

I read an article about the whole thing a few years ago (just before the credit crunch hit actually...), which said that they were betting on the defaulting of your loan - I can't remember the exact details and I'm on my phone so no idea what references and stuff it had.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 08:24 PM

Banks make much more money from defaulters, and much more money from credit card "revolvers" than they ever can from sensible borrowers who pay back quickly.

Customers who pay credit card purchases off monthly pay no interest. Those who pay the minimum never finish and better still, if they draw cash, pay astronomical interest on interest on interest...........ad infinitum.

Why would they want to lend to someone worth at best 6 - 7 percent on their investment?

They need to be forced to deal in a fairer manner in the retail banking sector. They will never self regulate. New Labour played right into their hands on the early 2000s, by releasing them from deposit and loan to value restrictions. Now they need to be reminded that customers should come before shareholders.

Don T.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 21 Oct 11 - 09:32 PM

what's a credit card revolver?

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Musket
Date: 22 Oct 11 - 04:46 AM

Roladex make them. They sit on your desk so you can flick through your credit cards, seeing which ones still work.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Arnie
Date: 22 Oct 11 - 06:24 AM

I rang the Nationwide Building Society yesterday over a loan that has come to an end. Staci, on the other end of the line was very pleasant but extremely persistent in trying to get me to sign up to other Nationwide products. She went through the whole gamut from home insurance, boiler insurance, water pipes through to further loans and credit cards. I told her that she could have full marks for trying her best but unfortunately had picked to wrong target. I like to look at financial matters in the Sunday papers and Nationwide don't even figure as a place to either put your money or borrow from. I couldn't blame young Staci for trying, and told her that I was sorry she wouldn't get a bonus from selling me a product, but she assured me that Nationwide didn't reward it's telesales staff with bonuses - hmmmm.....

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 23 Oct 11 - 05:41 AM

Have you seen the bloke they think is a poor credit risk - a rugby player with a bad hair day.

Subject: RE: BS: What are the UK banks up to NOW?
From: JHW
Date: 23 Oct 11 - 08:08 AM

For years in Darlo we had one Ramsdens Pawnbroker. Now in Skinnergate we've just got another pawnbroker, a cash-converters (similar) and a pay day loans shop
Why in Skinnergate I wonder?