The Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending is a broad-based organization of non-profit, religious and civic organizations that have joined together to seek fair and just lending practices by payday lenders in Ohio.
The Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending opposes unfair lending practices within the payday loan industry in Ohio!
Payday Employees Speak Out
Payday Employees Speak Out
On January 22, 2008, in front of the Ohio House Committee on Financial Institutions, Real Estate and Securities, Terrence Jent testified on behalf of a rate cap on payday loans. Terrence Jent spent four years working in the payday lending industry and spoke to industry practices that trap borrowers in a cycle of debt. To read Jent's testimony to the FIRES Committee, please click here: FIRES Testimony
Earlier, on September 12, at a Washington D.C. news conference, three former Check ‘n Go employees gave testimony about the company’s business practices. Check ‘n Go is headquartered in Mason, Ohio.Cameron Blakely, former store manger for Check ‘n Go outlines the deceptive design of the payday product. “We made the process very simple and easy at the front end to get people into the loan. But at the back end, we made it very difficult for customers to get out of the loan.” Mr. Blakely speaks about incentives paid to employees to encourage repeat borrowing.
Read Mr. Blakely’s entire statement by clicking here:
Mike Donavan, former district director of operations for Check ‘n Go who was in charge of running the grassroots campaign in D.C to kill the payday lending bill pending before Washington, D.C. city council. “We coerced customers into writing letters to council members when they came into our stores to take out or renew a loan. We made them write the letters before we would conduct the transaction. We gave them a script and had them put the letters in unsealed envelopes so we could screen them later and destroy those that were unfavorable.”
Read about other industry lobbying tactics by clicking here:
Bill Harrod, former store manager for Check ‘n Go details how he was instructed to target the black community for customers. “The company sent me to apartment complexes with exclusively black occupants to market our payday loans. I was trained to approach apartment managers and offer them referral fees of $20 for each tenants who came into our store.” Mr. Harrod describes his donation to a local church in exchange for testimony against the payday interest rate cap bill being considered before D.C. city council.
Read Mr. Harrod’s statement by clicking here:
Need or Greed?
The answer is as easy as taking out a payday loan.You’ll be hearing a lot about payday lending in Ohio in the coming months; things like the payday lending business model is designed to aggressively trap customers in a cycle of debt. This is true. Right now, more than 300,000 Ohio families are trapped in the payday lending debt cycle, paying more than $315 million in fees to an industry that is exempt from nearly every consumer protection law in Ohio. This short term, high interest (391% APR) loan product is simply no good for Ohio.
You’ll be hearing a lot about how the payday lending industry intends to “fix” the debt trap problem in Ohio. This is not true. They offer payment plans as one solution, but payment plans do not solve the debt trap. According to the Center for Responsible Lending, less than one percent of borrowers nationwide take advantage of payday payment plans, because they become more expensive than simply “flipping” into another loan. The Consumer Federation of America adds, “Lenders have big incentives to discourage use of plans. In some cases a borrower has to pay to enter the plan, meet obscure deadlines and technical triggers, and be shut out of other borrowing during the plan or a cooling off period after the plan. Lenders can easily persuade a borrower to renew a loan instead of entering a repayment plan.” (See our Reports section for more details.)
Be aware of industry bills that masquerade as reform that, if enacted, would allow the exploitive and predatory practices of the payday lending industry in Ohio to go on as usual. With an industry model that survives, and in fact thrives, on trapping customers into a repetitive borrowing behavior, capping the interest rate is the only way to break the trap.
The OCRL represents some 230 organizations around the state who have been working for more than two years to affect substantive change in Ohio law. Our coalition enthusiastically supports the bipartisan efforts of Representative Bill Batchelder (R-69) and Senator Ray Miller (D-15). These public officials have clearly demonstrated that they have the best interests of consumers in mind. Rep. Batchelder introduced House Bill 333 in September, a bill that imposes a 36% rate cap on payday loans; reduces the debt trap for repeat borrowers; and creates fair and viable alternatives for borrowers.
You’ll be hearing a lot about payday lending industry from representatives on both sides of the issue. We urge you to call us with your questions about and/or experiences with payday lending. And we urge you to learn as much as you can about the payday lending industry; how it impacts not just individuals, but neighborhoods, communities and cities across our state. Please join us in our efforts to break the lending trap in Ohio. It’s the only way to put the need or greed question to rest.
