Washington Issues Consumer Alert on Unlicensed Payday Loan Lenders
State Dept. of Financial Institutions Cautions Consumers on Using Unregistered Payday Loan Websites
by Kevin Schneider on July 19, 2011
As part of the Washington Department of Financial Institution’s continuing agenda of regulating the payday loan industry, a consumer alert has been issued. The announcement cites two different websites, paydayloans-seattle.com and 1-hour-cash-advance.com, as unregistered websites which have been reported to engage in predatory lending habits and which operate illegally in the state of Washington.
“These entities may be in the practice of engaging in unlicensed lending activity and collecting consumers’ personal and financial information and sharing it with non-affiliated third parties,” stated the alert. “Consumers’ bank accounts may be debited with no guarantee that these lenders will transfer funds as agreed.”
As part of state law, all businesses operating within the borders of Washington must register and be licensed by the state. For anyone conducting cash advance business in Washington, you can visit the DFI website and click on the “Verify a Lender” feature.
Other recent alerts have warned consumers about the dangers of debt collectors or scam callers posing as legitimate businesses. One consumer “alleged that Easy Cash USA threatened and harassed him regarding a payday loan, though the consumer never agreed to such a loan transaction and never received funds,” says the alert.
According to Raymond Kim, one of CashAdvance.com’s financial experts, “Con artists often try to use scare tactics on nervous consumers in order to force them into a rushed decision. When someone is trying to keep you from thinking about your actions, they are probably not acting with your best interests at heart.”
Since 1997, CashAdvance.com has been the most established and trusted name in the cash advance industry, connecting over a million consumers with payday loans from its vast network of reliable lenders.
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Consumer Notice: A cash advance, also referred to as a payday loan or payday advance, is a small, short-term loan that is intended to cover a borrower's expenses until the following payday. Cash advances are intended for short-term financial relief and do not constitute long-term financial solutions. Consumers facing debt and credit difficulties should seek out debt and credit advisory help. Consumers are encouraged to consult our State Consumer Resource pages to learn more about the risks involved with cash advances, local laws and regulations that may be applicable to cash advances, possible loan alternatives and recent developments in their state.
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