According to an article in the Irish Independent today, over 100,000 consumers who are already heavily in debt have turned to moneylenders.  Are you borrowing from moneylenders to pay your bills?  An inspection by the Central Bank revealed that people who are already in excessive debt are being given new loans they cannot repay.

Bernard Sheridan, Director of Consumer Protection said that ‘Using short-term, high cost loans for longer-term needs should be avoided and I would encourage consumers in such a situation to contact MABS for help and advice.’   If you are struggling to pay your bills, borrowing more money will only make your situation worse.  Certainly borrowing money at such exorbitant rates will mean that you will never get off the treadmill you are currently on.

Moneylenders are legally permitted to charge up to 180% interest on short term loans and they collect payments from the debtors’ home on a weekly basis.  They offer loans to impoverished people who cannot acquire loans from other financial institutions.  This is due to the fact that these consumers don’t fit the criteria as they are deemed not in a fit state, financially, to repay these loans.  In many cases, people are borrowing from moneylenders to pay off other debts or loans.

If you cannot afford a loan through the traditional financial institutions then it stands to reason that you cannot afford a loan from anyone else.  Start up a budget by listing all your household bills and your total income.  For more information on budgeting see BillsManager.com.  If your income exceeds your expenditure, you are in a better financial state then perhaps you thought.  If your household bills exceed your income, you can either look at cutting back where possible or you may need to talk to MABS to see how you might be able to restructure loans to enable you to get out of debt and be financially buoyant.