Province meets ACORN's demands for ban on rollover loans and licensing of lenders
Toronto and Ottawa- ACORN Canada has been leading the fight for the regulation of the predatory payday lending industry across Canada for nearly 4 years. We applaud the decision of the Government of Ontario for taking strong first steps for regulation and licensing of this rogue industry.
While the legislation fails to set a hard cap for interest rates, it does fulfill ACORN’s demands on other key points: A ban on rollover loans, and licensing of lenders by the province.
This is a good first step and ACORN is committed to securing a hard cap on interest rates that will bring this industry into the financial mainstream.
ACORN members like Roy Anderson who lives on a small pension, is a victim of the payday loan industry and says he wants “the government to intervene right away” because “these companies circumvent the law, charging extraordinary high interest rates and we want the government to regulate them at a reasonable amount.”
John Redins, another ACORN member agrees: “These companies don’t think they’re loan sharking and we need the provincial government to deal with this problem now.” John has used payday loans to help pay his rent and support his family, becoming yet another victim of this predatory industry.
For comment contact
Toronto: James Wardaw – 416.832.2982
Ottawa: Jill O’Rielly – 613.808.6523
