Until 2006, Canada’s payday loan industry was essentially unregulated. Then it was discovered that their interest charges, fees and other lending practices violated Canada’s usury laws. In 2006, the Criminal Code of Canada was adjusted to allow each of Canada’s provinces to regulate their own payday loan industry. New legislation has been 
passed nearly every year since, and this has left Canada’s citizens better protected from unscrupulous payday lenders. So far, not all provinces have issued legislation on this matter, however payday loans in Ontario, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia are now all legalized.
U. K. Payday Lending Requirements:
There are few lending requirements in the U. K.’s exploding payday lending industry. There was, however, a reigning in of payday lending advertisements on social media, as this violated advertising regulations. Interestingly, their annual percentage rates, averaging out at 4, 214 percent, drew complaints from the financial industry because they were posted in a tiny fonts instead of being & quot; prominently & quot; placed on the ads. Children in the U. K. have even succeeded in getting online payday loans by misleading the system.
In the U. K., interest rates have no cap, and rollover loans are still allowed. A rollover loan is one that the borrower renews when he or she is unable to pay it off after the 14- day lending period has expired. A renewal fee is charged at approximately $15. 00 for every $100 borrowed. On a $500. 00 loan, this would amount to $75. 00 just to roll over a $500. 00 loan for two weeks.
U. S. Payday Lending Requirements:
In the United States, most payday regulation is left to each state to determine for its citizens. Some states have capped payday loan interest rates, while others haven & # 039; t. Much of the payday lending in the United States is done online, with the statewide interest limits often being circumvented via the Internet.
The U. S. has no regulations on rollover extensions, and many Americans end up trapped in an endless cycle of debt.
Canada:
Canada, by far, has the most comprehensive payday loan protections for the consumer. After initially passing some nationalized legislation, such as the eradication of rollover charges, as an umbrella protection for all of Canada, each province has passed their own payday loan legislation.
Saskatchewan has adopted a very thorough list of consumer protections that includes licensing, the consumer’s right to cancel a payday loan, the prohibition of taking collateral from borrowers and more. The rest of the provinces are putting forth caps on interest rates and fees in addition to regulations fitting for each province’s business and economic climate.
Leave a Reply