- Marla K. Williams is the Managing Counsel of the Cookeville Office of the Legal Aid Society and is also the Senior Counsel for Consumer Practice.
- David Tarpley is a lawyer in the Nashville office and has practiced extensively in the area of consumer law.
Between gifts, trees, decorations, food and other holiday-related expenses, the end of the year can turn into a whirlwind of spending. Now as we come out of the holiday season the bills are coming due and some Tennesséens are understandably concerned about how they are going to pay for it all.
To some, it may seem that the only option to make up for this shortfall is to take out an emergency cash loan. But the drawbacks of these loans often far outweigh the benefits, costing borrowers far more than expected and locking them into a never-ending cycle of debt.
This is because the costs associated with these loans are often so outrageous that it would be impossible for any normal person to repay them. Some might say it’s by design.
Here in Tennessee, the most common types of high cost consumer loans in Tennessee are:
- Securities lending, legalized in 1995, which allows customers to take out a small loan using their cars as collateral. After the loan is paid off, the borrower gets back the title to his car, but if he is unable to repay the principal and high interest, he risks losing his car.
- Payday loans, legalized in 1997, which offer clients a short-term cash advance in exchange for a post-dated check to the creditor for the full amount of principal and interest they owe, which can also be excessive. If the amount is not repaid, the creditor can sue the borrower, which can lead to liens on their property and even wage garnishment. Although the law sets limits on the number and dollar amounts of payday loans a person can have at one time, lenders often ignore these limits.
- Flexible loans, legalized in 2010, which provide customers with an open line of credit, typically up to $ 4,000. Approved borrowers can withdraw any amount up to their maximum limit at any time – and sometimes more. As with other forms of high cost loans, the annual percentage rate is several times higher than that of traditional lenders, leading many customers to borrow additional money to pay off the original loan.
In recent years, flexible loans have overtaken other types of high cost loans in popularity, in part due to a sustained advertising campaign. If you are used to watching the news early in the morning, you will see a lot of advertisements from creditors giving flexible loans. They’re usually presented the same way – how easy they are to get, how they save you from life issues.
What they don’t tell you in these ads is how expensive these loans are and how aggressive lenders can be in pursuing borrowers who fail to repay their loans.
What they don’t tell you about interest rates
Under Tennessee law, the state legislature sets rate limits on interest and other charges assessed in most consumer loans. The main exception to this is credit cards issued by banks.
For most consumer loans, interest is only one of the allowable charges and is usually not the most significant charge. For example, for flexible loans, the interest rate can be 24% per annum and the “usual charges” up to 255% per annum, for a total annual rate of 279%.
What ultimately matters is the cost of the loan when interest and other charges are all included. The cost of the loan will vary somewhat depending on the type of loan, the amount borrowed and the length of the loan, but all of these loans are very expensive for the borrower to repay.
If a borrower doesn’t repay their loan, lenders often go to great lengths to get their money back. We had a client who was unable to access his monthly Social Security benefits the morning they were deposited into his bank account because payday lenders had already shown up to cash the post-dated checks he had drafted.
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If borrowers owe an expensive lender money that they are unable to repay, their options are unfortunately quite limited. But they need to understand that by continuing to renew their existing loan, they only make the situation worse.
We cannot ethically advise people not to pay a legal debt. However, we can inform them of the consequences of this choice. Lenders often threaten legal action if a loan is not repaid – and often leave borrowers unaware of the criminal or civil penalties they could face. A common threat borrowers hear is “if you don’t pay, we’ll get a money order.”
It is important for borrowers to know that if a lender threatens a mandate, it is referring to a civil mandate – the start of a civil action in court. Failure to pay a civil debt may have legal consequences, but will not result in criminal prosecution. In addition, in the case of flexible loans, the borrower’s default should immediately put an end to the lender’s accumulation of usual fees, thereby reducing the amount that the borrower will eventually have to repay.
At Legal Aid Society, we are not financial advisers. We don’t advise people how to get out of debt. However, for those who face lawsuits from expensive lenders, we may be able to help and in some situations soften the edges of what they are going through.
For those facing legal action, we often defend these cases when we spot legal issues that could be used to have the case dismissed or reduce the client’s liability. We can help exempt property from garnishment to pay for a judgment or help set up a court-protected payment plan to pay the judgment while avoiding garnishment. In some of the worst case scenarios, we may be able to help with bankruptcy.
Please contact us at 800-238-1443 or visit www.las.org for more information on how we can help you.
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About the Legal Aid Society
Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands advocates for fairness and justice under the law. The non-profit law firm offers free civil legal representation and educational programs to help people in its region achieve justice, protect their well-being, and support opportunities to overcome poverty.
It serves 48 counties from offices in Clarksville, Columbia, Cookeville, Gallatin, Murfreesboro, Nashville, Oak Ridge and Tullahoma. The Legal Aid Society is funded in part by the United Way. Learn more at www.las.org, or by following the firm on Facebook.
Marla K. Williams is the Managing Counsel of the Cookeville Office of the Legal Aid Society and is also the Senior Counsel for Consumer Practice. David Tarpley is a lawyer in the Nashville office and has practiced extensively in the area of consumer law.
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