Loans With Outstanding Payday Loans - NS regulator begins hearings on rate structure for payday loan … - The Canadian Press
HALIFAX - A regulatory board in Nova Scotia began a week of hearings Monday to determine how much payday loan companies can charge borrowers, but the province’s consumer advocate says there isn’t enough data on which to base a decision. The Canadian Payday Loan Association, which represents about 40 per cent of industry’s operators, wants to charge up to $23 per $100 borrowing, plus operating costs and fees. Consumer groups have long accused provincial governments of doing little to prevent the poor from becoming trapped by crushing debt loads, saying some payday lenders charge rates and hidden user fees that amount to more than 1,000 per cent annually. Keyes said the association is the only national group that has worked with governments to introduce legislation to protect consumers, and the group plans to give the provincial board studies commissioned for similar hearings underway in Manitoba. The association represents 40 per cent of the roughly 1,300 payday loan outlets in the country, Money Mart being the largest member with about 400 outlets nationwide. Learn more
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