Payday loans firms target children’s viewing slots

PAYDAY loan companies spent more than £500,000 advertising on children’s TV over the past two years, it has been revealed.

PAYDAY loan companies spent more than £500,000 advertising on children’s TV over the past two years, it has been revealed.

Commercials for short-term loans, with interest rates of up to 4,214 per cent, have been appearing on channels such as Boomerang, Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, and between children’s television programmes on Channel 5.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

According an investigation by consumer magazine Which? Money loans firm QuickQuid, which charges between £20 and £29.50 a month for every £100 borrowed, spent the most on adverts on the three children’s TV channels – £292,108 between the beginning of November 2010 and the end of October 2012. Pounds2Day spent £80,361 over the same period.

QuickQuid, WageDayAdvance, and Wonga were the highest spenders on adverts shown on Channel 5 during the breakfast slots, at which time kids’ television programmes are broadcast.

Parents site Mumsnet took a stand against the payday loans companies last year, saying it would no longer accept advertisments from companies which offer short-term loans to people facing financial difficulties and which can charge interest of as much as 4000 per cent.

Wonga said it had a policy not to advertise on children’s TV, but admitted there was a risk that adverts may inadvertently appear on mainstream channels during a children’s show.

Related topics: