Payday loans ‘like a drug’ that can take over your life
CASH-STRAPPED Matthew Skeen has been saddled with £12,000 of debt after getting hooked on loans after borrowing money from highinterest lenders.
Now, he is warning others to steer clear as he tries to get his life back on track.
Matthew, of Newcastle, said: “It was a click of a button, and then the money was in my account a few hours later. It was so easy.
“You get the answer you want immediately. You don’t think about the consequences. I just kept going back. It was like a drug.”
Matthew, 26, spoke out to the Chronicle’s sister paper the Mirror as it launches its Fair Credit
For All campaign with actor Michael Sheen.
Customers of high-interest lenders have told how they are still paying back loans years later as the fat cats who made a fortune exploiting them enjoy millionaire lifestyles.
Wonga founder Errol Damelin walked away from the payday firm with at least £17m in 2013, and moved into new ventures, including online estate agent Purple Bricks.
Wonga was Newcastle United’s PICTURE BY: ANDY COMMINS shirt sponsor between 2013 and 2017. Matthew says he faces years of hardship because of loans he took out a year after Damelin left the company.
He had 19 loans with Wonga and other providers, including Everyday Loans and Pounds to Pocket. One loan paid the first month’s rent on a flat, but the loans spiralled out of control.
He now owes a total of £12,000 to various lenders.
He said: “My pay wasn’t high enough to pay all of my weekly loan Matthew Skeen payments.
“I started cutting down on food. I was not paying my electricity bill and council tax.
“I was walking all the way to work because I couldn’t afford to get on the Metro.
“Once I had paid one off, I had to go back because I needed another loan. They had roped me in.”
At his lowest point he was doing internet searches for companies offering loans with no credit checks.
Everyday’s website boasts it lends to people with bad credit, and offers a “conditional decision” on a loan within minutes.
Matthew, who works in customer services for a train operator, said: “There should have been far more strenuous checks.
“There is no doubt that the ads on TV influenced me.
“I took out one loan for £400 and paid them back £700 for that.
“It was outrageous. But I didn’t take that into account at the time because I needed the money.
“It has caused me a lot of stress. I am engaged now, but can’t get a mortgage as I have a County Court Judgement against me for not paying a phone bill.”
Matthew is now being helped by debt charity Step Change, which is part of Sheen’s End High Cost Credit Alliance.
Matthew added: “They were really supportive and helped me a lot.”
Once I had paid one off, I had to go back because I needed another loan. They had roped me in