RE:RE:Since I've been called troll pinko lesbian & commieRenterab wrote: Every person has a choice about walking into our doors. I did not grab any of our clients and drag them by their hair into our office and force them service.
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The majority of our clients that have successfully left the payday loans service do come back as regular clients. This is not the fault of payday lenders, this is the fault of our society not teaching people in schools at a young age about how to budget or to have some self-worth.
They don't have a choice though. It's a 'last resort' service. What, exactly, is the choice? What did each of those customers 'choose' payday loans over? If the choice is feeding one's children or taking a payday loan, it's really no choice at all. If the choice is paying rent, getting to work, paying for medicine, or getting a payday loan... again, it's not really a choice. I have heard that line - "I didn't drag them in hear!" - too many times to count and it doesn't hold water.
I understand that someone will most likely trot out anecdotes about irresponsible spending, addictions, gambling, etc. in an attempt to show what 'choices' the clientele make. And I understand all that. But the vast majority of payday loan clients are not addicted to anything - they've simply made some financial mistakes or fallen on hard times and CSFS has been all too happy to capitalize.
You note that "the majority of [your] clients that have successfully left the payday loans service [and] come back as regular clients." That doesn't sound very successful to me. I agree, financial literacy is a large problem. So too is the lack of quality living-wage jobs. Unfortunately, CSFS contributes to both sides, providing sub standard wages while offering last-resort loans with APRs near or above 600%.