Loan shark fight stepped up as groups meet to discuss plans

The England Illegal Money Lending Team and West Midlands Assistant Police and Crime Commissioner Tom McNeil met with a host of organisations from across the region to explore ways of joining forces to tackle the issue.

Representatives from credit unions, housing associations, local authorities and other groups were at the event to discuss ways in which loan shark activity can be identified and victims offered the help and support they need.

Tony Quigley, head of the England IMLT, said: “So many organisations encounter victims, but sometimes they aren’t ready to admit that are being targeted by these illegal lenders.

“We want everyone to be able to spot the signs of when someone has fallen victim to an illegal lender and know exactly what help and support is out there. We need to take practical steps to not only help the victims but share information to help rid our communities of these illegal lenders.

“Illegal lending has a massive impact, not only on a person’s mental and physical health and wellbeing, but also on the wider community.

“If we all work together on his, we can help get these illegal lenders off the streets of the West Midlands.”

Mr McNeil said loan sharks were using the cost-of-living crisis to target vulnerable people and line their own pockets and he wanted to ensure members of the public had all the tools and information necessary to protect themselves against these criminals.

He said the meeting was an important step towards a more joined-up approach to tackling the issue.

He said: “It has been a really useful conversation to have and it’s great to see that the partners agree that the scale of this issue does warrant greater attention from the police and other agencies.

“This event has helped us identify a number of practical steps that can be taken to spot people who are victims of loan sharks and help them get the support that they need.”

Sean Lynch, CEO of the Citysave credit union based in Birmingham, also spoke at the meeting.

He said he wanted to raise awareness of the services offered by credit unions and how they can be a safe alternative to those who might consider turning to a loan shark after being refused credit elsewhere.

He said: "People are still going to need to borrow so it’s vital that we steer them towards more ethical lenders.

“They need to know what alternative options are out there.”

The Centre for Social Justice estimates that around 1.08 million people are borrowing from loan sharks in the UK.

Since its launch in 2004, the IMLT has supported over 31,000 people and written off over £91 million worth of illegal debt, securing over 410 prosecutions for illegal money lending.

The IMLT offers free training to organisations in how to spot the victim of a loan shark and how to access the right support.

To find out more, go to stoploansharks.co.uk