Secured Loan Packager Agrees With FSA Regulation
We reported last week about how the Association of Finance Brokers (AFB) is calling for regulation to be introduced for the secured loan, or second charge mortgage loan industry.
The AFB has called on the Financial Services Authority to regulate secured loans and ensure that loan companies are authorised to carry out their business in an appropriate manner, thereby offering a greater degree of protection and understanding for borrowers. The calls have been prompted by the fact that more houses are now being repossessed due to arrears building up on second charge secured loans, than are on defaults on the main mortgage or homeowner loan.
Now Loan Options, one of the UK’s largest secured loan packaging companies, which offers loans through intermediaries and brokers from the whole of the market place, has agreed with the comments made by the AFB, claiming that regulation is an essential step forward for the secured loan industry as a whole, with FSA regulation bringing a level of uniformity and clarity to secured loans, whether that is on a first charge, or second charge basis.
With all loans which are secured on a person’s home being regulated in the same way, this will make secured loans much easier and clearer to understand for both brokers and borrowers alike.
Andy Moody of Loan Options said “Not only is it a logical move to bring the whole of the secured lending market under one roof from a compliance and oversight perspective, but the truth is that it is the only sensible step without the government having to come up with a tortuous “two tier” regime for the implementation of the upcoming EEC’s Consumer Credit Directive. We need a regime where the public and intermediary community can feel there is a real all embracing compliance umbrella in terms of care and continuity.”
