Doorstep loan companies offer a very useful service for people who live on a tight budget and need a little extra help now an again. However, it is important to take care over which companies you use for this type of lending. There are very few large and reputable doorstep loan companies because it is such a specialist area and on a national scale it requires a huge network of collection agents. This absence of large lenders has resulted in there being many small local operators who provide doorstep loans, and these unlicensed lenders, or loan sharks, are where the danger lies.

When people experience credit problems they are unable to get credit from the main high street lenders, and this is when people turn to unregulated lenders in desperation. These people lend money at sometimes truly extortionate rates of interest, with APR percentages well into the thousands, and even 150,000% not being unheard of. The other side of these interest rates with loan sharks is that failure to pay frequently results in bullying, intimidation and assault.

This is why it is vitally important to avoid the temptation to use unregulated loan sharks and instead use the services of reputable doorstep loan companies. The good news is that honest, legal and reputable companies do exist and the services they provide are transparent and straightforward. Rather than face intimidation and threats, you will deal with a friendly helpful agent who will get to know you and be able to offer advice on the size of loan that you can safely take on.

Even the most reputable doorstep loan companies will need to charge you a higher rate of interest than a standard high street lender, but this is a million miles from the rip-off prices of a loan shark, or even the huge APR on most payday loans. Any organisation that lends money to people with poor credit ratings is taking a greater chance than those who insist on a reasonable credit score. They have to have a slightly higher rate of interest to cover their increased chances of loss. The large reputable doorstep loan companies also have higher costs in that they have to pay large networks of collection agents.

One of the most popular aspects of using doorstep loan companies is the relationship with agents who come to your house every week. These people get to know you and understand your financial situation and are well placed to offer advice on how much you should borrow. You should try to avoid companies that incentivise the agents by paying them commission on the size of the loan they get you to take out. This is likely to have the result that they encourage you to take out more than you can really afford. A better system is if they get commission on what you actually repay, which is then an incentive to only lend you what you can afford to pay back easily.

A lot of people with bad credit turn to payday loan companies, but the fact that you have to repay these almost immediately means that some people end up borrowing again very quickly. When you have an unexpected expense, or you just want to pay for something like a holiday or Christmas presents, a doorstep loan is a far better option because you can pay if back in very small installments over a much longer period.

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