Cash America 2012 Annual Report Download - page 44

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•Participating in self-policing the industry and reporting violations of CFSA’s Best Practices to the CFSA, including
agreeing to maintain and post a toll-free consumer hotline number; and
•Requiring that lenders providing payday advances through the Internet must be licensed in each state where their
payday advance customers reside and must comply with the disclosure, rollover, rate, and other requirements
imposed by each such state, unless such state does not require the lender to be licensed or to comply with such
provisions.
The OLA is a professional organization representing the growing industry of companies offering online consumer
loans in the United States. All member companies have agreed to OLA Best Practices and a Code of Conduct developed
by OLA to ensure that consumer loan customers are fully informed, fairly treated and are using all lending products and
practices responsibly. The OLA also has been tasked with clearing up misconceptions and myths surrounding the online
lending industry and educating the public, legislators and regulators about the demand for and importance of consumer
loan products on the Internet. The OLA Best Practices are summarized as follows:
•Disclose all loan terms in a transparent and easy to understand way to help consumers make educated decisions;
•Provide consumers a chance to change their mind by maintaining a reasonable cancellation policy;
•Comply with all applicable laws and regulations and be in good standing with applicable governing officials and
regulatory bodies;
•Protect consumers’ personal data with comprehensive website security and a privacy policy;
•Help consumers help themselves by providing referrals to credit counseling, education and assistance where
appropriate;
•Follow all Truth-in-Lending practices;
•Use advertising and marketing practices that promote the responsible use of short-term credit services;
•Prohibit any false, misleading or deceptive acts or practices;
•Provide comprehensive website security and fraud prevention practices that include timely and accurate reports on
loan activity, consumer notification of account use, and validation of routing numbers;
•Treat consumers with respect and use fair, professional and non-abusive collection practices; and
•Prohibit the use of unlawful threats, intimidation, or harassment to collect accounts.
The CFA is a national association of lenders in the United Kingdom that encourages responsible industry
practices and promotes consumer loan legislation and regulation to provide consumer loan customers with substantive
consumer protections while preserving their access to short-term credit options. The CFA requires its members to follow
the CFA Lending Code for Small Cash Advances and the industry Good Practice Customer Charter. These guidelines
help to ensure responsible lending practices in the consumer loan industry and to ensure that customers have complete
information about their loan and are treated fairly and in compliance with the laws applicable to their loan. Among other
things, the guidelines developed by the CFA include:
•Acting fairly, reasonably and responsibly in all dealings with consumers;
•Not putting pressure on consumers to enter into any loan agreement or to extend (or roll over) the term of their
existing loan agreement;
•Telling consumers that a payday or short-term loan should be used for short-term financial needs and is not
appropriate for long-term borrowing or if they are in financial difficulty;
•Telling consumers how the loan works and the total cost of the loan (including providing an example of the price for
each £100 borrowed, together with the fees and charges);
•Checking whether the loan is suitable for the consumer by taking into account their specific circumstances;
•Carrying out a sound, proper and appropriate affordability assessment and reviewing the creditworthiness of the
consumer for each loan application and before a loan is extended (or rolled over) to check if the consumer can afford
the loan;
•Explaining how payments will be deducted from a consumer’s bank account and how a consumer can contact a
lender by phone, email or online;