Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT)
Do you know what a loan shark is?
A loan shark is someone who lends money as a business without the correct permission from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). These criminals often give cash loans without any paperwork and charge extortionate interest rates.
They may offer what appears to be a quick-fix small loan, but in the long term any money borrowed will come at a very high price and may lead to violence, threats and intimidation.
The England Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT) is a national law enforcement unit set up in 2004 and are responsible for investigating and prosecuting loan sharks in the UK. They are more commonly known as Stop Loan Sharks. They provide a range of practical and emotional support to those in the community who have been affected by illegal money lending and use money confiscated from convicted loan sharks to work with lots of organisations like ourselves to raise awareness of the dangers of illegal money lending.
You can learn more about their work in this animated video:
Manchester Credit Union have been working with the IMLT for several years and we are proud to be an accredited Partner of Stop Loan Sharks. We regularly promote their work on our social media channels and get involved in their campaigns. We also have regular training from IMLT staff so we can spot if any of our members have been targeted by a loan shark.
Red flags to look out for when dealing with loan sharks:
- Cash loan or bank transfer with no paperwork, such as a credit agreement or record of payments.
- Refuse to give information about the loan, such as the interest rate or how much you owe.
- Forced to hand over your bank card and personal items as “security” on the loan.
- A debt which keeps growing even though you’re making payments.
- Lender turned nasty and threatened you when you couldn’t pay.
You are not in trouble if you have borrowed cash or have been paying back a loan from an illegal money lender, the loan shark is. They are the people committing a crime, not you.
If you have been targeted by a loan shark, or you are worried about someone you think that has, please contact the Stop Loan Sharks team and report what you know.
You can phone the Stop Loan Sharks team 24/7 on 0300 555 2222 or you can complete a secure online form or live chat on their website www.stoploansharks.co.uk.
Please remember that if you do need to borrow money, come and talk to us to see if we can help. We provide affordable rates with no hidden costs – we are a better and safer option than loan sharks.
