This Lender Said Its Loans Would Help Tennesseans. It Has Sued More Than 110,000 of Them.
www.propublica.org
The Flex Loan, a type of payday loan pioneered by Advance Financial, has burdened low-income borrowers while generating huge profits for lenders. Tennessee lawmakers declined to rein in the lending business, even as other states did.

Reporting Highlights

  • Wave of Lawsuits: Since introducing the Flex Loan in 2015, Tennessee-based lender Advance Financial has filed over 110,000 lawsuits against its borrowers.
  • High Interest and Fees: Flex Loans offer borrowers up to $4,000 at 279.5% interest, trapping thousands of people in debt that can land them in court.
  • Sidestepped Federal Regulators: Advance Financial lobbied lawmakers to create the new Flex Loan to avoid federal consumer protection regulations.
    • deltapi@lemmy.world
      35·
      22 days ago

      That is so far beyond predatory…the only reason to let this exist is to create wage slavery.

      • Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works
        1·
        20 days ago

        Do you mean that first month? It’s an annual rate, so you would pay $932 a month, plus compounding every month after.

      • astanix@lemmy.worldEnglish
        10·
        22 days ago

        Desperation. Stupidity. Ignorance. If people weren’t doing stupid shit with their finances, companies like this and BNPL companies wouldn’t exist. They are all feeding off of desperation.

      • w3dd1e@lemm.ee
        3·
        21 days ago

        I just told a story about doing this in another comment

        It wasn’t on a whim. I had a plan and it worked. I don’t think most people are doing what I did and they are just taking these loans out without a plan or understanding on how bad they can be.

        https://lemm.ee/comment/20387513