Payday Loans

Many consumers who need cash quickly turn to payday loans—short-term, high interest loans that are generally due on the consumer’s next payday after the loan is taken out. The annual percentage rate of these loans is usually very high—sometimes 390% or more. In recent years, the availability of payday loans via the internet has increased significantly. Unfortunately, some payday lending operations have employed deception and other illegal conduct to take advantage of financially distressed consumers seeking these loans.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforces a variety of laws to protect consumers in this area. The agency has filed many law enforcement actions against payday lenders for, among other things, engaging in deceptive or unfair advertising and billing practices in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act; failing to comply with the disclosure requirements of the Truth In Lending Act; violating the Credit Practices Rule’s prohibition against wage assignment clauses in contracts; conditioning credit on the preauthorization of electronic fund transfers in violation of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act; and employing unfair, deceptive, and abusive debt collection practices.

The FTC has also filed recent actions against scammers that contact consumers in an attempt to collect fake or phantom payday loan debts that consumers do not owe. Further, the FTC has filed actions against companies that locate themselves on Native American reservations in an attempt to evade state and federal consumer protection laws.

Car Title Loans

A car title loan is also a loan made for a short period of time—often for only 30 days. To get a car title loan, you must give the lender the title to your vehicle. The lender gives you cash and keeps the title to your vehicle. When it is time to repay the loan, you must pay the lender the amount you borrowed, plus a substantial fee—25% of the amount you borrowed, for example.

If you borrow $1,000 for 30 days, and the lender’s fee is 25%, you must repay the lender $1,250 30 days later. And if you are not able to repay the money when it is due, the lender may take or seize your car and sell it to satisfy the loan. This can be devastating for someone who relies on their car to get to work or to the grocery store.

In Rhode Island, payday loans are legal and regulated by the state's Department of Business Regulation. The state has set a maximum loan amount of $500 and a loan term cannot exceed 13 days. Additionally, lenders are prohibited from charging more than 10% of the loan amount as a finance charge, which means for a $100 loan, the finance charge cannot exceed $10. The annual percentage rate (APR) for payday loans in Rhode Island can be very high, but it is capped at 260%. Borrowers are allowed one rollover on their loan. As for car title loans, they are also legal in Rhode Island. The state does not specifically legislate the terms of car title loans, so the terms of the loan are typically set by the agreement between the borrower and the lender. However, if the borrower fails to repay the loan, the lender has the right to repossess and sell the vehicle to recover the debt. At the federal level, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforces laws such as the Truth in Lending Act and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to protect consumers against unfair and deceptive practices by lenders. The FTC also takes action against fraudulent debt collection practices and attempts by lenders to evade state and federal laws by operating from locations like Native American reservations.