Taking out pay-day loans is always tempting.
A few clicks and within minutes a large chunk of cash can be replenishing your depleted bank account.
But it comes at a price. And it’s a price that single mum Katie McGill will be faced with in the New Year.
The 28-year-old borrowed £3,000 from companies like Wonga to pay for her children’s Christmas presents.
She’s now blaming the firms for giving her the cash and not checking her circumstances, which have changed since her partner left.
This isn’t an excuse that will wash when bailiffs come knocking on her door because her benefits are not enough to pay them back.
In fact, with the escalating fees for extending the repayment periods and the astronomical interest charge which sometimes reach almost 6000%APR, Katie could find that she’ll still be repaying these sums well into 2015.
Quite why she took out the loans is baffling. Pay day loans should be a last resort – an emergency to pay for essentials so the family doesn’t starve.
But Katie blew the money on lavish presents for her two children. A new TV, DVD players, and bikes.
Would the children have really minded a few smaller gifts and a loving meal with the family?
Instead they will find themselves living in a home saddled with debt and a mother struggling to cope.
And their shiny new TV and DVD players will be among the first things a bailiff will take.
