Missouri and Kansas have been allowing payday loan services to include paying utility bills.
This practice has many critics and they are ready to take action.
The critics are worried that customers will start taking out short term high interest loans to pay their utility bills but payday loan lenders say it is not happening.
The utility companies want the ability to use payday loan stores as bill paying centers to continue as another place for customers to conveniently pay their utility bills.
Customer service?
The big question is whether this is a convenient service the payday loan companies are offering or if it is just another way to trap the customer into more debt.
The Missouri Public Service Commission will be releasing a study on this very topic later this month and John Coffman, an attorney for the Consumers Council of Missouri hopes the study answers the question of whether this is a good idea or a bad one.
Mr. Coffman has been debating this topic for years and is hopeful this time the topic will gain momentum.
While most storefront locations to pay your utility bills have been closed by the utility companies, they feel using payday loan stores as collection points is good business for everyone involved.
Not only does it offer the service to pay your utility bill, it also gives you the option to borrow money all in one stop.
This practice seems to be a good business relationship to the utilities and payday loan companies, but is it healthy for the customers?
Just how far does the government go to decide what is OK and not OK for businesses to offer their customers?
Summary
While many people are willing to complain who end up on the wrong side of a good idea, we here at Help Payday Loan Debt have to back the payday loan stores on this situation.
A business should be able to offer their customers services that make them a convenient place to visit and do business, and the fee for using this service is more than fair at $1.00
When dealing with payday loan companies, jut follow a few basic rules and you should be OK.
- Make sure you understand all the terms completely. Online payday loans must be managed different than storefront payday loans.
- Pay off the loan on the first due date
- Do not roll over a payday loan for any reason
Follow the above rules and you should come out of the experience OK. You will have paid a high interest rate for a short term loan but all should be good, after all, that is what these loans are, high interest and short term and as it stands in Missouri and Kansas, you can even get your utility bills paid.