One provider of short term loans in the UK has recently reported that many more professionals are using them for ‘lunchtime loans,’ fast loans arranged over their lunch hour for any number of financial needs.
Payday advance lender Wonga.com has reported that in excess of 200,000 applications have come through its proverbial doors between the hours of 12pm and 2pm, all from people who are employed full-time. The number of loans coming in during these times is 50 per cent higher than other times, as most days sees the peak occurring at 1.15pm, reported the company.
The lender offers loan amounts from as little as £1 to as much as £400 for terms of up to one month. With the ability to provide online loans to their customers, the new phenomenon of workers applying for ‘lunchtime loans’ through Wonga.comhas been growing by leaps and bounds.
Research indicates that office staff are using these loans to in order to meet their needs for short-term cash, sparing them having to stand in a bank branch queue or listen to the hold music for their lender’s call centre. Others are availing themselves of online time-sensitive offers, such as last-minute travel or event tickets found on sites like eBay.
Wonga.com chief executive and founder, Errol Damelin, stated that the new generation of UK workers have little to no interest in meeting with their bank managers over their lunch hour or spending the time trying to explain to a call centre worker the vagaries of their financial situation. Mr Damelin said Wonga.com’s focus as a lender has been to always offer transparent, fast, and simple service to its customers, granting them the ability to borrow when they want without hassle or delay.