With the recession continuing to take its toll on UK households, more have had to turn to payday advance providers in order to make ends meet and continue to pay the bills.
In addition to turning to instant cash loan companies, Brits have been resorting to any and all options they can find in order to get the extra cash they need. Many have turned to pawnbrokers, and the types of items being pawned or sold is growing wide and varied.
People have been selling and pawning all sorts of bizarre paraphernalia to secure quick loans or extra cash in a pinch. An online lender recently reported a wide array of items, such as a Henry Moore sculpture, Beatles memorabilia, an 18th century bible, two Ivor Novello music awards, and even a tank.
The Ivor Novello awards netted the borrower £2,500, while the tank went for around £10,000, according to the lender, while the owner of the Henry Moore sculpture took out a £50,000 loan with the piece of art as collateral, and the Beatles meorabilia was valued at more than £32,000 – yet the owner of the 18th century bible was found to be worth only £200.
Desperate times, it seems, truly calls for desperate measures, as the number of bizarre and fantastic items being used to secure loans has gone up by a sizable margin. One industry insider commented, stating that it is obvious that Brits are being hammered by the stormy economic climate, and have found innovative ways to raise the cash to aid them in paying for emergency situations requiring a sudden expenditure of cash.