Josh Goodnewt attended a webinar hosted by the National Association of Consumer Advocates last week about what to do to help victims of online lending schemes. This post contains some general information about steps you may want to consider taking if you are tangled up with an online lender. As always, please consult with legal counsel about your particular situation before acting.

Hopefully you found this post before you ever borrowed money from an internet lender, and you’re just searching for information about whether you should get a loan from an internet lender. If so, don’t do it. Unlicensed online lending is illegal in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. And it’s a trap.

Well, actually it’s several traps:

First, before you ever borrow, just putting your information into an internet lender's website opens you up to wrongdoers. The website you give your information to is most often not the lender. Instead, it is a lead generator — meaning you give them information, and they sell it as a “lead” to potential lenders who will then offer you a loan. Once that information is in that lead generator’s hands, they may keep selling it or misuse it and you could lack much of a recourse if they do.

Second, once you get the loan you’re charged exorbitant interest rates so that even if you timely make your payment, you may never actually pay down the principal balance.

Third, you are often required to authorize the lender to take money directly from your account via ACH (automated clearinghouse) transactions or EFT (electronic funds transfer) payments. The lender will continue to withdraw these payments until the balance is paid off. Since the interest rate is so high, you won’t likely be able to pay down the loan and the withdraws will continue perpetually.

Fourth, if you find a way to stop making payments, you’re in for a lot of harassment. Any information you gave that lead generator now may be used to harass or threaten you. They will not necessarily limit to calling you on whatever phone number you left them, but may call your employer if you listed it, or anyone you listed as your references. They may report the debt to credit reporting agencies and damage whatever credit you may have, which may affect your ability to gain future employment or an apartment.

So, hopefully you didn’t open yourself up to any of that! Unfortunately you probably have, and if so there are a few steps you can take.

1. Withdraw your ACH authorization for ALL DEBITS by notifying the lender in writing. You can mail it to their address or attach it to an email.
2. Notify your bank immediately that you have withdrawn your authorization for ALL DEBITS from that lender. Tell your bank that these and future debits from that lender are “Unauthorized Debits”
3. Open up a new bank account at a different financial institution and notify any direct depositors of the new account.
4. Close the account the lender is debiting.
5. Dispute with the bank ALL of the debits made by the online lender.

If you have borrowed money from an online lender, following these steps may be your best bet to ending the constant withdrawals. Remember, you have done nothing wrong. If your lender lacks a license in Kentucky, you are being scammed by an illegal lender and you are under no obligation to pay the lender back. KRS 286.4-991.

Unfortunately, there is rarely much that can be done to these scammers. However, if you have any questions about any of the above, feel free to contact us at Ben Carter Law, PLLC.

Last night, I had a chance to watch John Oliver's great takedown of one of America's worst industries: the payday loan industry. 

The whole thing is great, but I seriously want a Kickstarter to buy TV time for Sarah Silverman's ad at the end of this clip about the best options for people considering taking out a payday loan. 

In Kentucky, payday loan companies charge an average annual interest rate of 391%. The Kentucky Coalition for Responsible Lending is trying to pass legislation that would cap that interest rate at the still-exorbitant price of 36%. I applied to become a member of KCRL today. You should, too. 

If you are struggling with repaying payday loans or other debts, please contact an attorney to get advice on the best way to gain control over your financial life. 

I read an amazing proposal from law professor Chris Peterson recently on regulating the marketing of high-cost loans through local ordinance. The city could require anyone offering high-interest loans to post signs that say, "Warning: Predatory Lender." The approach could be useful in Louisville because it is a local solution requiring buy-in from only the council and the mayor, not Frankfort.

Predatory payday lenders rob the city's most vulnerable people at a time when those folks can least afford the high interest rates payday lenders charge. Frankfort continues to stymie appropriate legislation of these jackels. 

I didn’t think practicing law was going to be fun. This weekend, I am at the National Consumer Rights Litigation Conference, hosted in Chicago this year by the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC). Three years ago, at their conference in Portland, the NCLC showed me just how much fun being an attorney was going to be.

I could sue banks. I could defend homeowners. I could pursue creditors who pursued my clients. I could make them pay. Wow.

If you went to an Occupy Wall Street gathering and found the prevailing attitude towards banks a little tame, this conference is for you.

I’m learning about consumer arbitration agreements, consumer class actions after Concepcion, credit reporting, loan modifications, payday loans, predatory lending, auto fraud, expert witnesses, lemon laws, foreclosure mediation programs around the nation. The speakers include the great Paul Bland and Deepak Gupta (who argued Concepcion and who shared 30 minutes of his time with me in his office while he was at Public Justice. Last night, Matt Taibbi addressed the members of the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA); we gave him our annual Media Award for his work publicizing the dastardly deeds of foreclosing servicers, banks, and attorneys. Today, we’ll hear from Susan Saladoff, director of Hot Coffee and I’m spending all morning with Ron Burge. Tomorrow, I’m attending the Consumer Class Action Symposium.

I like so much about this conference. So much. I like that I learn about both the substance and procedure of practicing consumer law. I like that this conference gives me big ideas about expanding what I can do for my clients and big ideas about what I can do to change the terms of debates in the public sphere: debates about our civil justice system, mandatory arbitration, the utility of foreclosure mediation. Each year, I come away energized and inspired. These attorneys are so good.

The odds we face are enormous. The monied interests have bought our politicians, they’ve funded aggressive public relations campaigns that seek to close the courthouse doors to you and me. But, the NCLC and NACA and Public Justice (and KJA) are working hard to make us better attorneys for our clients and better advocates for the system of justice for which our founders fought.