New code of practice from Wonga
Short term lender Wonga has launched its own code of practice in an effort to increase its transparency to existing and potential customers.
The code is designed to reinforce the codes of practice issued by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA), which the alternative lender currently abides by.
Errol Damelin, founder and chief executive officer of Wonga, said: “For us it was a case of formalising a social contract which we feel we have had since the beginning with our customers, the need to be transparent, flexible and communicative.”
Damelin added that lack of transparency was the main factor driving negative media coverage of the alternative lending industry.
He added: “I think there is a lot of misunderstanding and a fixation on APR, which doesn’t help customers or the debate, but we need to be honest about ourselves; we don’t hold ourselves up to be perfect and we always try to improve.”
