A local football club have backed a campaign to tackle the illegal activities of loan sharks.
The ‘Stop Loan Sharks’ project was launched by North east Lincolnshire’s trading standards officials to crack down on loan sharks operating in the Lincolnshire area.
Trading standards with the support of the Illegal Money Lending Team want to reduce the number of residents’ falling victim to these ever persistent rogue traders.
On Saturday the campaign was taken to Grimsby Town FC where flyers containing the slogan ‘Don’t get involved with loan sharks – it will cost you an arm and a leg’ were handed out to fans.
Tony Quigley, head of the Illegal Money Lending Team, told the Grimsby Telegraph: “Illegal lenders are a scourge on our communities – they charge exorbitant rates to trap people in a spiral of debt and then use the most extreme methods to enforce payback.”
Councillor John Fenty, who also holds the position of chairman at Grimsby Town Football Club, supports the campaign, urging local residents to identify loan sharks.
Dave Smith, commercial manager at Grimsby Town, further added: “Grimsby Town are happy to help spread awareness of the dangers of loan sharks and give the illegal money lending team a platform from which to give people in our communities help andvice.”
Damien Smith, a 23 year old security steward at the club’s grounds told the Grimsby Telegraph: “People don’t have a great deal money at the moment, so hopefully this could help a lot of people.”
In the current economic climate it’s important for people to manage their finances in a responsible way by seeking debt advice, rather than resorting to loan sharks.
The support of Grimsby Town FC will help to draw wider attention to the problems associated with loan sharks, strengthening the campaign to kick them out of the region.
The initiative taken by trading standards is a positive move to reduce the influence of these rogue traders in the region, and further enhance consumer protection.