WASHINGTON—A new poll finds that even with the passage of nearly a decade since the Great Recession, consumers still support financial regulation and related enforcement.
And when it comes to payday and car-title lending, consumer scorn has grown even stronger over the past year for these small-dollar, debt trap loans that come with triple-digit interest rates, the report shared.
The poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting, found that among respondents more than 90% viewed regulation of financial services to be very important, and registered support across partisan affiliations. Among Republicans, 85% supported regulation, compared to 92% of independents and 96% of Democrats, the Los Angeles Sentinel said in its analysis.
The number of consumers supporting a rule to hold payday lenders accountable increased six percentage points in just the past year. Believing that payday lenders prey upon those who have the fewest financial resources – low-wage earners, working families, and elder Americans, 79% of survey respondents want the BCFP to hold these predatory lenders accountable. A similar poll taken in 2017 tallied support of a BCFP payday rule at 73%, the Los Angeles Sentinel said.
When asked about the lack of enforcement against abuses by payday lenders, 81% of respondents were concerned about BCFP’s inaction. And again, these strong responses crossed party lines: 77% of Republicans, 82% of independents, and 85% of Democrats.
The telephone survey of 1,000 likely 2018 general election voters occurred between June 28 to July 7, 2018.