Guarantor lender Buddy Loans enters administration

Shane Crooks, Antony Nygate and Kiri Holland from BDO LLP were appointed as joint administrators. Buddy Loans has said that it will continue to operate, although it will no longer be making any new loans.

The lender said on its website: “We are working closely with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to ensure that customers are treated fairly and in line with FCA guidance whilst we continue collecting outstanding loan balances.”

Buddy Loans has said that there are no planned changes to the processes, which means that guarantors will only be contacted if the lender needs to be in touch, for example if the guarantor’s ‘buddy’ has missed too many payments.

Its loans were typical of the UK guarantor market, being between £1,000 and £10,000 over up to 60 months at a 49.9% APR. The FCA described Buddy Loans as a high-cost lender.

Fellow guarantor lender Amigo Loans has faced financial pressure in recent months after posting a £279m loss.