John

John’s loan from Scotcash meant he could buy some new clothes for his son and make some much-needed refurbishments to his home.

“I know I have an excruciatingly low credit score,” says John, “but there’s a cost of living crisis and everything is rocketing. Right now I’m most bothered about surviving.”

John, 41, lives near Burnley and cares for his three year-old son full time while also shopping and caring for his retired mother. A PIP and Universal Credit recipient, he approached Scotcash for the first time in May 2022. “I found Scotcash through a search” he says, “and I liked the fact it wasn’t a broker, and explained it doesn’t discriminate against people on benefits, but just makes a loan if you can afford it.”

Despite snapping ligaments in both knees aged 15, John secured a job as a warehouse manager and worked at a retailer for several years, as well as volunteering for a national charity. But several years ago he became seriously ill with chronic fibromyalgia, alongside other health and mobility issues, and his doctor told him he could no longer work. 2022 has been tough.

“Food shopping for me, my little boy and my mum costs so much more. Gas has shot up. And my lad is growing fast and constantly needs clothes the next size up. He eats like there’s no tomorrow too.”

John’s loan from Scotcash meant he could buy some new clothes for his son and make some much-needed refurbishments to his home. His loan will be repaid over six months, with affordable payments on dates he’s agreed, and he says his experience with Scotcash is much better than when he’s needed to borrow from other lenders in the past. He believes a door-to-door collections firm’s agent was pocketing half of customers’ repayments herself but telling her employer the customers were defaulting, so he ended up being chased by debt collectors despite making all his repayments on time. And a different provider, he says, added many unwanted insurances and penalty fees halfway through paying back a loan.

“It’s notably different with Scotcash,” he says. “They were very, very responsive, answering any questions I had almost immediately"