Pay-day loan company Wonga, offered a 13 year old boy a £400 loan with an interest rate so high it would take him a century to repay it.
Drew Dalson was offered a loan with a 5,853% interest rate, meaning that, with his £5 weekly pocket money, he would be stuck paying it back til he was 113 years old. If your family are still going to be paying back a loan after you're dead, let it at least be for enough money to get you to the Bahama's for a couple of weeks!
His father Brian, 52, had the good sense to check the letter after thinking it strange that it has been addressed to his son directly and prevented the ridiculous transaction.
"I thought it was really unusual when Drew received a letter addressed directly to him. When I opened it, I couldn’t believe Wonga were offering him so much money," he told The Daily Mirror.
"He’s a sensible lad and wouldn’t have done anything but I’m sure there are other kids out there who would be tempted by such an easy fix, especially before Christmas.
"What kid wouldn’t want £400 in his back pocket?"
The company have previously been criticised for not checking the age of their potential customers. Their stance is that their contracts are legally binding, despite it being technically illegal for under 18s to borrow money.
It remains to be seen if Wonga will face charges or if their is any legal standing for them to be brought against the money lending giant.
Words by Gemma Clark
