Sainsbury's: Wedding loans spiralling

Monday, 15 June 2009 12:00

The number of loans being taken out to fund weddings has soared by 43 per cent, new research by Sainsbury's Finance revealed today.

A survey by the bank, which is currently promoting personal loan rates of 7.9 per cent, found an estimated 13,600 loans were taken out to pay for couples' big days during the first four months of 2009.

This equates to £113 million borrowed purely to fund weddings.

This was a rise of 43 per cent on the number of loans taken out for this purpose during the same period in 2008.

Steven Baillie, head of loans at Sainsbury's, said: "Loans have long been a popular way to pay for or part fund a wedding but the increase we've seen this year would suggest couples are looking to spread the cost of their big day."

He advised people thinking of using a loan to fund their wedding to ensure they shopped around to get the best rate and payment terms.

"It could save you a considerable amount in repayments," he said.

Sainsbury's is offering an interest rate of 7.9 per cent on repayments for loans of between £5,000 and £15,000 for customers applying online with a Nectar card.

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