Payday loans have led some people into a spiral of debt
A decision on whether the payday lending industry will be referred to the competition authorities will be published later.
The regulator, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), said in March that it was minded to refer the market to the Competition Commission.
It said it had found "deep-rooted" problems in how payday loan companies were competing for customers.
It was concerned that lenders were competing on speed rather than cost.
Debt spiralAbout two million people in the UK use payday loans. These products are designed as short-term access to cash, at relatively high cost, until the applicant is next paid.
However, in many cases, individuals have struggled to repay and the compounded interest of loan after loan has left them in a spiral of debt.
This is what happened to Mark Todd, a former NHS consultant from Huddersfield.
He took out a payday loan while waiting to get back into work after being the full-time carer of his father. However, he was unable to find work and took out an additional loan to cover the first one.
"It was irresponsible of us to borrow, but it was also irresponsible of them to lend. They were under no pressure, we were under lots," he said.
He was concerned about the operations of brokers, as much as the loan companies themselves.
"Once they have got their teeth into you, they never let go. You just get email after email, text after text, all saying you are approved for x amount of money today," he said.
"When you have got nothing at all and you are struggling to put a meal on the table, then someone sends you a text saying we have got £300 for you ready and waiting right now and it will be in your account in 15 minutes, it is too difficult to say no sometimes."
The OFT will decide whether individuals such as Mr Todd should have had more choice over which payday loan to choose, based on the costs involved.
The OFT has found that providers target people by saying that they can provide the loan quicker than other lenders.
Lenders should only be offering loans to people with an income that means they can repay, which should have ruled out Mr Todd when he was out of work.
Whatever the decision by the OFT, lenders, consumer groups and regulators have been summoned to a summit about payday lending at the Department for Business next week.
The meeting aims to come up with solutions to the "widespread irresponsible lending" highlighted by the OFT's report into the payday industry.
Source: BBC News - Business http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23065501#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
