Facebook users warned about credit ads

Credit companies are using Facebook to target young people, according to debt charity Credit Action. It says adverts for cheap loans on the social networking site are breaking UK credit regulations.

The charity has complained to the Office of Fair Trading about the ads, which promise cheap loans to people with poor credit ratings but often do give details of interest rates.

It is calling on Facebook users to warn the website about adverts which break the rules.

A Credit Action spokesman says that credit companies are using social networking sites, particularly Facebook, because they are so popular with young people.

Chairman of Credit Action’s board of trustees, Malcolm Hurlston, says that advertising rules “are there for a reason”. He adds that some adverts do include APR rates, but only in the frequently asked questions section, and not in a prominent place in the advert, which is what the rules require.