By Rachel Fletcher
A lack of consumer choice may occur as the credit market declines, an industry body has said.
According to the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA), consumer lending by its members has fallen by almost 20 per cent from April 2008 to April 2009.
Unsecured loans have fallen by 45 per cent in value while the decrease for secured loans is 83 per cent.
The FLA warned that consumer choice is at risk as a result of such contractions in the credit market.
Chief economist and head of research Geraldine Kilkelly warned that this could be harmful for more vulnerable people and urged the government to help make wholesale credit more available.
In May, the FLA said that borrowers were looking for attractive deals in a difficult market.
According to its figures, overall new consumer lending had fallen by 12 per cent among its members from March 2008 to the same month this year.
