Sainsbury's Finance One Of Just Four Lenders In "Sub 8% Loans Club"

    LONDON, ENGLAND, May 28, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- New research(1) from Sainsbury's Loans reveals that there are currently just four lenders, of which it is one, offering an APR of less than 8% on unsecured loans on loan amounts between GBP5,000 and GBP15,000.

Despite the Bank of England base rate having dropped by 4.5 percentage points to 0.5% from 12 months ago, the Bank's research highlights that the actual number of lenders offering personal loans of less than 8% APR has reduced significantly. In May 2008, when the Bank of England base rate was 5%, there were 42 lenders (representing around 57% of the available unsecured loans) offering an APR of less than 8% on loans amounts between GBP5,000 and GBP15,000; in May 2009 only 7% of lenders can claim to be offering a sub-8% rate.

According to MoneyExpert.com the average rate on non-secured personal loans between GBP5,000 and GBP15,000 is currently 10.14%(2). Sainsbury's Finance offers a personal loan rate of 7.9% APR Typical to Sainsbury's shoppers(3) applying online with a Nectar card for loans of between GBP5,000 and GBP15,000.

Steven Baillie, Head of Loans, Sainsbury's Finance, said: "Our current analysis highlights the fact that the loans marketplace is actually much less competitive than it was 12 months ago. The number of lenders offering a sub-8% APR rate on a personal loan has fallen off significantly compared with 12 months ago, so anyone considering taking out a loan today needs to ensure more than ever before that they shop around to take advantage of the best rates out there."
In addition to one of the most competitive rates in the marketplace, customers taking out a Sainsbury's Finance Loan benefit from:

A personally tailored repayment period, from one to seven years
Fixed repayments for the whole period of the loan
An instant personal loan decision
The money in 24 hours

For further information on Sainsbury's Finance Loans, call 0800 169 8502, log onto www.sainsburysbank.co.uk or pick up a leaflet in your Sainsbury's supermarket.

Sainsbury's provide a wide range of financial services including pet insurance, life insurance, home insurance and savings, visit www.sainsburysbank.co.uk now to find out more.

Notes to editors:

(1) Research conducted by Defaqto Ltd (13th May 2009) which looked at 62 lenders
(2) MoneyExpert.com data (11th May 2009)
(3) Applicants have to be Nectar card users and supply their Nectar card number on applying for the loan

Sainsbury's Finance:
To view our latest press releases and product information, please visit the Sainsbury's Finance online media centre at www.sainsburysfinance.co.uk/media.

Sainsbury's Finance offers a range of quality, competitively priced, award-winning products. It opened for business on 19th February 1997 and was the UK's first supermarket bank. It is a 50:50 joint venture with Sainsbury's and Lloyds Banking Group.

Sainsbury's Finance offers the following products: Credit Cards and Loans, a range of Savings products and Car Insurance, Life Insurance, Home Insurance, Travel Insurance and Pet Insurance.
For further information and general Sainsbury's Finance enquiries customers can call the freephone number on 0500 40 50 60 or visit www.sainsburysfinance.co.uk

# # #