Shamed payday lenders are still hounding vulnerable customers suffering from illness and bereavement despite pressure to clean up the industry , a report has found . Only one year after a new regulator was tasked with keeping loan companies in check , many are still employing bully boy tactics when a customer defaults on their repayments . The Financial Conduct Authority found that certain firms continued to be 'unsympathetic and inflexible ' where a customer was in 'distress and financial difficulty ' . The watchdog said one lender had even tried to extract money from customers by 'threatening visits to their home or place of work ' , despite having no policy to do so . Hounded : A year after the Financial Conduct Authority was tasked with regulating payday lenders , its report finds the firms are still hounding vulnerable customers ( file photo ) Others threatened to pass on customers ' accounts to external debt collectors , even though they had no intention of doing so . The FCA said it uncovered 'misleading and occasionally threatening correspondence from lenders ' , despite an attempt to clamp down on such behaviour . David Mann , at comparison site uSwitch.com , said last night : 'It 's shocking that vulnerable people are still being hounded , even when they 're taking steps to get their debts under control . 'It 's clear that more needs to be done to protect those trapped in a vicious circle of debt . 'There is a need for short term credit , but payday loans can be a very expensive way to borrow money . We need high street banks to step up and offer robust short term lending solutions . ' Last April , the FCA was put in charge of regulating the payday industry in an attempt to tackle the number of people spiralling into unmanageable debt through these high-interest short-term loans . But the FCA 's own report found evidence that high-risk applicants were still being accepted for loans , even where lenders had 'grounds to suspect that customers were at risk of , or already in , financial difficulties ' . They said shambolic record-keeping meant calls and emails from customers admitting they were in difficulty and could not pay often 'fell through gaps ' in the system . In some cases , companies had a backlog of correspondence from debt advice charities stretching back several weeks , meaning lenders were completely unaware of why customers had defaulted on their loan . This included medical evidence which would have explained why someone had stopped repaying their debt . Vulnerable : The FCA 's own report found evidence that high-risk applicants were still being accepted for loans . 'In many cases , these customers were still being chased for their debts through daily letters , emails and phone calls ' , the FCA said . Even lenders which had logged details of customers ' personal circumstances , including illness or bereavement , sometimes failed to tell debt collectors this . Some firms were also short-staffed and inadequately trained to deal with complex arrears cases , it added . However , it said some positive changes and been made and that most firms had significantly reduced the amount of fees and interest they charged customers who had fallen behind with their repayments . Joanna Elson , at the Money Advice Trust charity , said payday lenders must 'drastically improve the way they treat customers in financial difficulty ' . She said : 'While the improvements already being made by firms are welcome , the FCA has been very clear that many are struggling with the pace of change required to bring them up to scratch . ' The Financial Ombudsman Service , which resolves disputes when financial firms and consumers can not come to an agreement , said it has seen vulnerable payday loan customers being treated in an 'alarming ' way . The ombudsman has seen a 64 per cent increase in payday lending complaints since 2012 and it is currently taking on more than 70 new cases each month . It is finding in consumers ' favour in around two-thirds of cases . The main complaint it deals with is a loan provider being unwilling to accept a suitable repayment plan , as well as poor administration and customer service . Gillian Guy , of Citizens ' Advice Bureau , said : 'Some of the worst debt collection practices people tell us about come from payday lenders . 'People have sought our help after their lender told colleagues about their debts or pretended that they were bailiffs and threatened to seize belongings from their home . 'Important progress has been made since tougher FCA rules came in but many people are still falling foul of irresponsible lending . 'Payday loan firms should only lend to people who they know can afford to pay back the debt , and must point those who ca n't towards free debt advice . '
Lenders still ' treat ' customers suffering from depression and bereavement . Financial ##ders Authority claims firms continue to be ' unsympathetic ' One even refuse to leave customer 's home despite policy against it . Last year , FCA was tasked with regulating high - interest short - term loans . Its own report has found high - interest applicants still being accepted for loans .