Here at Wonga we strive to make our service better and our customers even happier every day. Sounds like classic business rhetoric? Well, we back our claims up with actions and that is one of the things that makes us different from traditional lenders.

If you haven’t yet noticed, our latest improvement to the UK’s fastest and most flexible loan service, is to provide Wonga customers with even more flexibility.

Customers and first-time applicants can now tailor their cash advances to exactly meet their needs. That was always the case of course, but there were some small restrictions and we don’t like restrictions when they aren’t serving a good purpose! For example, you had to take a loan for at least five days and the smallest cash advance we provided was £50.

Now you can decide exactly how much you want to borrow, from as little as £1! We also increased the upper limits you can apply for, to £400 for first time customers and up to £1,000 for trusted customers who use the  service responsibly. 

You can also now control the cost of your cash advance by picking the length of your loan from as little as one day! This way you only pay for the exact online loan you need - not something fixed that suits us!

As always, you can then manage your account online and even repay us early with no catches, should your circumstances change. It really is Money your way!

Wonga launches its first ever TV advert this week, with the aim of letting even more people know about our flexible, online cash advance service. If you haven’t yet caught it on the box, you can check it out right here.

The theme is Money Your Way, because Wonga is the only lender in the land that allows you to choose exactly how much cash you want to borrow and then decide when to repay us, which determines the cost.

You can initially apply for any amount up to £400 and repay us between one and thirty-one days later. You can even repay early and save - with no catches because we are all about short term cash, not keeping you in debt.

We provide an instant decision around the clock and can send money to your account within minutes of approval - it’s a bit like having your own bank!

We recently highlighted the crazy fees still being charged for unauthorised overdrafts by the high street banks, despite pressure from government and the OFT.

A recent article by ThisIsMoney has now exposed the latest ploy by Halifax Bank of Scotland to extract more cash from customers with approved overdrafts. The popular financial site explains:  

The new charges are £1 a day for each day in an arranged overdraft up to £2,500, £2 a day for arranged amounts over this and £5 a day for unarranged overdrafts.

Although those with large overdraft balances may benefit, this will seriously penalise customers with relatively small overdrafts who stay within their limit.

The fixed fees will replace interest charged and HBoS argues that it simplifies the cost of going overdrawn. While it may be simple, the move draws attention to the high cost of regularly using an overdraft with the banking giant, never mind if you stray over your limit! The flat daily fee for unauthorised borrowing is an eye-watering £5 per day.

One angry HBoS customer is quoted as saying:

‘This is treating all customers as stupid. The only reason they are changing [their charges] is to increase their fees and to reduce the amount of overdrafts. I currently pay a minimal amount per month as there is a largish credit balance on my account for two weeks and then a small overdraft for two weeks. How can this be justified and why do they not tell the truth?’

A flexible Wonga loan is an alternative worth considering if you need some extra money for a short period of time. You can decide exactly how much cash you want to borrow and for how many days, which also dictates the cost. Unlike a bank overdraft, which is open-ended and requires discipline to manage sensibly, a Wonga cash advance must be settled within a month, on a date of your choosing. This allows you to deal with an urgent and short-term cash flow problem, settle the debt quickly and then get on with life.

Payday loans have started to take off in the UK over the past year and the term payday loan, or payday advance is becoming a more familiar phrase, especially when searching for fast cash online.

A payday loan is a relatively small loan, usually of a few hundred pounds, which is taken until your next payday. You normally have to repay it with your next pay cheque, or over several paydays, regardless of when you apply. And you will normally be charged a pretty hefty fee per £100 borrowed - typically between £20 and £30.

It’s basically emergency cash and payday loans have their place. They are often cheaper than bank fees for unauthorised borrowing, for example, but Wonga provides a great alternative for urgent funds without a long-term commitment.

Compare the cost of a payday loan with a cash advance from Wonga.com

Wonga also provides short-term cash advances online, but in a much more flexible and speedy way. For starters, the entire process is online - no faxing, postage or call centres - and you can apply any time of day or night, 365 days a year. You will receive an instant answer on your screen and we even guarantee to send cash to approved applicants’ bank accounts within 60 minutes.

Our service is also much more flexible than a payday loan. Wonga allows you to choose exactly how much cash you want to borrow and the cost of our online loans is calculated for you, based on how many days you need it for. The shorter the loan, the lower the cost - it’s that simple.

Flexible cash advances from Wonga

You can see how our flexible pricing compares with a typical fixed fee for a payday loan over 30 days. In most cases a Wonga loan works out better value and you can even repay us early with no catches or fees to worry about.

Typical 2689% APR

(Find out why the APR is so big!)

As usual, it’s taken pressure from a regulator to make high street banks change their ways! As reported by the Times, the OFT has been calling for more transparency about charges, particularly for going over your bank overdraft limit. With a multitude of potential fees and some fixed charges running up to £20 per DAY, it’s about time they made it easier for people to work out the true cost of accessing emergency cash. Here’s an extract from the article…

Britain’s banks have today bowed to pressure from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and agreed to make their current account charges more transparent. They have also promised to make it easier for customers to switch from one bank to another.

Their decision follows publication of the OFT’s latest study into the £8 billion market, which highlighted three problem areas: lack of clarity over charges, difficulty in switching banks and concern over the way banks charged for unauthorised overdrafts. The OFT said the existing system did not work well for consumers.

To improve clarity over their charges banks have undertaken to provide an annual summary of the cost of their account for each customer. This is designed to help customers work out if they are getting value for money. Banks have also agreed to make charges prominent on monthly statements, provide average credit and debit balances, which will help consumers to assess the possible benefits of switching banks, and provide a range of illustrative overdraft charges for different scenarios.

Perhaps they should take a leaf out of Wonga’s book - we calculate the total cost to repay every time you apply for a loan online and there are no hidden catches to worry about. Indeed, our flexible loans are not only a simpler and crystal clear source of emergency cash, but often a lot cheaper too.

If you’re looking online for a fast cash advance, the chances are that you could do with some financial assistance in a flash - Wonga can help! That’s because we guarantee the breath-taking speed of our instant loan service.

There are loads of internet loan companies offering sameday cash, quick loans and ‘instant’ money for unforeseen expenses, but many wouldn’t know a fast loan if it zoomed up and stared them in the face.

Sadly, as with many other areas of life, fast cash advance services aren’t always what they’re cracked up to be and don’t deliver on the promises made up front. And what use is a fast cash loan when it’s not actually very fast? The answer’s not a lot when there’s something you need cash for right there and then!

Sameday can sometimes turn out to be several days, or you’ll need to wait until Monday. But Wonga guarantees to send cash to your bank within 60 minutes of your online application being approved (which only takes a second too). In fact, because we deliver on our promises, we’ll reduce your loan repayment by a tenner if we don’t live up to our usual standards.

Typical APR 2689%

In a rare break from running the world’s fastest and most flexible cash advance service, the Wonga team recently enjoyed a post-work picnic in the park. Activities included eating, drinking, rounders, cricket and a bit of footy. The sun didn’t quite shine, but a good time was had by all!

If you love Wonga’s flexible cash advance service and have a Facebook account, you could win a prize that will put a smile on your face more than once. Simply become a fan before the end of September 2009 and we could become your biggest fan for the rest of the year. 

The Sunday Times exposed the crazy overdraft charges still being extracted by UK banks this weekend. In a stinging article, the Thunderer showed just how disproportionate some banks’ fees are, with RBS singled out as having the harshest penalties for careless or desperate customers.

In one RBS case study, the charges for going only £30 over your overdraft limit for just three days add up to an eye watering £118! The Which? report referenced by the Times also showed:

Alliance & Leicester in second place in its overdraft charges league, with a total penalty of £90. Lloyds, part of the taxpayer-funded Lloyds Banking Group, will fine customers £42, while Barclays charges £22.

Compare this to a similar cash advance from Wonga… A short term loan of £30 taken over three days would be a much more palatable £6.40 in fees and interest. 

What’s more, you’ll know the full cost up front and won’t have to dig around in small print to work it out for yourself. Apply online and you’ll receive an instant decision, with the money transferred to approved applicants in under an hour.

So next time you’re close to your overdraft limit and considering breaking the rules, don’t pay through the nose for a small amount of cash - it’s just not worth it. Consider a short term cash advance from Wonga and save yourself the worry and the money.

There’s only one of you, yet it’s relatively easy for a criminal to create a clone! At Wonga we take great care to protect your information securely when you apply for a short term loan, but you might be surprised by how few personal facts fraudsters need in order to commit ID theft and other fraud crimes.

And the most likely source of this basic info is YOU. They can even apply for a credit card with just your name, full address and date of birth. So take great care of your personal information and follow our simple tips…

• If anyone asks you for your personal details, ask yourself why they might need them and don’t be afraid to question or refuse
• Don’t write down passwords or PINs or, if it’s literally the only way you can remember them, be sure to keep them separate and very well hidden
• Invest in a decent shredder and make sure any letters or bills which aren’t being filed are totally destroyed before going in the bin
• Make sure your home laptop or PC is protected by a firewall and anti-virus software. There are plenty of free options so there’s no excuse for not protecting yourself online
• Never trust emails asking for personal details, even if they look like they’re from a service provider you use – if you’re really in doubt and think you might be ignoring something important, you can always phone