Welcome to the Alabama Installment Lenders
Association homepage. We are Alabama’s
oldest and most respected trade association devoted to consumers and the
consumer finance industry in the State of Alabama. Since 1960, our members have promoted the
interests of consumers in obtaining installment loans. We formed ourselves at
the same time as the Alabama Legislature enacted the Alabama Small Loan
Act. Our input into that 1959 consumer
protection law helped preserve fair and honest small loan lending in our
state. Ever since that beginning, we
have worked with our legislators and regulators to make certain that financial
services loans and products are available to all Alabamians.
We are traditional installment
lenders. Our lending is based on three
principles: (i) equal installment
payments (ii) for customers who have the ability to repay (iii) with a clear
pathway out of debt. Installment loans show with clarity precisely when the
loan will pay out based upon the payment schedule. We help our customers build
their credit record by reporting to credit bureaus. This encourages both responsible borrowing
and responsible lending. Our loans are
customer driven—no prepayment penalties and understandable repayment terms are
the rule. Our loans are transparent,
making them the safest loan product for consumers. And, we make loans from local offices with
local lenders, offering much more personalized service than a bank.
And, in 2016 we changed our name to add "installment" so that there would be no misunderstanding of our mission.
Alabama’s Consumer Finance Industry--By
the Numbers
The Alabama Consumer Finance Industry is
important business in our State, affecting the many lives of customers and
employees alike. There are over 3100
licensed consumer finance company offices in our State. These are the traditional installment loan
companies. (This number does not include
pawnshops, title pawn lenders, payday lenders, mortgage brokers, banks or
others who may be exempt from licensing.)
The 3100 licensed locations employ approximately 18,000
Alabamians, with a payroll projected of approximately $540 million.
In the fiscal year ending 2016, the Alabama
Banking Department reported that Small Loan Act and Mini-Code licensed offices
had 725,000 loans outstanding. This
vast number of loans means that licensees fulfilled the financing needs for
many Alabamians. As of the reporting date,
the total outstanding balance on these loans was $4.344 billion. These licensees had combined assets of some
$5.538 billion.
The
finance industry continues to grow in our State to continue to meet the growing demand
of Alabamians for the efficient delivery of consumer credit at a fair
price. Consumer credit is the fuel that
drives the economy. We are proud of the
role that we are playing in making credit available to so many worthy people in
Alabama.
Alabama Installment
Lenders Association--Focused on the Consumer Finance Industry in Alabama
The
Alabama Installment Lenders Association is composed of large companies and small mom &
pops. Each lender is entitled to one
vote per Alabama office; but we limit the influence of any one company by
limiting the number of votes that any one association member can exercise to
three. Our Board of Directors is
composed of 20 members, and our nominating committee works diligently to ensure
that both Small Loan Act lenders and Mini-Code lenders are well represented. As a result of this structure, the
Association will never be dominated by any one company, and will always focus
on the needs of the finance industry in Alabama.
We are composed of 89 member companies
today, representing over 500 lending offices throughout Alabama. Our 24 Associate Members help keep us strong
and viable with their innovative products and services. (Please see our list of Associate Members and
links to their websites on the Members tab.)
We are so proud of our relationship with these Associate Members, and we
could not do our job without their support.
Our
Association meets several times each year.
Our premier meetings include our annual Legislative Reception in late
winter or early spring of each year in Montgomery, coinciding with the start of
each Alabama Legislative session; a fall Committee Day focusing on the business
of the Association and an industry update; and, our Annual Convention, in June
of each summer giving us time together to discuss business and legal
developments, map out strategy for the year, and spend quality time socializing
and golfing in a beautiful venue. This
year, our Annual Convention was held at the Sandestin Hilton Beach Resort in Destin, Fl. We also go to gaming venues such as the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Biloxi, MS, and to venues such as the Grove Park Inn in Ashville, NC. and the Marriott Grand Hotel on the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay in Point Clear, AL.
Please get in touch with
the Alabama Installment Lenders Association at the Contact Us tab with any questions that
you may have about our Association, our state laws and regulations, or
questions about the consumer finance industry in Alabama. We will be pleased to talk to you and share
information with you about these topics.
We are proud of our industry and our state, and we are very proud of the
contributions that we have made and continue to make to the consumer financial
industry in Alabama.
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