FLM Loans

FLM offered guarantor loans, loans that require a backer, perhaps a friend or family member, to support your application. Find out more about a guarantor loan here.

Explaining why they chose to rebrand as Amigo, the founder and CEO of the company, James Benamor, said:

The product was so popular in the first year and brought in so many words of mouth referrals that we didn’t want to re-brand but eventually, the number of people getting our name wrong (FLN, SLM, FML…) meant we had to.

James Benamor also points out that what we now call a guarantor loan many would consider being simply what we would have once called a loan.

• Before the introduction of computerised credit scores any loan application you made would have been to your bank manager and he would have based his lending decision on your individual financial circumstances.
• He would know your income and savings and would make an informed decision about your ability to meet loan repayments based on these.
• Now computers are involved in the process it is very difficult to get over issues such as bad credit ratings and arrears.
• Most forms of traditional lending have very little inbuilt flexibility so it was up to companies like FLM to offer an affordable alternative to payday loans.
• The type of loans on offer was meant to be cheap, flexible and available to all no matter what your financial circumstances as long as the repayments were affordable.

No.

FLM (Amigo) is one of a number of lenders who are no longer on our panel for a variety of reasons, others include:

Doorstep Loans

• Provident Personal Credit – the Provident business was closed on 31st December 2021 so is no longer lending.
• Greenwood Personal Credit – never directly on our panel, Greenwood Personal Credit was acquired by Provident in 1977, and as above has closed and is no longer lending.
• Shopacheck – never directly on our panel, Shopacheck was acquired by the Perpignon Group and merged with Morses Club in March 2015 (who are on our panel).

Guarantor Loans

• Buddy – has gone into administration and is not lending.
• TFS – has gone into administration and is not lending.