Blackpool fans' group outlines an alternative option to pay for season tickets

An option has been agreed for supporters to use CLEVR Money, should they wish to take out a no credit check season ticket loan.

That option was something BST had implored the club to do in its final Gazette column of the campaign, before 2024/25 season ticket prices were announced a fortnight ago.

The same column also expressed the hope that ‘there will be sensible pricing’ before it was revealed that some season ticket prices would be increasing; a rise CEO Julian Winter described as something he didn’t consider ‘an unreasonable cost’.

Pool’s season ticket announcement also provided supporters with an option to spread the cost over six or 10 months through an agreement with V12 Retail Finance.

However, BST’s announcement means supporters – whether they are Trust members or not – now have the option of using V12 or CLEVR should they wish to do so.

Explaining why they have arranged this, BST say: “We had hoped the club would provide something beyond V12, but sadly that was not the case.

“Our goals were to make it easier for people who may not have a credit rating or have maybe struggled to get credit to be able to get a season ticket on more favourable terms than the current ‘walk-up’ pricing offer.”

Sums of between £250 and £500 can be borrowed over a nine-month period, though CLEVR say a loan can be paid off in full at any time without penalty.

While there isn’t a credit check, credit reference agencies will be contacted to confirm an applicant’s ID and address, as well as any previous fraud convictions.

Instead of a credit check, an affordability check is carried out with details asked about income and expenditure – which doesn’t include discretionary spend.

In terms of how a CLEVR Money loan relates to ticket prices, an adult matchday ticket for the North, West Outer or South Stands next season will cost either £27 or £31 depending on the match category.

An adult early bird season ticket renewal for those stands would be £375, working out at around £16.30 a game, though BST say using CLEVR Money would work out at £18.85 per match instead.

If a supporter was to use CLEVR Money and borrow the £375 over nine months, the monthly repayment would be £48.17.

It leads to a total repayable amount of £433.46, including an Annual Percentage Rate interest figure of 42.6 per cent.

Regarding that level of interest, BST say: “It is used to help people compare loans, but it can skew the picture for short-term loans.

“CLEVR Money does not charge any other fees for their loans, other than the monthly interest.

“Whilst an APR of 42.6 per cent may seem high, it actually translates to just 3 per cent per month on the reducing loan balance.”

By law, CLEVR can only lend to people who live or work in the following postcodes: FY1, FY2, FY3, FY4, FY5, FY6, FY7, FY8, PR1, PR2, PR3, PR4, PR5, PR6, PR7, PR8, PR9, PR25, PR26, LA1, LA2, LA3 and LA4.

You cannot apply if you are under 18, bankrupt, in a DRO or IVA, or in default with CLEVR Money.

As CLEVR Money is a credit union, part of their policy is that anyone using their service must save money with them every month at the time they make a repayment.

The minimum monthly amount applicants must save on top of a loan repayment is £10.

Savings can be withdrawn from the day after money is put into an account, but a minimum balance of £5 must be retained at all times.

Further details are available from the BST website at blackpoolsupporterstrust.com