Instant Finance chief executive Richard de Lautour says that with the "barrage of negativity that surrounds the industry," only made worse by Bridgecorp's collapse using advertising to attract funds is becoming impossibly expensive.

The company no longer bothers with any television or radio advertising, although it does still advertise in newsapapers. "You can't win in this business. If you don't advertise, you get investors ringing wondering whether you've gone broke," de Lautour says.

Like many industry observers, de Lautour says that risk isn't properly priced in the New Zealand market and that finance companies are deterred from advertising appropriately higher rates because the likely reaction will be that that company must be very risky.

By offering higher rates through advisers, Instant Finance is hoping that the advisers will be able to educate their clients on relative risks. When would-be customers approach Instant asking for the higher rates, it provides them with a list of advisers, de Lautour says.

While Instant Finance's approach is somewhat different from the rest of the industry, which has always offered loyalty rates and higher rates for bigger volumes, it may not be getting its message across all that clearly.

One adviser we approached suggested that Hanover, North South Finance and New Zealand Finance Holdings all offered similar "mates rates." None of them do, although all offer loyalty rates and volume deals.