Bad credit rating? 5 Loans you may be able to get

• Oliver Jones
• 11th July, 2016
• Bad Credit Loans

A bad credit rating can feel like the end of the world when it comes to trying to arrange new finance. A huge number of people in the UK have issues with their credit rating and yet, despite the volume of people this affects, we still believe that credit score problems mean that no lender will touch us. As personal finance has evolved to take into account the way the world is today, this is simply no longer the case and there are now loans available for just about anyone, no matter what your circumstances are. If you have a bad credit rating then consider these five loans as they are designed to help anyone without a perfect credit score.

5 Bad Credit Loan Options

1. Guarantor loans

The idea behind guarantor loans is that they provide someone with a good credit score with the opportunity to help someone with a bad credit rating. A guarantor will essentially provide an insurance policy to a lender – if you can’t repay the loan then the guarantor agrees to do it for you. With a guarantor supporting your application, a lender is less likely to place so much reliance on your credit score and this makes it much easier to get accepted for a guarantor loan if you have a bad credit rating. Guarantor loans are available for £100 to £12,000 and can be borrowed for between six and 84 months, depending on whether you’re looking for long or short term borrowing.

2. Payday loans

If you have a bad credit rating then acceptance for a quick payday loan is not guaranteed. However, the difference with this type of loan is that the amount borrowed is often relatively small and the repayment term is short (a month). Payday loans lenders will usually make a decision about whether or not to lend on the basis of the income you have available to repay, so as long as you can show you’re employed or have an income to cover the repayment, a bad credit rating won’t necessarily stop you from being able to borrow. You could borrow up to £1,000 with a payday loan, repaid in a month.

3. Homeowner loans

If you own a property then this is another way in which you can boost your chances of getting finance, regardless of your credit score. Most lenders are willing to overlook credit problems if you have a solid income and a significant asset like a house or an apartment and you’re willing to offer this as security for the loan. This basically means that you agree to allow the lender to sell the property if you cannot repay the loan. Although this may seem a scary prospect, as long as you’re only borrowing what you can afford to repay then this just gives the lender the reassurance it needs to be able to lend. Homeowner loans are available from £5,000 – £250,000+ depending on the property that you own and also the income that you have.

4. Car Finance

Where the purpose of borrowing money is to pay for a new car or method of transport, car loans are the obvious choice. Around nine in every 10 cars in the UK is now purchased using car finance – most often a Personal Contract Purchase – and if you don’t have a perfect credit score then this doesn’t necessarily have to affect your application. Lenders are often more willing to overlook credit problems – especially if they are not recent – when it comes to car finance, as there is an asset involved. Just like homeowner loans, if you are unable to pay for car finance, the lender can sell the car to retrieve their cash. In practice, this doesn’t happen that often but it gives the lender security against the doubt that may exist over lending to someone with bad credit. Car finance is available for £1,000 to £50,000, repaid over two to five years.

5. Doorstep loans

Many people who have been refused credit by mainstream lenders find they have more success with doorstep loans. The personal nature of this type of lending means that everything is done face to face – the application is online but after that the loan amount and the terms are discussed with a local agent who comes to your home. Payments are made face to face too – this takes the pressure off and makes this a friendlier type of finance and one that lenders are more able to keep track of. Doorstep loans are available for amounts between £100 to £2500.

Note: In all instances lenders will do an affordability check. They will ask you for evidence of your income and outgoings and then make an assessment as to whether they believe you can afford the loan repayments. It is not in your or their interest to provide further credit if it will put you under unnecessary financial pressure.

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