Loans for people with bad credit

Having bad credit these days can affect your financial future quite significantly, but it no longer means that you cannot get credit.

More and more people in the UK have found themselves with a damaged credit rating as a result of rising consumer debt levels, and because of this lenders have had to make provisions for those in this situation. Of course, getting a loan as a bad credit consumer is unlikely to be cheap, and you may find that you are not eligible for certain loans, such as unsecured loans.

The more damaged your credit history and rating are the more difficult you are going to find it to get an affordable loan. In the current financial climate things may be even more difficult for those with bad credit, as many lenders are becoming far more stringent with regards to who they will lend to, and therefore the choice of financial products has fallen – those with bad credit are likely to be hit hardest by this. The reasons why lenders have become so cautious include fears over rising debt levels, increased inter-bank lending fees, and the turmoil caused in the financial markets by the global credit crunch.

In some cases those with bad credit may face severe difficulties in getting a loan. Many bad credit consumers may find that they are able to get a secured loan but cannot get an unsecured loan. More likely than not you will need to be a homeowner if you have bad credit, as secured lenders are more likely to offer finance to bad credit customers. You will find the odd unsecured lender that may offer you a loan if you have bad credit, but the APR that is charges is likely to be extortionate.

Do be mindful that even with a secured loan you are unlikely to get the best APR on the market if you have poor credit. As a bad credit borrower you will be charged a higher interest rate than someone with good credit, but there are still some competitive loans available depending on the level of damage to your credit. You should make sure that you browse and compare a range of loans from a variety of bad credit lenders in order to find the most suitable and affordable one for you.

If you have bad credit and are looking for a loan you need to also remember that making mass applications or a lot of applications in a short space of time can further damage your credit. If you apply for a bad credit loan and are turned down you should wait a reasonable time – at least three months – before you make another application to another lender. If you make one application after another due to rejections, or if you make a lot of applications at the same time, you could find that your credit takes a real battering.

One way around this problem may be to go through a specialist bad credit broker instead, as these specialists have industry links to a wide range of bad credit loan providers, and this means that they will be able to quickly determine which lender may be able to help you based on the details you provide, saving you the hassle of making individual applications to a range of lenders and further risking your credit.

Tom Smith
11th February 2008

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