What is a Guarantor Loan?

How it works

A Guarantor Loan is the same as a normal loan and you are still responsible for making the agreed repayments. However, it also allows for a third party (normally a family member) to guarantee your lender the repayments (in case you fail to make them).

Picking a guarantor

Your guarantor can be anybody between the ages of 18 and 75 with a regular income – they don’t necessarily have to be a homeowner, but this would greatly increase your chances of being accepted. Due to the nature of a Guarantor Loan, it’s a good idea to make sure that your guarantor is somebody who trusts you to make the repayments, as well as somebody that you have a good relationship with. Being a Guarantor is a big responsibility – in the eventuality that you cannot meet your repayments, your Guarantor would be liable for the debt instead. Most people tend to ask a member of their family or a very close friend.

What they’ll need to provide us

Your guarantors will have to go through the same checks and processes as you – they will need to provide their employment and financial history (i.e. income, bank statements, bank details), their proof of ID, and potentially other documents, dependent on the lender’s criteria. This is a standard procedure to reassure the finance lender that your guarantor is a suitable choice.

Once you and your guarantor have been accepted and all the boxes have been ticked, most Guarantor Loans are paid out to you within 48 hours.

Additional advantages

The security of a Guarantor Loan for the lender means that you may be offered a lower annual percentage rate (APR) than you could obtain elsewhere. An APR is the money you have to pay in interest for borrowing money from a lender.

A Guarantor Loan means that you can build and improve your own credit score for the future, because (in theory) you should always make the monthly payments. This means that your chances of being approved for finance will be improving as you go along.

Choosing to take a Guarantor Loan can make it more likely for you to be accepted for car finance. Put simply, this is because having a guarantor makes you a much safer bet for a lender. It gives them a reliable back-up option that they can approach for payments.

What happens if you fail to make the repayments?

Failure to make your monthly repayments will mean that your Guarantor will be liable instead. They will be expected to make the monthly repayments on your behalf. Should they also fail to make the repayments, both of you could be issued with a County Court Judgement (CCJ). This will impact both your credit profiles, as well as affect your abilities to obtain credit in the future.

A Guarantor Loan can be a good solution for certain circumstances but it’s important to remember your obligations to both your Guarantor and the lender.

Ready to take the next step?

If you feel that a Guarantor Loan is the best option for you, why not call one of our Guarantor Loan specialists at My Car Credit – they will be more than happy to help you through the quick and easy process. Or click and apply here with My Car Credit to see if you are eligible.