How using a broker can help you get HGV finance, fast
It’s a fair bet you didn’t start working in logistics or as an HGV driver because you’ve got a hidden love of financial markets and lending agreements. To be fair, not many people have, and yet finance is at the core of all business. You definitely want to be taking home enough money and to have enough to cover your regular expenses like fuel, insurance, training and so on. You need to stay on top of your cash-flow, even when it’s not what you do best.
The answer: look for help. Like with anything else at work, find a trusted supplier who can give you what you need. You wouldn’t try setting up petroleum distillation to create your own fuel, so why would you try to navigate finance and lending on your own?
The difference between lenders and brokers
Lenders are the ones who provide the finance. They lend you the money according to the specific agreement that you both sign and they’re the one you repay.
Brokers (like SME Funding UK) don’t lend money themselves. Instead they have relationships with many different lenders and can help you to find the best loan agreement at the best terms for you and your business.
When you need someone to help you understand your finance options, it’s a broker you need to talk to. They’re interested in helping you find the right deal, within the right timescale and the right terms. Good brokers will help you with the paperwork, will speed up the process and will usually get you a better deal than if you went directly to a lender.
At HGV alliance we’re happy to recommend a broker who can help you find finance quickly and easily: Henry at HGV Finance UK (a specialist division of SME Funding UK Ltd). Below we’ll share 4 ways that working with a broker can make your life easier.
1. Brokers can save you loads of time
In the same way that you know your vehicle and the haulage business, an experienced and ethical broker knows about funding and finance. Imagine how much time you’d need to look at 250 different lenders with all their different loan types, to find the best one for your situation. It may sound like a horror for you, but a trustworthy broker has this kind of information at their fingertips.
Henry at SME Funding UK, for example, has over 20 years of specialist experience in commercial funding which you can lean on when you need it. He will explain to you in plain terms what the lending terms mean for you. You get to avoid the sales spin and pressure so you make a good decision without having to spend weeks (or years) studying finance.
2. Get haulage finance in your account faster
Your broker will know exactly what documentation you have to provide and will keep you on track with providing it, even when you’re busy out on the road.
More importantly, your broker will know how to present your financial information in the best way to minimise anything that could make the lender wary. This is where your broker can make the difference between getting the money exactly when you need it and having to start over with another lender, meaning a delay in getting the money approved.
3. Someone you can speak to about your application
When this is your business and your livelihood you want to know what’s happening and how long it’s going to take. Unfortunately, high street banks and other lenders aren’t always so good at communicating and when are you going to chase them – another thing to do while you’re in the cab?
With an independent broker who is also a small business owner like you, you get someone who will always talk to you in plain English about what’s happening now and next. Henry is often available outside office hours, by prior arrangement – including weekends.
4. Brokers deliver competitive rates and terms for your finance
Because they know the finance industry and what different lenders are offering, a broker can get you the most competitive rates and terms for your specific situation.
SME Funding UK has access to over 250 lenders, meaning they can usually find finance even when high street banks or other major lenders have already proven unhelpful.
If you’re a van, LGV or HGV owner operator, you don’t have to be a finance expert as well. To speak to Henry about finance please visit the HGV Finance UK page on the HGV Alliance website.
