Loans

If you are already a member with us, you can apply online.

If you are not yet a member with us, you can apply for free membership and a loan at the same time by completing our new member loan application pack which can be downloaded, or posted to you at your request.

Before applying, please read our guidance notes to ensure that your loan application is fully completed and the supporting information needed is provided. We also have a summary of responses to frequently asked questions below.

We welcome loan applications for any purpose, which will be assessed on an individual basis, subject to ability to repay. Loan applicants must be aged 18 or over. If you already have a loan with us, you will need to repay at least 25% of your current loan before you can apply for a top-up loan (or one third if you are currently repaying your first loan with us).

No - if you have a bank account and are able to provide bank statements or an open banking authorisation to support your loan application, then you don't need to save with us before applying.

If you don't have a bank account and don't already save regularly with us, we ask that you save for at least four consecutive weeks  before applying for a loan.

We offer loans of up to £20,000 in excess of your savings with us. We are a responsible lender, and we always advise that you apply for an amount that you are confident you are able to repay. We may carry out credit checks to help us make responsible decisions, although we do not base our decisions on a credit score.

Whether you apply online or submit an application by post, we will need the following supporting information to process your application:

• a full month's bank statement (issued in the last 3 months) or authorisiation for us to securely access your statement online via open banking through our partners Credit Kudos.
• proof of address (if you are not an existing member, or if you have moved since your last loan aplication with us and haven't already provided proof of your new address)
• proof of income (e.g. a recent payslip if you are employed, benefits statement if you are unemployed or business bank account statements, receipts or invoices if you are self-employed)

In some circumstances, we may need to ask you for additional supporting information to help us to assess your individual loan.

After your loan has been approved and you have signed your loan agreement, we will transfer the payment into your nominated bank account the same or next working day.

You can repay your loan in the same way as you make deposits into your savings. This can be through standing order,  payroll deductions or direct Child Benefit payments.  If you do not have a bank account, you can also pay at any Post Office or Paypoint outlet using a payment card, or at our branch at 4 Working Street, Cardiff, CF10 1GN.

Loans can be repaid over a period of up to 5 years (60 months), depending on circumstances and the value of the loan. When applying for a loan, you have the option to choose either weekly or monthly loan repayments.

We ask that all our members save a minimum of £10 a month with their loan repayment. We also request that you maintain your savings (up to the value of your outstanding loan) in your account until your loan is repaid. Members making weekly repayments are asked to make a minimum £2 per week payment into their savings.

Members can use our website loans calculator on the homepage to find out how much it will cost to borrow a loan with us. Please note that this calculator is based on our standard loan rates. Rates for loyalty, promotional or credit consolidation loans are charged at specific rates, subject to eligibility. If this is the case for the loan you are applying for, we will advise you of the details if your loan is approved.

Calculating Repayments 

All loans are assessed on ability to repay. This can be used to calculate the approximate cost of repayments. Please note that the loans calculator will give repayment figures based on our standard loan rates, and doesn't take into account any loyalty or promotional rate you may be entitled to, so should only be used as a guide to demonstrate the maximum cost of repayment.  If you are entitled to a rate that is lower than the standard rate, our loans team will ensure that you get the best rate that you are eligible for at the time your loan is approved.

Interest Rates

Credit union loan interest rates are capped by law to ensure that members receive affordable access to credit, subject to status and approval.  Our loan rates vary according to the amount borrowed, between 3.9% APR for larger loans secured by savings, to 41.2% APR for the lowest value loans up to £1,000. Interest rates charges are fixed for the full repayment term, and we do not apply any additional fees or charges.

Saving While You Borrow

Part of our philosophy is to encourage regular savings amongst our members. We therefore request that all of our members pay a minimum of £10 per month into their attached savings account throughout the repayment term of the loan, which you can then access once the loan is repaid.

Returning Paper Applications 

If you are returning an application by post, please send or hand in your completed application and documentation to: Cardiff & Vale Credit Union, 4 Working Street, Cardiff, CF10 1GN.

Please ensure you have put the correct postage on the envelope. Post sent without correct postage are withheld by Royal Mail and we cannot accept responsibility for any undelivered or lost post.

Credit Checks 

We may use credit reference agencies and fraud prevention agencies to help us make loan decisions. What we do and how both we and credit reference and fraud prevention agencies will use your information is detailed in the section in the condensed guidance notes below. When completing a loan application, applicants will be asked to confirm their agreement to proceed and accept that we may use their information in this way.

All applicants are requested to declare any current credit agreements with other lenders e.g. personal or secured loans, credit/store cards including debt management programmes. A credit check would also reveal any County Court Judgments (CCJs), IVA arrangements or bankruptcy orders etc. that have been registered in an applicant's name. Failure to declare correct information may result in an application being refused.

A Condensed Guide to the Use of your Personal Information by Cardiff & Vale Credit Union and at Credit Reference and Fraud Prevention Agencies

1)    When you apply to us to open an account, this organisation will check the following records about you and others (see 2 below)

a)    Our own;

b)    those at credit reference agencies (CRAs).  When CRAs receive a search from us they will place a search footprint on your credit file that may be seen by other lenders. They supply to us both public (including the electoral register) and shared credit and fraud prevention information.

c)    those at fraud prevention agencies (FPAs).

We will make checks such as; assessing this application for credit and verifying identities to prevent and detect crime and money laundering. We may also make periodic searches at CRAs and FPAs to manage your account with us.

2)    If you are making a joint application or tell us that you have a spouse or financial associate, we will link your records together so you must be sure that you have their agreement to disclose information about them. CRAs also link your records together and these links will remain on your and their files until such time as you or your partner successfully files for a disassociation with the CRAs to break that link.

3)    Information on applications will be sent to CRAs and will be recorded by them. Where you borrow from us, we will give details of your accounts and how you manage it/them to CRAs.  If you borrow and do not repay in full and on time, CRAs will record the outstanding debt. This information may be supplied to other organisations by CRAs and FPAs to perform similar checks and to trace your whereabouts and recover debts that you owe. Records remain on file for 6 years after they are closed, whether settled by you or defaulted.

4)    If you give us false or inaccurate information and we suspect or identify fraud we will record this and may also pass this information to FPAs and other organisations involved in crime and fraud prevention.

5)    If you have borrowed from us and do not make payments that you owe us, we will trace your whereabouts and recover debts.

6)    We and other organisations may access and use from other countries the information recorded by fraud prevention agencies.

7)    Your data may also be used for other purposes for which you give your specific permission or, in very limited circumstances, when required by law or where permitted under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998.

How to Find Out More

This is a condensed version and if you would like to read the full details of how your data may be used please visit our website at www.cardiffcu.com or phone (029) 20872373 or ask one of our staff. You can contact the CRAs currently operating in the UK; the information they hold may not be the same so it is worth contacting them all. They may charge you a small statutory fee.

• Experian, Consumer Help Service, PO Box 8000, Nottingham NG80 7WF  or call 0844 4818000 or log on to www.experian.co.uk.
• CallCredit, Consumer Services Team, PO Box 491, Leeds, LS3 1WZ or call 0870 0601414
• Equifax, Credit File Advice Centre, PO Box 3001, Bradford, BD1 5US or call 0870 010 0583  or log on to www.myequifax.co.uk
• Transunion, One Park Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS3 1EP or call 0330 0247574, or log onto TransUnion UK

If you have any other queries, please contact us directly and we will be happy to help.