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TERMS OF BUSINESS

Clear Asset Finance Ltd provides asset finance to business customers. We want to help you find a suitable asset finance product that meets your needs. Our Terms of Business explain factors that you should consider.

Clear Asset Finance Ltd are an independent finance broker with over 10 years’ experience, we are not a Lender. For more information about us, please go to www.clearbusinessfinance.com

Clear Asset Finance Ltd are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No 668175) and a member of the NACFB.

OUR ROLE

Clear Asset Finance Ltd acts as a credit broker (where we work with a panel of asset finance lenders to find a suitable finance arrangement for you). We have a dedicated support team whose role it is to undertake an assessment of your circumstances and offer you the most appropriate finance arrangement with the most appropriate funder. Once we have found a suitable arrangement, we will present the agreement to you to sign. We will discuss this with you and will be happy to explain any terms of the agreement with you.

IS ASSET FINANCE SUITABLE FOR ME?

The main options for financing the purchase of assets are:

  • Take out an asset finance agreement. A lender will purchase the goods from the supplier you have selected, at the price you have negotiated. You will then hire or lease the goods from the lender.

Other options available to you:

  • Purchase outright
  • Bank facility
  • Rent for a short period (typically less than one year)

In deciding which option to select, relevant factors may include:

  • Whether you have the money to buy outright
  • How long you need the goods for
  • Costs of the different options

Asset finance is unlikely to be suitable if you are not sure if you will need the asset(s) for the minimum contract period or if the asset is unlikely to be maintained and kept in a usable condition for the minimum contract period.

YOU SHOULD BE AWARE

You will have to continue to pay for the goods for the agreed period or settle the outstanding balance early even if you no longer need the goods, or if the goods cannot be used (lenders usually offer a small rebate of interest charges in the event of an early settlement).

  • If you change the goods during the agreed minimum rental period, this could lead to higher charges.

For more help in deciding whether to select asset finance, see the Government’s Business Finance advice (https://www.gov.uk/business-finance-explained/overview)

WHAT TYPES OF FINANCE DOES CLEAR OFFER?

Most asset finance arrangements involve paying a deposit and then monthly or quarterly payments including interest. The key difference between products is what happens at the end of the agreement and who owns the goods.

Lease: At the end of the agreement, you do not own the goods. The agreement can often be extended, you may be offered the option to sell the goods on behalf of the lender, or the goods can be returned to the lender. Any alternative arrangement that we can offer will be discussed with each customer individually.

Hire Purchase: At the end of the agreement there is an option to purchase the goods (usually for a nominal amount).

Loan: At the end of the agreement, you will own the goods.

In deciding which option to select, relevant factors may include:

  • How long you expect to use the goods for
  • The income or corporation tax, VAT and accounting treatment of the goods

For more details of these factors please consult with your accountant / finance director / financial adviser.

We do not promote any specific product over another. We do not predetermine what we will offer you. Any asset finance product will be based on your needs and information provided.

Lease, Loan and Hire Purchase Agreements with sole traders, partnerships with only 2 or 3 partners and / or unincorporated associations are likely to be regulated by the Consumer Credit Act 1974 unless (i) the total credit or rentals (including VAT) payable over the minimum term is £25,000 or more; and (ii) the goods are wholly or predominantly for business purposes.

If you are a “high net worth” individual, your finance agreement might not be regulated. Agreements with incorporated bodies (e.g. limited companies) will not be regulated.

THE APPLICATION PROCESS

We will keep you updated with regards to the progress of your application for finance. Of course, you are entitled to request an update at any time during the process. Where we decline a proposal or receive notice of a decline from a funder, we shall contact you accordingly.

In the event that we receive a series of declines from funders for the same credit application, your Clear AF representative will be available to discuss your options (this may include whether you wish us to approach further funders and, as a result, complete further searches, which could impact your credit rating).

FEES

We do not charge you a fee for helping you to find a suitable asset finance product, but we may charge an upfront fee for other products.

We are a credit broker and can introduce you to a panel of lenders. Whichever lender you go with we will receive a commission from them (either a fixed fee or a fixed % of the amount you borrow) and different lenders pay different rates. For certain lenders, we do have influence over the interest rate, and this can impact the amount you pay under the agreement.

This information is available on request, if you would like Clear Asset Finance to confirm please make your request in writing to our address below or by e-mail to info@clearbusinessfinance.com.

COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES

Our complaint handling procedures meet the industry standards required by the Financial Conduct Authority. A copy of these procedures is available on request. If you have a complaint about our service, please contact us:

By post:
Clear Asset Finance Ltd
Suite 6, Ripon House 
35 Station Lane
Hornchurch
Essex
RM12 6JL

By Telephone: 01277 239932
By email: customerservices@clearbusinessfinance.com

We will both acknowledge and aim to resolve your complaint within 5 working days. However, there will be instances in which this will not be possible. In that event our aim will be to resolve your complaint within eight weeks as required by the Financial Conduct Authority.

If you are unhappy with the way your complaint has been resolved, you may have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), free of charge. The FOS will be able to review your complaint subject to their eligibility criteria – but you must refer your complaint to them within six months of the date of this letter.

Further information is available from the FOS website (link shown below). If your complaint is not referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service in time, they will not have our permission to consider your complaint and so will only be able to do so in very limited circumstances. The Financial Ombudsman Service can be contacted as shown below:

Address: The Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR

Telephone: 0800 023 4567 

Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

FAIR PROCESSING NOTICE:

For details on how your personal data could be used, please refer to our Fair Processing Notice below and a copy of which can also be found on our website www.clearbusinessfinance.com/privacy-policy