Guaranteed Loans - What They Really Mean

Representative example: Amount of credit: £1,250 for 12 months at £125.32 per month. Total amount repayable: £1,503.84. Interest: £253.84. Annual interest rate: 35.6% (fixed). Representative 42.0% APR. The rate you're offered depends on your circumstances. Credit broker, not a lender.

Warning: Late repayment can cause you serious money problems. For help, go to moneyhelper.org.uk

The term “guaranteed loans” can have more than one meaning.

For some people, it means a loan where approval is guaranteed. For others, it refers to a loan that is guaranteed by another person, usually a friend or family member. These were often known as guarantor loans, with companies such as Amigo Loans being one of the better-known providers in the past.

In our experience, most people searching for this term are usually looking for lenders that will guarantee approval, regardless of their credit history or personal circumstances.

Some commentators say that guaranteed loans do not exist at all, but that is not quite the full picture.

A loan can be “guaranteed” if the lender has suitable security. For example, pawnbrokers and other secured lenders may lend against valuable items, vehicles or other assets. It's one of the reasons that "guaranteed car finance" is often searched. In that situation, some borrowers believe the lender is relying on the security provided, or a substantial deposit, rather than offering an unsecured loan purely on the strength of the borrower’s credit profile.

What most borrowers are really looking for is an unsecured guaranteed loan - and that is where the important distinction lies.

In the UK, unsecured loans with guaranteed approval do not realistically exist. No responsible lender is going to guarantee an unsecured loan without first looking at the applicant’s circumstances, affordability and credit position.

From a lender’s point of view, that would make no commercial sense. From a regulatory point of view, it would also be extremely difficult to justify.

There is, however, a technical difference between a guaranteed approval claim and a guaranteed offer after checks have been completed.

When someone applies through a site like Yes Loans, they are not automatically being handed a loan. They are usually requesting a quote or a lending decision. Lenders will look at the information provided, assess affordability, review credit data where appropriate, and then decide whether they are able to make an offer.

Once a lender has made a firm offer and the borrower accepts it, the position is very different. At that point, the loan may be effectively guaranteed, subject to the lender’s final checks, identity verification and completion of the agreement.

So, while guaranteed loans can exist in certain technical or secured lending situations, they do not usually exist in the way many borrowers hope for.

A lender may be able to give you a fast decision, a real quote, or a high chance of approval, but no legitimate unsecured lender should promise approval to everyone before carrying out proper checks.

If you are looking for a loan, you are welcome to check your options through Yes Loans using the button below. If a lender is able to offer you a quote, you can then decide whether the loan is right for you before going ahead.

A final word of caution: people searching for “guaranteed loans” can sometimes be vulnerable to misleading or unscrupulous websites.

Be especially careful if anyone asks you to pay an upfront fee before receiving a loan. This type of practice has existed for many years, and while it is less common among authorised firms, it can still appear on rogue or unlicensed websites.

Always check who you are dealing with, never pay an upfront fee to secure a loan, and be wary of anyone who promises guaranteed approval without first asking about your circumstances.

Yes Loans is so confident in the loan quotes shown through our website that we are prepared to stand behind them.

If you apply through Yes Loans, receive a genuine loan quote from one of our lenders, and then go on to apply for that quoted offer, we guarantee that the money shown in the quote will be made available to you.

If the lender later withdraws the offer through no fault of your own, Yes Loans will step in and gift you an amount equal to the loan amount shown in the original quote, up to a maximum of £1,500.

This is not a replacement loan and does not need to be repaid to Yes Loans. It is our guarantee that, once a genuine quote has been made through our platform, you should be able to rely on it.

1. The Yes Loans Quote Guarantee only applies to genuine loan quotes issued through the Yes Loans website by a lender or lending partner on our panel.
2. The guarantee only applies after a lender has issued a quote. It does not mean that every applicant is guaranteed to be approved for a loan.
3. The quote must clearly show the amount the lender is willing to lend, together with the proposed repayment terms.
4. The applicant must go on to apply for the same quoted offer within the time allowed by the lender.
5. The applicant must comply with the lender’s own terms and conditions, including any identity, fraud prevention, bank account, income, employment, affordability or documentation requirements.
6. The guarantee will only apply where the lender withdraws the quoted offer through no fault of the applicant.
7. The guarantee will not apply if the quote is withdrawn because the applicant provided incorrect, incomplete, inconsistent or misleading information.
8. The guarantee will not apply if the applicant changes the loan amount, loan term, personal details, employment details, income details, bank details or any other material information after receiving the quote.
9. The guarantee will not apply if the applicant fails to complete the lender’s application process, fails to provide requested documents, fails an identity or fraud prevention check, or does not accept the lender’s offer within the required time.
10. The guarantee will not apply where the lender is legally or reasonably required to withdraw the offer, including where the lender identifies fraud risk, affordability concerns, identity issues, incorrect information, duplicate applications or regulatory concerns.
11. Yes Loans must be notified within 48 hours of the lender withdrawing the quoted offer. This allows us to investigate the issue and, where appropriate, take action if a lender is not honouring genuine quotes.
12. The applicant must provide reasonable evidence of the original quote and the lender’s later withdrawal. This may include emails, screenshots, application references, text messages or other relevant communications.
13. If a claim is accepted, Yes Loans will gift the applicant an amount equal to the loan amount shown in the original quote, up to a maximum of £1,500.
14. Any payment made under this guarantee is a goodwill gift from Yes Loans. It is not a loan, is not credit, does not involve interest, and does not need to be repaid.
15. The guarantee applies only to the loan amount shown in the original quote. It does not cover interest, charges, broker fees, late payment fees, missed payments, credit file impact, loss of opportunity, consequential losses or any other financial loss.
16. The guarantee is limited to one successful claim per person. Yes Loans may also reject duplicate or linked claims from the same household, address, bank account, device or application details where abuse is suspected.
17. Yes Loans reserves the right to reject any claim that appears to be fraudulent, abusive, manipulated, duplicated, artificial, exaggerated or not made in good faith.
18. Yes Loans may withdraw or amend this guarantee at any time, but this will not affect a valid claim relating to a genuine quote issued before the guarantee was withdrawn or amended.

If you believe you have met the terms of the Yes Loans Quote Guarantee but have not received the loan amount quoted, please contact us using the form on our Contact Us page.

We urge users to do this as soon as possible, and no later than 48 hours after the lender withdraws the offer, so that we can investigate the matter promptly.