Your Loan Application

Next steps

• What happens next after my online application has been agreed, subject to paperwork being in order?
• How soon will I receive my money?
• How long can I take to repay the loan?
• I'm having problems with the online application. What should I do?

Need more information?

• Why may my application be declined?
• Could I have been declined just because of the area in which I live?
• I have other credit accounts with you, why have you refused my request this time?
• Can I appeal against your decision?
• Can I re-apply?
• Will the fact that you have declined me mean that other lenders will automatically decline me?
• What can I include as "income" when I'm filling out the application form?

Credit History and Credit Scoring

• What is a credit reference agency?
• Can I check the information held about me by a credit reference agency?
• What is credit scoring and why do lenders use it?
• Do you take into account Credit Reference information against my family or any other person?
• Can I be refused credit because of the credit history of the previous occupants at my address?

Next Steps

What happens next after my online application has been agreed, subject to paperwork being in order?

Following your online submission:

1. We'll print the loan agreement and send it to you as soon as we can (usually the next working day).
2. Once you receive your agreement, please sign and date it where specified and send it back to us in the envelope provided. If we've asked for confirmation of identity, income or other documents, please be sure to enclose the original documents. We will return these to you.

Once we've received your signed agreement (including all the supporting documents we requested), we will usually process your application within two working days. However, we may need to contact you to clarify details in your application - if so, we'll phone or write to you within two working days.

Once we've processed all your documents, we'll transfer your loan funds into the NatWest account that you've specified on your application.

Please note: your application remains an agreement in principle (rather than our final decision) until we've completed our credit assessment process. We may also need to contact you for further information to support your application. If this is likely to affect our final decision or the timing of our final decision, we'll contact you to let you know.

If you don't currently bank with NatWest

If we can give you an agreement in principle, we'll phone you within two working days to let you know what will happen next. If we can't get in touch with you by phone, we'll send the relevant paperwork to you in the post, along with information about what to do next.

If you wish to speak to someone about your application

If you have submitted an online application for a personal loan and would like to enquire as to the status of your application, please call us on the number below.

Please call 0845 30 30 299. Minicom: 0800 404 6161.

Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm, Saturday 9am to 6pm (excluding public holidays).

If you're experiencing technical difficulties with your online application, please call us on 0845 605 0789. Minicom 0800 917 0527.

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How soon will I receive my money?

Already an Online Banking customer? The money could be in your account by the next working day. To do this, you’ll need to apply online, enter your online bank details and meet our credit requirements.

If you are an existing NatWest customer - but not registered for Online Banking you can still apply online. Subject to agreement, we’ll send your documents by post – these typically arrive the next working day.

Simply check, sign and return the documents to us. The funds could be in your account within two days – assuming your application is successful.

For new customers, the funds could be in your account in just five days.

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How long can I take to repay the loan?

For loans under £15,000, your maximum loan term is five years. And for loans between £15,000 and £25,000, you can borrow over a maximum of seven years.

However, if you're borrowing over £2,500 for home improvements, you can take the loan over 10 years.

No matter how much you borrow, the minimum borrowing term is one year if you have a NatWest current account, and two years if you are not an existing NatWest current account holder.

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I'm having problems with the online application. What should I do?

• NatWest Advantage Gold or Black Account customers, please quote L21 when you call
• Select Account or NatWest Current / Current Plus customer, please quote L20 when you call
• Not a NatWest customer please quote TL3

Please call 0800 24 34 06. Minicom: 0800 404 6161

Lines open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm, Saturday 9am to 6pm (excluding public holidays).

If you're experiencing technical difficulties with your application, please call us on 0845 605 0789. Minicom 0800 917 0527.

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Need more information?

Why may my application be declined?

In general your application can be declined for two reasons:

1. A scoring decision where your overall score was not sufficient to reach our acceptance pass mark
2. Specific lending policies e.g.: as a responsible lender it is not our policy to offer credit to applicants who may find it difficult to meet the repayments. You will always be advised of the reason where your application has been declined due to a policy rule. We would stress that if your application is declined it may not be due to information supplied by the Credit Reference Agency but rather due to other details obtained during the application process

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Could I have been declined just because of the area in which I live?

No, such practices are illegal.

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I have other credit accounts with you, why have you refused my request this time?

Your individual circumstances change over time. Our assessment takes into account any current information that is available to us. It may, therefore, be inappropriate to offer you additional credit on this occasion.

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Can I appeal against your decision?

Yes, although we cannot give any assurances that our original decision will be overturned. You should support your appeal by providing any additional relevant information that was not taken into account at the time of our original decision. Full details of our appeals procedure can be obtained from your local branch.

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Can I re-apply?

Your circumstances can change over any given period and we will be pleased to consider a new application from you in due course. However, if your circumstances have not changed since your last application it is unlikely that our decision will change. We will not refuse any application just because we have declined a previous one.

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Will the fact that you have declined me mean that other lenders will automatically decline me?

No, each lender's experience and credit scoring system are different. The Credit Reference Agency used will, however, record the fact that we carried out a search against you and advise any other lender you apply to, who uses their service, of this fact.

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What can I include as 'Income' when completing the application form?

You should include all of your monthly earnings.
For 'Income' you can include all of the following:

• net salary (i.e. after tax)
• pension
• Disability Living Allowance

If you already bank with NatWest, you can also include:

• Court agreed Child Maintenance
• Long-term Town/Housing/Shift allowance from your employer
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit (if not already included in net salary)

Under 'Other monthly income' you can include child benefit, any other state benefits and any other net (i.e. after tax) regular income you receive. Please note that where income you have declared is not shown on your NatWest current account we may ask for additional confirmation

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Credit History and Credit Scoring

What is a credit reference agency?

Credit reference agencies maintain records on an individual to assist lenders in assessing credit applications. These records include information such as:

• Electoral roll status
• Bankruptcies and insolvencies
• County court judgements/court decrees
• Many lenders provide information on the performance of previous and existing credit accounts
• Details of previous credit reference searches carried out by other organisations
• Names of people with whom you are financially associated

The main credit reference agencies in the UK are Equifax Plc, Callcredit Plc and Experian Ltd.

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Can I check the information held about me by a credit reference agency?

You may write to the Agencies for a copy of your file, enclosing the statutory fee of £2. The addresses of the three main Agencies are as follows:

• Equifax Plc, Credit File Advice Service, PO Box 3001, Glasgow G81 2DT
• Experian Ltd, Consumer Help Service, PO Box 8000, Nottingham NG51 5GX
• Callcredit Plc, Customer Service Team, PO Box 491, Leeds LS1 5XX

As well as giving information about you, the file will also provide the names of people with whom you are financially associated.

When you apply for a copy of your file, the Credit Reference Agency will issue along with it details of what to do if you feel that you file contains any inaccurate information and what actions can be taken to correct it.

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What is credit scoring and why do lenders use it?

Credit scoring is used by many lenders to assist them in making credit decisions. It is used to assess applications for certain credit products and to open accounts where credit is required.

It is a proven statistical technique which allows the lender to predict the likelihood of credit being satisfactorily repaid and is widely recognised as one of the most consistent, accurate and fair forms of credit risk assessment.

We calculate your credit score using the following types of information:

• Information that you provide during the application process
• Credit reference information e.g.: whether you have kept your payments on your credit accounts up to date or whether you have been in arrears
• Any existing or past account performance with us, e.g.: previous loans

The credit scoring system allocates points for each piece of relevant information and these are added up to produce a score. Provided your score reaches a certain level and meets our other policy requirements we will generally agree to your request. In order to protect the integrity of our systems, the way we calculate your credit score must always remain confidential.

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Do you take into account Credit Reference information against my family or any other person?

Only if a financial association has been created at the Credit Reference Agency between you and a family member or other person, e.g.: you have made a joint application or if you have declared an association directly to the credit reference agency

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Can I be refused credit because of the credit history of the previous occupants at my address?

No. Unless you are financially associated with the previous occupants, their credit history will not be used in assessing your application.

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