Having a joint car finance agreement is when two people sign a loan contract and agree to share the responsibilities. Joint car finance agreements are typically signed by family members or partners, who are considered co-borrowers.
Firstly, if you were to have joint car finance then both you and your co-signer would be held legally responsible for maintaining the repayment schedule. Essentially this means that if you are at some point in the future unable to fulfil your payment commitments due to unemployment, financial difficulty or any other reason, your co-signer would be expected to pick up the remaining payments and visa versa, you would be expected to pick up the payments if they missed them.
It’s also worth noting that if either of you already have bad credit, making a joint application will link your finances with the credit reference agencies that the lender in question uses and could therefore affect both you and your co-signers ability to obtain further credit, either jointly or individually.
You should consider all of the pros and cons before looking to sign a joint car finance agreement.
Representative example – Total amount of credit £9,000, annual interest rate 21.75% (fixed), charge for credit £10,092.32 (£9,787.32 interest, £295 admin fee and £10 option to purchase fee), total amount payable £19,092.32. Loan term of 60 monthly instalments, 59 payments of £318.04 and 1 final instalment of £328.04. 40.9% Representative APR – Subject to status and affordability
Here at Go Car Credit we do provide car finance for joint applicants. There are a couple of requirements when it comes to making a joint application for car finance such as both applicants must live at the same address and you will both be required to sign the Hire Purchase Agreement.
Your chances of approval may be higher if you apply for joint car finance. This is because your partners income could be taken into account if you don’t quite have enough income by yourself.
You should read the below information on joint liability as this explains your legal obligation as a co signer on a finance agreement. It is also worth noting that if either of you already have bad credit, making a joint application will link your finances with the credit reference agencies and could therefore effect both you and your co-signers ability to obtain further credit in the future.
You might think that when you take out a joint car finance loan with someone else that you’re only responsible for your ‘half’ or share, but that’s not the case.
By signing a credit agreement for a car loan with someone else such as your partner or parent, you’re each agreeing to pay off the whole debt if the other(s) can’t – or won’t pay.
Lenders may use different terms to describe this, however the most common terms you may hear are ‘joint’ or ‘several’ liability.In terms of legal responsibility, it doesn’t matter who drives the car and it doesn’t make a difference whether you’re married, in a civil partnership or even if you’re not in a relationship at all.
Any joint debts mean joint responsibility and liability. So, if the other person doesn’t pay up, you could end up with the outstanding loan amount on your hands.
This is something you should take time to consider when looking to enter into a joint car finance agreement.
Have you been declined finance by mainstream lenders? We don’t think bad credit should hold you back from getting the new car you need. As one of the UK’s specialist finance providers, we could say yes – even if you have a low credit score, county court judgements (CCJs), defaults, payment arrears, a previous IVA agreement or have previously been declared bankrupt.
Here are some reasons why we could be a suitable finance provider for you:
You can choose your ideal used vehicle from any of the dealerships in our UK network, including Newcastle, Leeds, Glasgow, Portsmouth or Manchester. With a new car being a serious commitment it’s perfectly normal to have questions and want to take your time to find the right finance package for you.
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