Caledfryn Credit Union

Good:
All loans covered by free life insurance, can even lend to you if you have bad credit

Bad:
Every transaction must be done by visiting their office or one of their collection points

Verdict:
Good option if you have bad credit as there are no extra fees or charges - must live or work within the County of Denbighshire, south of the A55

You must live or work within the County of Denbighshire, south of the A55, to become a member.

Credit Unions offer a few different unsecured loans for any purpose. Their loans are fairly cheap and are based on your proven ability to repay, this is why they do a thorough check of your income and expenditures. You need to be a member to apply and you can only apply for a loan after you have been saving for 3 months. You can borrow anything up to £10,000 above your savings. Your loan is covered by FREE life insurance.

First you will need to become a member of the union. Pick up a loan application form their office or collection point or you can download it off their website (see example below). Complete the application along with the proof of income and expenditure and take it to the office or collection point to discuss with an official. It will be reviewed by the Loans Panel. They will then call you and tell you their decision where you can go to the office or collection point to collect your loan. First loans have to be paid back over a maximum of 12 months, after that they may be repaid over three years.

The process may in some cases take up to one week so this is not a good option for you if you need your money quickly. You cannot manage your loan online so every time you need to make a change, you need to contact them in writing. With credit unions, the money you are borrowing is the money of other members, so if you fail to make payments, they take this very seriously. Their opening hours are very limited, which makes it difficult for you to go in to organise all your documents and sign your agreement. On the other hand, they want to help you rebuild your finances if you haven't got a good history. Their rates are extremely low and their repayments are really small each month.

Office Opening Times
Monday - Friday: 9:30am-4:30pm

Collection Point Opening Times (Llygadog Community Centre, Clawdd Poncen, Corwen)
Friday 11:30am - 12:30pm