Capital Credit Union Ltd

Good:
Have a members area on their website so you can control your savings and your loan online

Bad:
You must live or work in Edinburgh, The Lothians or The Borders to become a member

Verdict:
Great local service that offers low interest rates, no fees and finance for people with bad credit

You must live or work in Edinburgh, The Lothians or The Borders to become a member.

Credit Unions offer a few different unsecured loans for any purpose. Their loans are considerably cheap and are based on your proven ability to repay, this is why they do a thorough check of your income and expenditures. You don't need to be a member to apply.

Capital offer 3 different types of loans: Member Loan, Flexi Loan and Loyalty Advance Loan.

First you will need to become a member of the union. In order to apply for a loan, you can download a form off their website (see example below). Complete this and send it to their office along with one month's proof of income and a recent bank statement (two months worth if you are applying for £,2500+). They will confirm your application and it will be passed to a loans officer for assessment. They will then call you and tell you their decision.

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.

Hamilton Place
Monday to Friday - 10:00am to 4:00pm

Bathgate
Monday to Friday - 10:00am to 1:00pm then 1:30 to 4:00pm