What Documents Do I Need For Car Finance?

• What documents do I need for each method of car finance?
• Personal Contract Hire (PCH) or leasing
• Personal Contract Purchase (PCP)
• Hire Purchase (HP)
• Bank loan
• Can I send photocopied documents?
• What documents do I need if I am self-employed?
• What are the requirements to finance a car?

You will need to provide a variety of documents when applying for car finance, the main ones being:

• Personal details
• Proof of identity (e.g. driving license or passport)
• Proof of income
• Address history (usually three years)

The exact documents you need to provide will differ depending on the type of finance you opt for.

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What documents do I need for each method of car finance?

Personal Contract Hire (PCH) or leasing

You won't need many documents to lease a car for personal use. The main items you'll need are:

• Some personal details (marital status, number of dependants etc.)
• Address details for the past five years
• Employment details for the past three years
• Bank details for the account you wish to set the direct debit up with
• Monthly income and expenditure (may need more information/documents if you aren't in full-time employment)
• Photo proof of ID (driving licence or passport)
• Proof of address documents (utility bills, bank statements etc.)

If you're looking for a business lease car the documents you need will be slightly different.

Personal Contract Purchase (PCP)

For PCP finance, the information you'll need to complete an application is no different from what we mentioned at the beginning of the article. This includes:

• Personal details
• Proof of identity (e.g. driving license or passport)
• Proof of income (i.e. through a pay slip or bank statement)
• Address history (usually three years)
• Bank details (you'll only need these when it comes to ordering the vehicle)

Hire Purchase (HP)

Like PCP, HP finance is not so different when it comes to documents you need in order to apply for a car. That is, you'll need:

• Personal details
• Proof of identity (e.g. driving license or passport)
• Proof of income (i.e. through a pay slip or bank statement)
• Address history (usually three years)
• Bank details (you'll only need these when it comes to ordering the vehicle)

Bank loan

Bank loans are one of the most traditional methods of buying a car, but they are very similar to PCP, HP and leasing when it comes to documents you need to apply for a loan.

To be accepted for a car loan you'll need the following documents:

• Personal details
• Trade-in information (if you plan on trading in a car as part of the arrangement)
• Proof of income (if you're self-employed you'll need tax returns and bank statements)
• Address history (usually three years)
• Proof of identity (e.g. driving license or passport)

Can I send photocopied documents?

Car finance companies will need to see the original copy of your proof documents. Photocopies or scans of the documents will result in you needing to resubmit your application with the real thing.

Remember to send your documents first class so that you get them back as soon as possible. The finance provider will send your documents back to you using the same delivery method.

What documents do I need if I am self-employed?

If you're self-employed and looking for car finance you will need the same documentation as if you were looking for a car for personal use. But you'll also need to provide trading accounts as proof of income (between 1-3 years worth)

Should your business be less than 12 months old, you may also have to provide additional documentation in the form of bank statements. The lender will use these as proof of earnings and expenditure.

What are the requirements to finance a car?

To qualify for car finance, you'll need to:

• Ensure you have a good to excellent credit score
• Have all the right documents to hand before you apply
• Come up with a deposit of around 10% of the vehicle's value
• ake sure you have enough regular income to make the monthly payments
• Consider getting pre-approved before applying

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