Car finance with a Default on file?

sirwiggum

Basic Q - What are the chances of getting car finance with a 5.5 yr default on file?

My car has gotten to the state / age (1999) where it is needing ever more work done to it, DIY work becomes difficult with components seized / rusted in place, jobs start to creep up on what the car is worth and I start to wonder if I am throwing good money after bad.

My situation is that I had a 5.5 yr default on file from a few years ago when I was in a lot worse situation financially than I am now.

I was considering changing the car, however what would the chances of getting finance be?
I can't even get a Credit Card through my bank (Santander) though I did get a CapitalOne/Luma for business expenses.
They do send mailshots and advertise on my online banking that they can offer me a low rate loan, however if they don't offer me a CC, and Noddle does not show any appropriate Loans on their page, what would the chances be?

I can offer a 2k deposit, I was thinking of using this to buy another car outright. I have done this before, but the problem I find at this end of the used car market is that you usually inherit someone else's headaches.

So I might just patch up the car I have, wait until the defaults clear in December, and see what my situation is like in January.

Anyone any opinions?

Thanks

kelevraz

you probably will get finance if you literally only have one default on your file and its 5 and a half years old, you may not get the best rates though..

sirwiggum

Thanks.

So it would be an option, but if I'm going to be paying daytime-TV-loan-ad rates of APR I have to think about whether it is even worth doing.

kelevraz

no no i doubt it would be that bad, i have a friend who had a 2 year default on his file, and he was offered 32% APR, whichhhh is abit high in this day and age, considering with good credit you can get a loan for as low as like 5%. but we didnt expect they would offer him finance atall,

personally, id advice you get a loan from elsewhere, or atleast see what you'll be offered, in a showroom if they do a credit check and you get a horrendous APR offer or no offer atall, youll either be tied down to something you dont want, or you wont get your car. Generally the bank will always give you a better rate than a finance company with, and if the bank reject a loan or offer you a silly APR, you COULD write to them and tell them to tell them the default will be gone soon and what its there for and bla bla, and they may offer you a loan or possibly lower the APR they ask for

sirwiggum

I ended up buying a cheap car with a bit of savings.

My fiancee, who has sparkling credit, bought the sensible 'family' car...

My defaults (2 for the price of 1 as they combined the accounts...) are listed as 6/12/2007, so I'd imagine in a weeks time or so they'll have their 6 year anniversary.

How does this work in practice? If the credit file gets updated at the start of December, I'd imagine it'll still be on it.

Would it be the start of January credit file that would have these dropped off?