Will having interest free payment plans in place affect me getting a personal loan?

alstemp

Good morning forumites.  I am in the midst of renovating my flat and looking into interest free payment plans for new kitchen, bathroom and living room furniture (all with different suppliers).  I have a budget but of course if I can spread the cost over a longer time frame it would be very helpful.  Not really done many interest free things before.

I'm also looking into taking out a personal loan at the same time for other home improvements - would it better to apply for the loan before opening the interest free payment plans?  Will the interest free payment plans impact me getting a personal loan?   Not sure of how al this affects my credit rating and chances of getting more credit/a loan.

Is it OK to have 3 or 4 interest free payment plans in place?  Can you open 3 or 4 over a period of days or will say the 2nd or 3rd one be refused as you've already opened 2?  I currently have a high credit score according to Experian.   

Many thanks for your feedback

mr_stripey

an interest free payment plan is a loan.

The more loans and borrowing you have will have an impact on the availability of further loans and credit

alstemp

Thanks Mr Stripey - is there any way to anticipate how many loans/credit you can realistically get?  and plan it accordingly - so prioritise the interest free/personal loan arrangements you definitely want to have and apply for those first.

Ryan_Holden

Will you be declaring your loans sequentially, i.e. you take out credit 1 then declare 1 when applying for 2, take out 2 and then declare 2 and 1 when you aim for 3. 

Because I imagine the affordability will fail. And remember they reserve the right to withdraw the product if they think you've been disingenuous.

enthusiasticsaver

Interest free payment plans are still loans so they will be taken into account if you apply for further borrowing. Applying for lots of credit at the same time often throws up red flags so I would not  do it but wait 6 months before applying for further credit. 

ManyWays

Interest free payment plans will not appear on your credit record unless they are Consumer Credit Act loans.

Some that are payment arrangements with the supplier will not - this is common for say kitchen and bathroom fitters. If the finance is being provided by a different company they will be CCA loans.

I am afraid the only way to be sure is to ask the supplier.