If you’ve recently set up a limited company and you need a van, there’s a good chance you’ve already hit a wall. You’ve gone to a dealer, asked about finance, and been told it’s not possible because the business is too new.
It’s one of the most common calls we take, and the frustration behind it is completely understandable. You’ve got work coming in, you know exactly what you need the van for, and you’re being assessed like a box-ticking exercise by a lender who’s never spoken to you.
The good news is that being turned down at a dealership doesn’t mean finance isn’t available. It usually means you’ve been talking to the wrong lender.
Why dealers can't always help new businesses
Dealer finance is typically provided by a small number of lenders, and most of them apply rigid criteria around trading history.
If your company has been operating for less than a year, there are no filed accounts for them to assess, and many won’t look beyond that fact regardless of your background, your order book, or your personal financial history.
A good example of how this plays out in practice is a courier we worked with who was transitioning from sole trader to limited company.
He had years of experience, established contracts that would comfortably cover the repayments, and a clean personal credit history.
On paper, a strong application. But because the limited company was newly formed, the dealer’s finance company wasn’t interested.
We were able to approach lenders who took a broader view, present the director’s background properly, and demonstrate that the contracts in place made the repayments very manageable. He drove away with two new vans.
That’s not an unusual outcome. It just requires knowing which lenders to go to.
What specialist lenders actually look at
When a business is in its first year of trading, lenders who work with new companies shift their focus away from company accounts and look at the wider picture instead.
Your personal credit history as a director carries significant weight. A clean or strong personal credit profile tells a lender a great deal about how you manage financial commitments, and when the company is new, that matters more than almost anything else.
Your industry experience is taken seriously too. If you’ve spent years working in a sector and you’ve just started your own business in that same field, that background is relevant and worth presenting clearly. The question a lender is really asking is whether this business is likely to succeed and whether the repayments are going to be met.
A director with genuine expertise and relevant experience answers both of those questions more convincingly than a set of six month old accounts ever could.
Any contracts or confirmed work you have in place can also support an application considerably. If you can show that income is coming in and that it covers the proposed repayments with room to spare, that changes the conversation with a lender.
Does the age or value of the van matter?
Yes, to a degree. The newer the van, the more lenders we have available to us, which means more competition and typically a lower interest rate. A newer van also allows for a longer finance term, which can bring the monthly payment down to something more manageable for a business that’s still building its cash flow.
That said, we regularly finance used vans for new businesses. As a rough guide, vans up to around ten years old are generally financeable, though the options do narrow as the age and mileage increase. Ford Transits, Mercedes Sprinters, and Peugeot Experts are among the models that come through most often, though we arrange finance on any make and model.
On the question of maximum value, there isn’t a fixed ceiling for a new business. It really comes down to the strength of the application overall. A director with a strong personal credit history, relevant experience, and confirmed contracts in place can support a more substantial agreement than someone without those things. Each case is looked at on its own merits rather than against an arbitrary upper limit
How to give your application the best chance
Check your personal credit report before you apply and resolve anything that can be resolved. As the director of a new company, your personal profile is doing a lot of the heavy lifting, so it’s worth knowing exactly what a lender will see.
Pull together anything that tells the story of your business credibly. Bank statements, even if only a few months old, evidence of contracts or confirmed work, and a clear explanation of what the van is for and how the repayments fit into your expected income all help. Think of it less as a finance application and more as making the case for your business.
Be careful about applying in multiple places at once. Each formal application typically involves a hard credit search, and several of those in a short period can damage your personal credit score at exactly the wrong moment. A broker can do the groundwork of identifying realistic lenders before any formal applications are submitted, which protects your credit file while still exploring the market properly.
And if you’ve already been turned down at a dealership, don’t treat that as the final word. A dealer works with a limited panel of lenders. A refusal there tells you nothing about what’s available elsewhere.
What if my credit history isn't perfect?
This is worth addressing honestly. If there are significant adverse entries on your personal credit file, particularly recent ones, that will affect what’s available. It doesn’t necessarily rule out finance entirely, but it does change which lenders are realistic options and may affect the rate and terms on offer.
The starting point is always to know what’s on your file and to be upfront about it. Lenders who work with new businesses in this space tend to take a pragmatic view, and an honest application is always better received than one where problems emerge later in the process.
So where does that leave you?
If your limited company is less than a year old and you need a van, the honest answer is that options exist, but they’re not always where you’d think to look.
The lenders most likely to help you aren’t the ones sitting on a dealer’s forecourt. They’re accessed through brokers who understand how to present a new business application properly and who know which lenders are genuinely open to that kind of deal.
If you’ve already been turned down or you’re not sure where to start, our van finance page explains how we work with new and early stage businesses, and you can check your eligibility without affecting your credit score.
How First Oak Capital Can Help
This part’s important.
At First Oak Capital, we get to know your business. We don’t push one-size-fits-all products. We don’t ghost you. And we never leave you guessing.
What we do is:
- Find the best finance solution for your situation.
- Work with our wide network of lenders.
- Move fast, communicate clearly, and stay with you from start to finish.
Whether you want a second-hand or brand new van, or you’re unsure what’s best, we’ll walk you through it. No pressure. Just good advice.
Ready to get moving?
Click here to apply now or speak to one of our friendly brokers today.
Yes. The options are more limited than for an established business, but lenders who specialise in new companies do exist. Your personal credit history and industry experience carry more weight than company accounts at this stage.
Some lenders will ask for one when the business is new but not all of them. It’s fairly standard in this situation and worth being prepared for before you apply.
It can do. Newer vans give access to more lenders and better rates. Used vans are absolutely financeable, but very old or high mileage vehicles do narrow the field. As a general guide, vans up to around ten years old are workable in most cases.
Some lenders will consider applications from companies who have not even started trading yet. Others require a few months trading. It depends on the overall strength of the application rather than the trading period alone.
An initial eligibility check is typically a soft search and won’t leave a mark. Formal applications involve a hard search, which is why it’s worth identifying the right lenders before submitting anything formal.
