Secured Loan You can use your home as security for a loan, so this option is only available to you if you own your own home. If you fail to repay the loan on time the lender could repossess and sell your home to cover the debt.

Unsecured Loan With an unsecured loan your property cannot be repossessed but you are legally obliged to repay the loan according to the terms agreed and could face penaties or court action if you don't.

In selecting a loan do consider your needs and, particularly for short term needs, look at alternative options like bank overdrafts, credit cards or in store finance deals. For long term needs a mortgage advance may be an alternative option.

Always read the small print carefully and do shop around.

We recommend seeking expert advice in selecting the most appropriate loan for your circumstances. moneyjungle.net - click here to find an independent financial adviser.

When someone applies for a loan, their credit report is searched by the loan provider. It’s essential for consumers to check their credit report. Inaccurate or out of date information may lead to customers receiving a higher interest rate (APR) or even having their loan application rejected by the provider.

CreditExpert from Experian, the UK’s largest credit reference agency, enables consumers to check their own credit report online FREE for a trial period.

For more information on personal loans see the FSA moneymadeclear website.

You will a range of personal loan providers in the Money Jungle Business Directory

Short Term Loans

Sometimes you may just need access to a relatively small loan over a short time period. One type of loan is the Payday loan giving you access to your salary early. Payday loans may appear attractive but the interest rates charged can be extremely high, possibly in excess of 1000%! You will generally be much better off speaking to your bank about a short term overdraft facility or even seeking out your local credit union.

Wonga is a ground-breaking online lender operating in the UK. By offering small, short-term cash advances, Wonga provides consumers with instant money whenever they need it – 24 hours a day, 365 day a year.

The Wonga product is simple - It takes only minutes to complete the online application and we make an instant decision thanks to our sophisticated risk technology, assessing hundreds of pieces of data in seconds. If accepted, our customers then receive up to £750 into their bank account within minutes! Wonga has a consumer credit licence from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT)

Click here for more about instant loans from Wonga.

Zopa is the online marketplace where people meet to lend and borrow money. The easiest way to describe it is like eBay for money - lenders lend money, borrowers borrow money, and by cutting out the banks, everyone gets a better deal.

If you're looking for a loan, you'll get a competitive rate and Zopa don't have any sneaky fees or penalties if you want to repay early. Plus, you get that warm feeling inside, knowing that your repayments are helping real people rather than the fat cats.

Or, if you've got some spare cash and fancy making a return, why not try lending at Zopa? Zopa credit-score and risk assess every borrower, you can lend each borrower as little as 10 pounds to minimise risk and all payments are collected on your behalf.

Click here for more information about Zopa

Payment Protection Insurance

Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) can offer security and peace of mind but be sure to check that the cover offered is appropriate for your circumstances and make sure that you understand what the cover costs.

Many people have paid for expensive payment protection insurance when taking out loans, only to find that a claim is turned because of exclusion clauses in the small print. PPI can add anything up to 50% to the cost of loans.

It may be that the terms where not fully explained or that the cover was unsuitable for an indivudual's circumstances. Anyone who feels that they were miss sold PPI should complain and seek compensation.

The first thing to do is to contact the company that sold you the policy and give them a chance to respond. If you are not satisfied your next port of call is the Financial Ombudsman Service. The Financial Ombudsman Service website includes helpful information and a fact sheet you can download. See also guidance on the FSA Money Made Clear website.

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