A new member of TCU can apply for a loan immediately after joining. Once the one-off membership fee has been paid by way of a credit to activate account, loan applications of up to £10,000 can be made via the TCU online banking app or by contacting the office on 02890309770.

Members are eligible to apply borrow up to £35,000 (£20,000 plus the balance held in their share account). New members applying for their first loan can borrow up to £10,000.

Currently, TCU only offers the facility for members to hold one loan. However, members are welcome to apply for a Top-Up loan where an additional balance is added to their existing balance and combined into one monthly repayment.

The funds in your shares may be held against your loan as security and therefore cannot be withdrawn whilst repaying your loan. The amount used as security is dependent on the amount borrowed and the amount held in shares.

Whilst we make every effort to make our loan products as affordable and competitive as possible, we are aware there may be circumstances where lower loan rates are available elsewhere. However, a loan with TCU offers many additional benefits not commonly seen with other lenders and we feel these added extras are invaluable to our members.

Whilst many other lenders advertise a representative APR, this is commonly not the interest rate given to most applicants and is based wholly on credit scoring. We pride ourselves in offering the same interest rate to all members meaning the rate you see, is the rate you get and this wont change dependent on your financial circumstances.

TCU adds interest to your loan on a daily basis and this is calculated on a reducing balance. So, as your loan balance falls, the amount of interest you’re paying back also reduces. There are no early repayment fees or charges with TCU

The loan interest rebate is another way we like to give back to our members. This is an extra benefit to our borrowing members. As borrowing is the life blood of the Credit Union we deeply appreciate our members who turn to us for their borrowing needs. The loan interest rebate is a percentage of the interest paid by the borrowing member, which is given back to them at the end of the year from the surplus of income. The percentage is announced each year at the AGM and is then paid into the members’ savings accounts the following morning. Another great reason to come to us for lending!

Did you know that all loans issued by the credit union are fully insured? This means that unlike a standard personal loan or car finance, your loan will be fully cleared in the event of your death.

Our loans are flexible and can be repaid at any stage without penalty. We operate our interest on a daily pro-rata basis, so any overpayments to your loan will reduce the total amount of interest payable.
There are no fee's associated with TCU loans.

Teachers' Credit Union accepts loan applications from all members however the amount applied for may be impacted by your age. Please note that all members are eligible to apply for a loan of up to £8,000 until the age of 85. If you would like to discuss your own individual lending requirements, please contact the office on 02890309770 where a member of staff will be happy to assist.

Teachers' Credit Union follows responsible lending practices, assess each member as an individual and always consider each members personal circumstances. However, there may be times where we are unable to lend to a member. Some examples of these reasons may be found below.

• Affordability/Ability to repay the loan: Where a member cannot evidence the ability to meet their repayments for the duration of the loan as well as other financial obligations, we may be unable to lend on that account.
• Poor Credit History or non-payment of a previous loan: Some loan applications may require the production of a credit report. Should this credit report demonstrate a poor history of repayment with other lenders or if the member has had previous poor repayment history with TCU, this may result in a loan refusal.
• Gambling: There is nothing illegal about gambling. However, we do have a duty, under regulations, to lend responsibly. If gambling transactions are evident, we will consider whether these transactions are reasonable and responsible. We will particularly look at the frequency of these transactions and the size of the transactions in relation to a member’s income.