What total cost information will I receive?

At full application and on the formal facility letter, every UK SMB lender must disclose the total cost of credit in pounds and pence. This includes the principal advanced, total interest payable across the term, all upfront fees (arrangement, documentation, valuation), all ongoing fees (annual servicing, monitoring, account management) and any redemption or early-settlement fees. Together these form the total cost of credit, and you can compare it directly against alternative offers.

What you should see at minimum on a formal offer. Loan principal (the amount advanced). Term in months. Headline rate (APR for term loans, factor rate for MCA, per-month rate for some fintechs). Monthly or weekly repayment amount, with first and last payment dates. Total amount repayable across the full term. Arrangement fee (one-off, often 1% to 5% of principal). Any ongoing fees. Early settlement charge (typically 1% to 3% of outstanding balance, sometimes nil). Default and late payment charges.

What you should ask for if it is not on the offer. The full repayment schedule (every payment, every interest portion, every capital portion). The settlement figure at month 6, 12 and 24 (so you can model an early exit). The total cost equivalent expressed as APR, especially for factor-rate or per-month products where the headline number is not directly comparable. Any clauses that vary the rate during the term (rare on SMB but worth checking).

UK lenders are required to make pricing transparent, but the format varies. APR-priced products are easiest to compare. Factor rate (MCA) and per-month products require conversion: see our effective APR converter. For multi-product comparisons, our blended cost of capital calculator reduces stacked facilities to a single weighted average.

See how do I compare indicative terms and repayment profiles for the comparison framework.