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Admiral personal loans: At a glance
If you want flexibility around payment dates and overpayments, Admiral Loans could be for you. But you’ll need a good credit history and solid income, and it can take longer to receive the money in your account than it does with some lenders.
Remember, if you’re considering a loan it’s sensible to only borrow what you need and pay it back as quickly as possible, based on what you can comfortably afford to repay each month.
Promotion
Admiral Personal Loan
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Representative APR14.9%
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Representative ExampleRepresentative APR 14.9%. Based on a loan of £10,000 over 60 months at an interest of 13.97% p.a. (fixed). Monthly repayments of £232.53. Total amount repayable before £13,951.80. Maximum APR: 39.9%.
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Available amounts£1,000 to £30,000
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Available Terms1 to 8 years
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Joint LoansYes
- Must be a permanent resident of England, Wales or Scotland
- Must have lived in the UK for at least three years and have a UK bank account
- Must be in employment or retired and have a minimum annual income of £15,000
- Must not currently have any County Court Judgements (CCJs), any Debt Relief Orders or an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) and are not currently Bankrupt
This loan eligibility service is powered by Monevo. The data you supply is directly submitted to Monevo and is used to retrieve loan quotes from Monevo’s panel of lenders. By using their loans eligibility service you are agreeing to Monevo’s terms and conditions and privacy policy which can be found at Monevo.co.uk. Neither Monevo or Nerdwallet Ltd carry out credit repair services. Late repayment can cause you serious money problems.
Admiral loans pros & cons
Pros
- You can make penalty-free overpayments.
- You can choose your repayment date when you apply for a loan.
- It offers multiple contact methods for managing your loan, via a phone call, live chat, your online account or online form.
Cons
- It can take up to three working days to get the loan in your account.
- It doesn’t offer joint loans.
- Charges may apply if you pay off your loan early.
- There is no face-to-face support as Admiral has no branches.
The pros and cons featured here are chosen by us based on a combination of our expert opinions from our research of the personal loans market and an exclusive survey of UK consumers conducted on behalf of NerdWallet UK in February 2023 to identify the features of personal loans that people feel are most important. They are unlikely to be the only product features and restrictions that you should consider. Pros and cons are subjective and you should align them to your own personal circumstances. Information was correct at the time of publication but may have changed since.
Admiral loans overview
Admiral was formed in 1993 as a specialist car insurance provider. It has expanded its product offering over the years, now offering unsecured personal loans to consumers alongside its range of insurance policies.
Like many lenders, Admiral allows you to see if you are eligible for one of its loans and the rate you may get, without affecting your credit score. If you successfully apply for an Admiral loan, you will need to repay it in fixed monthly instalments over a term of one to eight years.
The maximum you can borrow is £30,000, which compares favourably with other lenders. However, if you want to borrow more, some providers offer larger loans.
Admiral offers flexibility with how and when you repay your loan. You can choose your own repayment date from the start and change it during the term if a different day works better. Admiral also allows you to make additional repayments towards your loan, without facing any penalty fees, if you’ve got the spare cash to do so.
You could also consider using a loans eligibility service to conduct a soft search across multiple lenders and provide you with results of your likelihood of a successful application against several different loans, without affecting your credit score. But do check the details of the service you use, to make sure it only uses soft searches and how many lenders it checks.
| Amount borrowable | £1,000 to £30,000 |
| Term length | One to eight years |
| Time to receive funds | Three working days |
| Need to have an account with the provider | No |
| Customer support | Phone, live chat, online form |
| Trustpilot rating | 4.6 stars (13 April 2023) |
Where Admiral personal loans stand out
You can borrow up to £30,000: Admiral offers loans ranging from £1,000 to £30,000, which is more than some lenders allow. However, others may be able to offer an even larger loan amount if you need it.
You can choose your repayment date: When you apply for an Admiral loan, not only can you choose when your first monthly payments go out, it also allows you to change your monthly payment date at any point during the term of your loan. Handy if your payday changes, for example. However, there could be an impact on the interest you pay, either more or less depending on the change you make, so make sure you check.
Where Admiral personal loans fall short
It can take longer to receive funds: It could take up to three working days to receive the money into your account, which isn’t useful if you need the money quickly. It is significantly longer than some other lenders, which may be able to transfer funds on the same day.
There is no option to take out a joint loan: You can only apply for an Admiral loan as an individual. If you want to apply jointly with another person, you will need to consider an alternative lender.
It has a lower rating on Fairer Finance: According to ratings by review site Fairer Finance, Admiral only has a 58% rating for customer experience as at April 2023. This makes it a lender with one of the lowest scores, and is over 10 percentage points lower than the lenders at the top of the rankings.
What type of loans does Admiral offer?
Unsecured loans
Admiral loans are unsecured personal loans. This means you do not have to put up an asset, such as your home, as collateral in order to be eligible for a loan.
Instead, Admiral will consider factors such as your income, employment status, and your credit history to decide whether to offer you a loan. These can also affect the interest rate you receive.
You can borrow between £1,000 and £30,000 from Admiral. This is more than some lenders, but you may still be able to find a bigger loan from another provider.
Repayment terms on an Admiral loan range from one to eight years, which is longer than some other lenders. But bear in mind, while a longer repayment term can lower your monthly repayments, it also means you will pay more in interest overall.
Loans from Admiral can be used for a range of purposes, such as weddings, home improvements, and buying a car.
Joint loans
Admiral doesn’t offer joint loans. However, there are other lenders that do allow you to apply for a loan with another person.
Loans for bad credit
Admiral states that it won’t accept loan applications from individuals with county court judgments (CCJs), Debt Relief Orders or individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs), or if you are bankrupt.
Admiral states it wants applications to come from individuals with a good credit score. If you have any concerns about your credit history, check it before applying or use a soft search eligibility service.
Don’t apply for loans you’re unlikely to get because unsuccessful applications have a negative effect on your credit score.
Am I eligible for an Admiral loan
To qualify for an Admiral personal loan, you must:
- have lived in the UK for at least three years, and be a permanent resident of England, Wales or Scotland
- earn a minimum annual income of £15,000
- have a UK bank account
- have no current CCJs, IVAs, or Debt Relief Orders
- not be currently bankrupt
On top of this, you will need to pass Admiral’s credit checks and other affordability assessments.
You don’t need to have any Admiral products or be an existing customer to apply for a loan from Admiral.
Admiral loan features review
Admiral personal loans are fairly typical of other products on the market. You can find out more about the particular features of an Admiral loan below.
Making payments
When you apply for an Admiral loan, you can choose the date that your repayments go out. Some 45% of respondents to our NerdWallet survey told us this as an important feature, but it isn’t something offered by every lender. Other lenders may automatically set your payment date to 30 days after your application is approved, for example, which may not always be the most convenient date for you.
After the first month, Admiral also allows you to change your payment date, if the original one you chose is no longer the best for you. You can change your repayment date by contacting Admiral directly by phone or via your online account, online contact form, or webchat.
Overpayments
Admiral allows you to make extra payments towards your loan, on top of your scheduled monthly repayments, without paying any extra charges, but make sure you understand any limits that might be in place. The ability to overpay is typical of most lenders and it was classed as a key feature of a loan by 44% of respondents to our survey.
Paying off a loan early
Borrowers can pay off an Admiral loan before the end of the term, which could help them to save money on interest. However, as is the case with many lenders, Admiral can then charge you up to 58 days’ interest to settle your loan early.
Even though many lenders apply these charges, 49% of respondents to our survey considered the ability to pay off a loan without any penalty as the most important feature of a loan.
To settle your loan early, you can contact Admiral or request a settlement quote through your online account.
» MORE: Paying off a loan early
Additional borrowing
You may be able to borrow more on top of your existing Admiral loan, but only if you have made at least six repayments and have a good repayment history. You will also need to pass Admiral’s usual credit and affordability checks as Admiral will want to make sure you can afford to repay the extra amount.
This additional borrowing could take two different forms. You could apply to take out a separate Admiral loan, which means you would have two loans to repay.
Alternatively, Admiral could create a new loan, based on your remaining balance and the extra amount you are looking to borrow, and use this to pay off your original loan. This means you could find yourself with a different interest rate to your first loan and, depending on the loan term, could result in you paying more in interest overall.
Customer support
You can get in touch with Admiral by phone or live chat, which were considered the most important forms of customer support by respondents in our survey.
You can also contact Admiral through an online form, but it could take several working days to get a response.
As an Admiral customer, you can create an online account to view your documents and manage your loan, including changing details and requesting a settlement figure. However, unlike some lenders, you can’t manage your loan via a mobile app.
If you would prefer to deal with a lender in person, Admiral won’t be the provider for you as it operates solely online and doesn’t have any branches that you can visit.
Customer ratings
Admiral Money has a rating of 4.6 stars on Trustpilot, based on over 1,300 reviews.
However, Admiral is one of Fairer Finance’s poorer performing lenders with a 58% customer experience rating.
This information is correct as of 13 April 2023.
How can I apply for an Admiral loan?
Unlike many other lenders, Admiral doesn’t offer a loan calculator on its website that you can adjust to see how much your monthly repayments could be.
However, Admiral does allow you to check whether you are eligible for a personal loan and the interest rate you qualify for, which won’t affect your credit file. If you are happy with the quote and submit a loan application, Admiral will then carry out affordability assessments and a hard credit check, which will be recorded on your credit file.
If you are successful, you will be sent a loan agreement for you to sign and return. Your funds will be unlocked once you have returned the loan agreement.
What information do I need?
When you apply for an Admiral loan, you will need to provide some personal details as well as information about your financial situation. For example, Admiral will want to know about your income, regular expenses, and your employment status.
In some cases, Admiral may ask you to upload certain documents to support your application, such as copies of your payslips or bank statements.
With your permission, Admiral may use open banking technology as part of the application process. This allows Admiral to securely view information from your bank account, which could help it to make a more informed decision about whether you could afford to repay a loan. It can also help to speed up the application process.
How long does it take to apply?
Admiral says most people will get an instant decision on their application. However, sometimes Admiral will require more information, such as proof of address or income, before making a decision.
If your application is approved, you will receive your funds between 12pm and 5pm on the third working day following the return of your signed loan agreement. This is longer than other lenders, so if you want to receive the money in your account relatively quickly, another lender may be more appropriate.
Frequently asked questions
Admiral states that you will receive your funds on the third working day after you have returned your loan agreement, between 12pm and 5pm.
Admiral Loans is a trading name of Admiral Financial Services, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Review methodology
At NerdWallet Ltd UK we base our reviews on the results of surveys we conduct to understand what key product features are important to those who use them, and align them to the product we review.
Product details reflect the information that was available at that time but may have changed since. We strive to give you a review on as many products as possible but it is likely there are others available that we have not reviewed. The review is our opinion, but it does not constitute advice, recommendation or suitability of your financial circumstances.
You can view our review methodology here.
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