Black Horse Limited

Black Horse Limited is the leading provider of motor finance in the United Kingdom. It offers financing of new and used cars, caravans, motorhomes or motorbikes.

Black Horse was formed in 2001 but its origins can be traced back to 1922. It formed from the integration of Lloyds UDT and Chartered Trust. UDT (United Dominions Trust) was created when the Continental Guaranty Corporation of New York established a branch in the City of London in 1919. Later in 1923, it was transformed into a separate company, which was registered in England as the Continental Guaranty Corporation Ltd. Then the company was acquired by British interests; in 1925, it converted to a public company and the name was changed to United Dominions Trust. Having been previously associated with Barclays Bank, in 1981, it became a subsidiary of the Trustee Savings Bank. Chartered Trust was created in 1976 as a consumer finance operation of The Carlyle Trust owned by Sir Julian Hodge. In September 2000, it was sold to Lloyds TSB for £627 million.

Today, Black Horse is the UK’s leading provider of motor finance, with a range of motor loans and hire purchase products. It supports 5,000 motor dealers and alone helped over 200,000 customers with a point of sale motor finance for cars, bikes, caravans, and motorhomes (as of 2017).

Black Horse offers:

• Hire Purchase (HP) - Black Horse buys the vehicle on your behalf less any deposit that you have paid to the dealer. The remaining balance plus interest is then paid over an agreed period of one to five years. These are fixed costs, meaning that the APR (Annual Percentage Rate) is set before the contract begins and will not change.
• Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) - PCP is essentially, the same as a standard Hire Purchase agreement, but with a significant proportion of the amount of credit deferred until the end of the agreement. Unlike Lease Purchase, the value of the vehicle at the end of the contract is guaranteed to at least equal that of the deferred final repayment if the customer exercises the Goods Return Option. Under PCP, the customer has the following options at the end of the agreement:
  • (1) return the vehicle and not pay the Final Repayment. If the vehicle is in good condition and has not exceeded the agreed maximum mileage you will have nothing further to pay. Further information on what is considered good condition can be found at blackhorse.co.uk/ goodconditionguide. If the vehicle has exceeded the agreed maximum mileage a charge for excess mileage will apply.
  • (2) pay the Final Repayment to own the vehicle or
  • (3) part exchange the vehicle subject to settlement of your existing finance agreement; new finance agreements are subject to status.
• Lease Purchase - is essentially, the same as a standard Hire Purchase agreement, but with a large lump sum, which is deferred until the end of the agreement. Unlike PCP, there's no Guaranteed Future Value (GFV) and you do not have the option to return the vehicle to Black Horse at the end of the agreement other than any voluntary termination rights that you may have under the agreement. You agree with the final repayment at the start of the agreement, so you can budget more easily. At the end of the agreement you have two options: make the final repayment, and obtain ownership of the vehicle or part exchange for a new vehicle (if the part exchange does not cover the final repayment you would need to pay the shortfall to settle the finance agreement). New finance agreements are subject to status.
• Personal Contract Hire - ‘Rental’ agreements where you cannot become the legal owner of the vehicle as you are merely renting it from Black Horse. Black Horse as the owner is listed as the Registered Keeper on the DVLA V5 form. A flexible option allowing you to drive a newer model and optional vehicle maintenance packages can be included. Personal Contract Hire is a fixed-cost, rental agreement. You choose a new vehicle, agree on the maximum annual mileage and length of the agreement, and then pay an initial rental followed by fixed monthly rentals to suit your budget. You can even choose to cover vehicle maintenance costs as part of your agreement subject to paying a maintenance charge which is added to your monthly rental.
• CONTRACT HIRE FOR BUSINESS CUSTOMERS - Contract Hire is a fixed-cost, rental agreement. You choose a new vehicle, agree on the maximum annual mileage and length of the agreement, and then pay an initial rental followed by fixed monthly rentals to suit your budget. You can even choose to cover vehicle maintenance costs as part of your agreement subject to paying a maintenance charge which is added to your monthly rental.