Index
Why choosing the right finance company matters before submitting an application
Profile 1: salaried employee with a permanent contract
Profile 2: self-employed or business owner with variable turnover
Profile 3: partnership or company buying a car for their business
Profile 4: customer with ASNEF record or weak credit history
Profile 5: customer wishing to finance a car over 10 years old
Profile 6: customer with no fixed payslip but with provable income
Summary table: recommended finance company by profile
Dealcar and the management of financed operations
Frequently asked questions
Why choosing the right finance company matters before submitting an application
Every finance application submitted leaves a footprint on the customer's credit record. If the application is rejected and submitted to another lender, that second search is also recorded. Two or three rejections in a short period can make subsequent approvals difficult even with more flexible lenders, as the system interprets multiple searches as a sign of difficulty in obtaining credit.
Read also how to reduce finance rejection in a dealership.
That is why the decision of which finance company to submit the application to must be made before submitting anything, not by trial and error. A sales executive who knows the typical profile of each lender ends up submitting fewer failed applications and closing more deals on the first attempt.
The five variables that most affect approval are: the customer's employment status, the debt-to-income ratio, payment history (ASNEF, CIRBE), the value and age of the vehicle, and whether the deal is for an individual or a company.
Profile 1: salaried employee with a permanent contract
This is the profile with the most options available. Virtually all conventional lenders work well with salaried employees on permanent contracts: Santander Consumer Finance, BBVA Consumer Finance, Cetelem, Cofidis, CaixaBank Consumer and most manufacturer finance companies.
The factor that varies most between lenders for this profile is the maximum accepted debt-to-income ratio: most will not approve if the installment of the new loan plus existing debts exceeds between 35% and 40% of the customer's net income. Santander Consumer and BBVA Consumer are somewhat more restrictive on this point; Cetelem and Cofidis are usually slightly more flexible for profiles with a good history even if the ratio is tighter.
For this profile, the correct strategy is to submit to the finance company with which the dealership has the best partnership agreement, because the interest rate and approval conditions offered to the regular dealer are better than those for a customer who arrives without an intermediary.
Profile 2: self-employed or business owner with variable turnover
The self-employed is the profile that generates the most variation among lenders. Some treat them almost the same as a salaried employee if they have been registered for more than two years and have documented stable turnover; others apply much more restrictive criteria because they consider variable income to carry more risk.
Santander Consumer Finance and BBVA Consumer are more demanding with the self-employed: they usually ask for the last two years of personal income tax returns (modelo 100) and the latest quarterly VAT returns (modelo 303) to verify income stability. If the last year's turnover is lower than the previous year, they may reject even if the absolute income is sufficient.
Cofidis and Cetelem have somewhat more flexible criteria for self-employed individuals with at least two years of registration. They accept profiles with variable income if the average of the last two years exceeds the threshold necessary to cover the monthly payment.
For self-employed individuals registered for less than two years, conventional options are significantly reduced. In this case, lenders specialising in medium-risk profiles such as Flexicar Financial or some fintechs that have entered the vehicle finance market can be a viable alternative, albeit with higher interest rates.
See also how to sell monthly payments instead of price when financing a car.
Profile 3: partnership or company buying a car for their business
When the buyer is a company (SL, SA, cooperative), the nature of the deal changes: it is not consumer finance but business finance. Not all dealership finance companies offer finance to legal entities; some only work with individuals.
Those that do work with companies are usually Santander Consumer Finance, BBVA Consumer Finance and some lenders specialising in business vehicles such as Alphabet Financial Services or ALD Automotive Financial.
For a company, the documents typically requested are the company's CIF, the latest annual accounts filed with the Mercantile Registry or the Corporate Tax return for the last financial year, and in many cases the personal guarantee of the director. For companies with less than two years of history, securing finance under the company name is very difficult and the alternative is usually finance under the name of the director as an individual.
Leasing and contract hire are more accessible alternatives than a direct loan for companies, especially for smaller or newer ones, because the financed asset acts as inherent security in the contract.
Read also how stock finance works for dealerships to understand the logic of asset financing.
Profile 4: customer with ASNEF record or weak credit history
An active record in ASNEF is a cause for automatic rejection with most conventional lenders. The remaining options are lenders specialising in profiles with credit defaults, which operate with higher interest rates and more limited financed amounts.
Some specialist lenders operating in Spain in this segment are Moneyman, Credius and some niche consumer finance entities that have specific products for customers with weak credit history or minor issues (telecommunications debts, utilities, small amounts).
Before submitting the application, it is advisable for the customer to check their own status in ASNEF to know exactly what issues are active. If the record is for a small and resolvable amount (an unpaid mobile bill, for example), clearing that debt before submitting the application can open doors to conventional lenders that would otherwise reject.
Check how ASNEF affects the sale of used cars.
For these profiles, the dealership can facilitate the deal by proposing a larger deposit (which reduces the financed amount and improves the loan-to-value ratio) or a shorter term that lowers the monthly payment and improves the debt-to-income ratio.
Profile 5: customer wishing to finance a car over 10 years old
The age of the vehicle is one of the criteria that most limits finance options. Conventional lenders have different policies regarding the maximum age of the vehicle they will finance.
Santander Consumer and BBVA Consumer typically do not finance vehicles over 10 years old or with more than 150,000 or 200,000 kilometres. Cetelem and Cofidis are usually slightly more flexible, reaching vehicles up to 12 or 15 years old in some cases.
For vehicles over 10 years old, the alternatives that work best are personal loans not secured against the vehicle: the customer takes out a personal loan with Cetelem, Cofidis, Cashper or any consumer loan entity, and uses that money to buy the car. The interest rate is usually slightly higher than that of vehicle-secured finance, but there is no restriction on the age of the car.
Another alternative is to finance only a part of the price, with the customer providing a larger deposit that keeps the financed amount within the limits the lender accepts for that type of vehicle.
Read which finance companies work with independent dealerships in Spain.
Profile 6: customer with no fixed payslip but with provable income
Pensioners, individuals with rental income, temporary or part-time workers, and students with family income are profiles that do not fit the standard fixed payslip criteria but may have genuine repayment capacity.
For pensioners with an adequate pension, most conventional lenders work well if the monthly payment is proportional to the pension and the debt ratio is reasonable. The INSS pension is accepted as stable income by Santander Consumer, BBVA Consumer and Cetelem.
For individuals with variable or non-conventional income (rentals, dividends, benefits), documentation is the key factor: bank statements from the last 6 to 12 months demonstrating the regularity and volume of income. Cofidis and Cetelem are usually more receptive to this type of documentation than lenders linked to major banks.
For temporary or part-time workers, the possibilities depend on the stability of the employer and how long they have been in the role. A temporary contract renewed multiple times with the same employer has a higher chance of approval than a recently started first temporary contract.
Summary table: recommended finance company by profile
Customer profile | First option | Alternative | Most important to verify |
|---|---|---|---|
Salaried permanent | Santander Consumer / BBVA Consumer | Cetelem | Total debt-to-income ratio |
Self-employed +2 years | Cetelem / Cofidis | Santander Consumer (if stable turnover) | Last two years personal tax returns |
Self-employed -2 years | Specialist lenders | Personal loan | Business activity tax (IAE) registration and quarterly turnover |
Company / business | Santander Consumer / BBVA Consumer | Alphabet / ALD Financial | Annual accounts and director's guarantee |
Active ASNEF record | Moneyman / Credius | Larger deposit + shorter term | Check ASNEF before submitting |
Vehicle +10 years | Personal loan (Cetelem / Cofidis) | Partial finance with high deposit | Age of vehicle and mileage |
No payslip / pensioner | Cetelem / Cofidis | Any lender accepting bank statements | 6-12 months of bank statements |
Dealcar and the management of financed operations
With Dealcar you can record the status of each finance application in the deal file: which lender it was submitted to, whether it is approved, pending or rejected, and the reason for rejection if known. This allows you to track deals in progress and know which lender has the best approval rate for your dealership's typical customer profile, without relying on the sales executive's memory.
If you want to see how the management of financed files works in Dealcar, request a demo at dealcar.io.
Frequently asked questions
How long does each finance company take to respond to an application?
Santander Consumer and BBVA Consumer usually provide a preliminary response in under 2 hours for standard profiles with complete documentation. Cetelem and Cofidis in under 24 hours. Lenders specialising in difficult profiles can take between 24 and 72 hours. Final payout, once the deal is approved, usually takes place between 24 and 48 hours after approval.
Can an application be submitted to two finance companies at the same time?
It is not recommended. Every search with a lender is recorded in the customer's credit history and multiple searches in a short period can damage approval chances. The correct strategy is to choose the most suitable lender for that profile, submit it, and if rejected, submit to the next one using the reason for the first rejection as information to adjust the application.
Does it make sense for a dealership to work with more than three finance companies?
Yes, up to a point. Having two or three lenders with complementary approval profiles covers most cases. More than four or five active lenders adds operational complexity without significantly improving the overall approval rate. The criteria for choosing which lenders to have active is that they should be complementary: one for standard profiles with good rates, one for slightly more difficult profiles, and one for special cases or vehicles with characteristics that the others do not accept.
What happens if the customer lies about their income on the application?
Finance companies verify information with the documentation provided by the customer. If there are discrepancies between what is declared and what is documented, the application is rejected. If an attempt at document fraud is detected, the entity may report it to other credit registries. The dealership is not responsible for the information provided by the customer, provided they did not participate in preparing that documentation.
