Lombard Asset Finance Review

Lombard Asset Finance at a Glance

Our Verdict

Lombard is the UK’s largest asset finance provider and the part of NatWest Group most SME finance directors will already have heard of. For hard assets sitting between £25,000 and several million pounds, we rate it as a credible default: deep underwriting, a long book of vehicle and machinery deals, and a balance sheet that does not flinch at agriculture, marine or manufacturing kit.

The trade-off is that everything is bespoke. No rate is published, Lombard publishes no decision times outside its online quote, and the public-facing customer experience, judged through Trustpilot, is poor. You will get the best of Lombard by arriving with filed accounts, management figures and a firm asset specification, because nothing in the process is designed to work out your numbers for you.

If you want a published rate, a fast online decision, or you are funding low-ticket soft assets, you will likely get a sharper deal elsewhere. If you want a lender that can underwrite a £400,000 forage harvester or a fleet of tractor units without flinching, we put Lombard on the shortlist.

Best For

• Established limited companies funding hard assets above roughly £25,000
• Agriculture, transport, construction and manufacturing businesses with specialist machinery needs
• NatWest and RBS commercial customers who already have a relationship manager
• Larger ticket deals where bespoke pricing beats off-the-shelf APRs
• Businesses exploring sustainable or climate-aligned asset purchases

Not Ideal For

• New starts and pre-trading businesses with no filed accounts
• Sole traders looking for sub-£25,000 consumer-style hire purchase
• Businesses needing a published rate to compare against fintech lenders
• Firms funding only low-cost IT or office equipment
• Anyone who wants a fully online, decision-in-minutes flow

Key Facts

• Provider: Lombard, part of NatWest Group
• FCA Firm Reference Number: 710598 (National Westminster Bank Plc FRN 121878)
• Products: Hire Purchase, Finance Lease, Contract Hire, Asset Refinance, sustainable asset finance
• Asset focus: predominantly hard assets, with selective soft asset funding
• Trustpilot: 2.1/5 from 41 reviews as of October 2026
• Application: online enquiry, broker introduction, or via a NatWest or RBS relationship manager

What Is Lombard Asset Finance?

Lombard is a UK asset finance house with a history stretching back more than 150 years, now operating as part of NatWest Group. It is the largest provider of asset finance in the UK by new business volumes, with a particular focus on commercial vehicles, plant and machinery, marine and agricultural assets.

The business sits inside NatWest’s commercial bank rather than its retail arm, and that changes the shape of the process. Deals are credit-assessed like commercial lending, so you will be asked for accounts, projections and asset detail rather than just a credit score. That is more work at the front end, and it is also why the answer, when it comes, is a considered one rather than a scorecard output.

How Lombard Asset Finance Works

Asset finance lets a business acquire equipment without paying the full cost upfront. Lombard either buys the asset and lets you use it for a fixed term against monthly payments, or lends against an asset you already own. The legal structure varies by product, and that structure decides who owns the kit, who claims the capital allowances, and what happens at the end of the term.

For limited company borrowers, most Lombard agreements sit outside FCA consumer credit regulation. The contract is a commercial agreement governed by general contract law, not the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This is normal for business asset finance, but it does mean the protections you would get on a personal car finance deal do not apply in the same way.

Hard Assets vs Soft Assets

Lombard finances assets with an established resale market, including commercial vehicles, HGVs, agricultural machinery, construction plant, manufacturing equipment, marine vessels and aviation assets. These are the specialist purchases its underwriting teams are used to assessing.

Soft assets, such as IT hardware, software, telephony or office furniture, can sometimes be funded, but the policy is bespoke and case-by-case. If your finance need is a £40,000 rollout of laptops and screens, Lombard is unlikely to be the most natural home for it: the underwriting strength that makes sense of a specialist harvester is largely wasted on kit with a three-year life and a thin resale market, and the lenders built around that category will usually price it tighter.

Main Finance Options

• Hire Purchase: you pay in instalments and own the asset at the end. Capital allowances usually sit with you. Available on fixed and variable rates.
• Finance Lease: Lombard owns the asset, you use it across the primary term, and you can often extend at a peppercorn rent or sell on Lombard’s behalf and keep most of the proceeds.
• Contract Hire (Operating Lease): a usage-based agreement, common for vehicle fleets, where Lombard retains residual value risk and you hand the asset back at the end.
• Asset Refinance: raises capital against equipment you already own, releasing cash without losing operational use of the asset.
• Sustainable Asset Finance: funding aimed at lower-carbon assets such as electric vehicles, solar, and energy-efficient plant, sometimes with preferential terms.

Lombard Asset Finance Rates and Fees

Interest Rates and Representative Costs

Lombard does not publish a representative APR. Pricing is quoted on a deal-by-deal basis, which is standard for commercial asset finance at this scale. You can request a Fixed Rate Regulated Conditional Sale, a Fixed Rate Hire Purchase, or a Variable Rate Hire Purchase, depending on the product and the regulatory status of the borrower.

In practice two businesses buying an identical £150,000 telehandler can be quoted noticeably different rates, depending on trading history, sector, deposit and term, so you will not know your own rate until you have a personalised quote. That is the reason to get two or three quotes from rival asset finance houses before you reply to Lombard. Without them you have no way of telling a keen price from a lazy one, because there is no published figure to measure it against.

Fees and Charges

Fee structures are also bespoke. Lombard says product fees may apply, although there is no arrangement fee when you apply for hire purchase online. On a fixed rate agreement, additional charges may apply if you settle early; on variable rate hire purchase, Lombard charges nothing for early settlement.

Security may be required. That can include a debenture, a specific charge over the asset (usual for hire purchase), or personal guarantees from directors, particularly for younger businesses or higher-risk sectors.

What Affects Your Rate

• Asset type and resale liquidity, with hard, mainstream assets pricing more tightly than niche or specialist kit
• Term length, with shorter terms generally carrying lower headline rates but higher monthly payments
• Deposit or advance rental, where a larger upfront contribution typically buys a better rate
• Trading history and filed accounts, where a longer record of clean numbers helps
• Sector risk, where hospitality, certain construction sub-sectors, and recovery cases face tougher pricing
• Existing relationship with NatWest or RBS, which can smooth the credit conversation
• Whether the deal qualifies for the Growth Guarantee Scheme or any sustainable asset incentive

Lombard Asset Finance Eligibility

Who Can Apply for Lombard Finance

Lombard funds for business purposes only. Applicants must be over 18 and the finance must be used in the course of a trade or profession. The lender will work with limited companies, LLPs, partnerships, and sole traders, although the regulatory wrapper changes depending on which one you are.

Sole traders and partnerships of two or three partners borrowing up to £25,000 fall under the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Above that figure, or for limited companies, the agreement is generally unregulated. This is a structural feature of UK business lending rather than anything specific to Lombard.

Trading History, Turnover and Credit Checks

Minimum trading history and turnover thresholds are not published. The one published limit is on the online quote, which is not available to businesses with turnover over £25m or for a purchase price over £250k. In practice, most asset finance lenders are most comfortable with businesses that have at least two full years of filed accounts, demonstrable cash generation, and a credit profile free of CCJs and recent defaults.

That does not mean newer businesses are excluded, though we found nothing published that says where the line sits. Underwriting looks at the asset, the business and the directors together, which cuts both ways for a young company: a short trading record can be offset by a mainstream asset and a director with a clean history, and it can equally be the reason a niche asset gets declined.

Security and Personal Guarantees

The asset itself usually serves as primary security on hire purchase and lease deals. Beyond that, Lombard may ask for personal guarantees from one or more directors, especially on owner-managed businesses or where the loan-to-value is high.

A personal guarantee is not a formality. If the business defaults and the asset’s resale value does not cover the outstanding balance, the guarantor is personally liable for the shortfall. Don’t sign a personal guarantee lightly, and take legal advice first, particularly if your home is your main asset.

Lombard Asset Finance Application Process

How to Apply for Lombard Finance

You can approach Lombard three ways: directly through their website, via a commercial finance broker, or through a NatWest or RBS relationship manager if you bank with the group. Each route has trade-offs.

Applying direct is fine for a clean, mainstream deal. A broker introduction earns its keep on anything more awkward, because an experienced broker knows which credit appetites Lombard currently has open. If you already bank with NatWest or RBS, start with the relationship manager: the data is on file and the credit conversation tends to run smoother for it.

Documents and Checks Needed

• Two to three years of filed statutory accounts
• Recent management accounts, especially if the year-end is more than six months old
• Bank statements covering the last three to six months
• Asset details: invoice or proforma, supplier information, specification, age and condition for used assets
• Director information and ID for KYC checks
• Cash-flow forecast for larger or atypical deals

Approval and Funding Times

Lombard publishes no decision or funding times for deals arranged through its team. On the online hire purchase quote, the form takes around five minutes, and Lombard says it tells you immediately if the application is approved and gives a date for when your funds will be available. Larger or more complex transactions, particularly anything involving cross-border kit, second-hand specialist assets, or covenant negotiation, run on a longer clock.

If a supplier is holding a unit for you against a deposit, build a buffer into the timeline rather than working back from the date they gave you. A deal that depends on underwriting clearing by a particular Friday is a deal you can lose to a cash buyer.

Lombard Asset Finance Repayments, Flexibility and Risk

Repayment Terms and End-of-Lease Options

Terms typically run from 12 months to seven years, depending on the asset’s expected useful life. Vehicles often sit at three to five years, agricultural machinery can stretch longer, and IT equipment, where funded, is usually shorter.

End-of-term options depend on the product. On hire purchase, a final option-to-purchase fee transfers ownership and the asset is yours. On finance lease, you can usually continue at a low secondary rental, or sell the asset on Lombard’s behalf and retain the bulk of sale proceeds. On contract hire, you simply hand the asset back, subject to the agreed mileage and condition standards.

Early Settlement and Default Risk

Early settlement is possible, and the cost depends on the rate type. On fixed rate agreements, Lombard says additional charges may apply; on variable rate hire purchase, it charges nothing for settling early. You request a settlement figure through Lombard’s customer service form, and on regulated agreements there are specific rules under the Consumer Credit Act. On unregulated commercial agreements, the contract terms govern, so read the early termination clause carefully before signing.

Default is more serious here than on a working capital loan. Under most of these products Lombard is the legal owner of the asset, so a haulier who misses enough payments can lose the trucks mid-week, and the damage to the business runs well past the instalments that were missed. That asymmetry is why underwriting looks hard at whether you can service the payments in a bad quarter, rather than at headline profit in a good one.

Lombard Asset Finance Customer Reviews

What Customers Like

Positive feedback tends to cluster around the same themes. Borrowers who have a named contact, particularly via a broker or relationship manager, report a smooth process and competitive pricing on larger deals. Repeat customers in agriculture and transport often praise underwriting that understands their sector cycle, including seasonality in cash flow.

The brand recognition matters too. For finance directors signing off a six-figure machine purchase, Lombard’s NatWest backing is reassuring in a way that a newer fintech lender is not.

Common Complaints

Lombard’s Trustpilot score sits at 2.1 out of 5 from 41 reviews as of October 2026, classed as “Poor”. The volume is low, which limits how much weight we put on it, but the themes recur: slow responses on smaller queries, end-of-lease admin friction, and difficulty reaching the right person when something goes wrong.

The pattern suggests Lombard is built around larger, intermediated relationships and works less well for borrowers expecting a fintech-style customer service experience. If your deal is small and your expectations are app-led and instant, you will likely be frustrated.

Lombard Support and Regulation

Customer Support

Support runs by phone and live chat, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, and Lombard calls live chat the quickest way to get help. Existing customers can also view balances, documents and payment details, and update their payment details, through the My Lombard online account, although it is not open to businesses in a group or with turnover over £25m. For straightforward questions, a broker often unblocks issues faster than going direct, because they have established lines into Lombard’s operations teams.

Existing NatWest commercial customers can route asset finance queries through their relationship manager, which is usually the smoothest path.

Regulatory Status and Complaints

Lombard is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under FRN 710598. National Westminster Bank Plc’s FRN is 121878. That regulation matters most for consumer credit business: regulated hire purchase to sole traders and individuals outside a business context falls under the FCA’s consumer credit regime, and complaints about those agreements can ultimately be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Asset finance to limited companies is largely unregulated by the FCA. Disputes are handled under contract law and through the courts, not the Ombudsman. This is normal for commercial lending, but worth understanding before you sign: the routes of redress are narrower than on a personal finance product.

Lombard vs Alternatives

Lombard vs Novuna Business Finance

Novuna, formerly Hitachi Capital, is Lombard’s closest peer in scale and product range, and the more approachable of the two for a mid-sized SME, particularly on soft assets and on business introduced through brokers. Lombard’s advantage shows on the largest and most specialist hard asset deals, which means the two overlap heavily in the middle of the market. On a mid-ticket purchase there is no good reason not to have both quotes in front of you.

Lombard vs Propel Finance

Propel is a specialist asset finance lender built around a technology-led process and aimed squarely at the SMEs that find high-street underwriting too slow or too narrow. That is the opposite trade to Lombard’s: Propel sets out to move quickly on the deals a commercial bank takes weeks over, and it does not carry the balance-sheet depth for the largest or least usual assets. Lombard’s minimum term on asset finance starts at 12 months, so a short, small facility is not what either lender is shaped for.

Lombard vs Close Brothers Asset Finance

Close Brothers runs a federated, regional model with sector-specialist teams in transport, construction, marine and renewables. Where Lombard scales through a commercial bank, Close Brothers competes on long-term sector relationships and bespoke structuring, in the same sectors where Lombard does much of its hard-asset lending. If you are a repeat borrower in one of those sectors, the person who knows your trade may well be at Close Brothers rather than Lombard, and that is worth more than either brand.

Final Verdict: Is Lombard Asset Finance Worth It?

Lombard is worth approaching if you are funding a meaningful hard asset, have a settled trading history, and value the underwriting depth of the UK’s largest asset finance provider. On a £350,000 piece of agricultural kit, or a fleet refresh for a haulier with three clean years behind them, we would want a Lombard quote on the table before signing anything.

It is not the right home for fast, small, or fintech-style deals. If you need a £15,000 IT refresh signed off this week, or you are pre-trading and looking for a flexible starter facility, you will get a sharper outcome elsewhere. The bespoke pricing model is also why you want two or three competing quotes in front of you before you sign anything.

For a substantial hard-asset purchase, Lombard belongs on your shortlist. Establish first that it will finance your particular asset and deal size, because that is the question most likely to rule it out, and only then compare the rate and the fees against your other quotes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Lombard Asset Finance fund soft assets like IT equipment?

Sometimes, but it is not Lombard’s focus. That is hard assets such as vehicles, agricultural machinery and plant, and soft assets including IT hardware are considered case by case rather than under a published policy. For a smaller technology rollout, a lender that specialises in the category is usually the better fit.

What is the minimum amount Lombard will finance?

There is no published minimum, and smaller businesses can get a hire purchase quote online. Sole traders and partnerships borrowing up to £25,000 fall under Consumer Credit Act regulation, which changes the contract structure. For small-ticket items, a fintech asset finance specialist is also worth quoting.

Is Lombard regulated by the FCA?

Yes. Lombard is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under FRN 710598, with National Westminster Bank Plc holding FRN 121878. However, asset finance to limited companies is largely unregulated by the FCA. Regulated consumer hire and hire purchase, typically for sole traders or individuals outside a business context, do fall under FCA rules.

How long does a Lombard asset finance application take?

On the online hire purchase quote, for purchases up to £250k by businesses with turnover up to £25m, Lombard says it tells you immediately if you are approved and gives a date for your funds. It publishes no timings for larger deals arranged through its team, and transactions involving used specialist assets or covenant negotiation take longer.

What happens at the end of a Lombard finance lease?

The agreement type determines what happens at the end. On hire purchase, you pay an option-to-purchase fee and own the asset. On finance lease, you can usually continue at a peppercorn rental or sell the asset on Lombard’s behalf and retain the bulk of the proceeds. On contract hire, you hand the asset back, subject to the agreed mileage and condition standards.

Commercial disclosure. We have no affiliate relationship with Lombard or NatWest Group, and neither pays us anything for this review. This page carries no affiliate links. BusinessExpert earns commission from other providers elsewhere on the site, and that income does not change what this review says. See our editorial policy.