UK Finance members were supporting around 34,000 businesses with more than £21bn advanced at any one time at the end of 2024, yet most company directors still struggle to get a straight answer about what invoice finance costs, who qualifies and what can go wrong. This site exists to give that answer before anyone asks you for your bank statements.
What this site is for
Debt Factoring does two things. First, it explains debt factoring, invoice factoring, invoice discounting and the related products in plain English, with worked examples and the disadvantages set out alongside the benefits. Second, it gives you a simple way to make an enquiry about a facility if, having read the material, you want to go further.
We do not lend money, do not provide finance ourselves and do not hold ourselves out as being authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. Every product described on this site is an option you can learn about and enquire about. None of it is a service we provide, and nothing on these pages is an offer of finance.
Independent information and enquiry service: a website that explains a financial product and passes enquiries to a third party, without lending, advising on suitability or taking any part in the agreement between you and a provider.
How we write about invoice finance
Our editorial approach follows a few fixed rules, because the subject is one where vague language costs businesses money.
- Plain English, terms defined first
Advance rate, retention, discount charge, recourse period: each is defined before it is relied upon, and collected in the glossary.
- Costs discussed openly
Service fees, discount charges, minimum fees, audit fees, refactoring fees and termination fees are all covered in the costs guide, with published market ranges rather than a single headline rate.
- Risks and limitations included
Every product page carries a disadvantages list. Concentration limits, recourse, contract lock-in and the effect on customer relationships are explained rather than glossed over.
- Illustrative figures, clearly labelled
Worked examples use typical published ranges and are marked as estimates. They are never a quotation, and your own terms will depend on the provider and your circumstances.
Where we state a regulatory position we use primary sources. Invoice finance and factoring provided to limited companies and LLPs are not regulated by the FCA; most UK providers are members of UK Finance and follow its Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending Standards Framework, which includes a Code, an independent complaints process and a Professional Standards Council. Different rules can apply to sole traders and small partnerships, which we explain in Is invoice finance regulated?.
What happens when you enquire
The quote request form asks for basic details about your business: legal structure, approximate turnover, the sector you trade in, how your customers pay and roughly how much funding you are thinking about. We ask about legal structure because facilities for sole traders and partnerships can fall under consumer credit rules, and some providers only fund limited companies.
You submit the form
No documents are needed at this stage. You are under no obligation and nothing is agreed.
Your enquiry is passed on
Details are sent to [PLACEHOLDER: name of the finance provider or FCA-authorised commercial finance intermediary that receives enquiries], who will contact you to discuss whether a facility may suit.
You receive information, not a decision
Any proposal, terms or quotation comes from the provider, not from us. You are free to compare it against others.
You decide
Nothing proceeds unless you choose to go ahead with a provider under their own agreement and due diligence.
Remuneration: [PLACEHOLDER: state whether Debt Factoring receives a fee or commission from the recipient of enquiries, and on what basis]. Any such arrangement does not change the fees a provider charges you, and does not affect the information published on this site.
How your data is handled is set out in the privacy policy. We do not sell enquiry details to multiple parties.
What this site does not do
- Lend money, advance funds against invoices or provide any financial product.
- Give regulated financial advice or recommend a specific facility for your business.
- Guarantee that any enquiry will result in an offer, or that funding will arrive within a particular time.
- Rank or rate providers. Our guide to choosing a factoring company gives you the questions to ask instead.
- Publish testimonials, case studies or customer numbers that we cannot verify.
If you have a complaint about a provider rather than about this website, the UK Finance complaints process, adjudicated by CEDR, is the usual route for members' clients. Our own complaints page explains how to raise an issue with us.
Who runs the site
Debt Factoring is operated by [PLACEHOLDER: legal entity name, company number and registered office address]. Regulatory status, including whether the operator is an appointed representative or directly authorised for any activity, is set out on the regulatory information page. Questions about the content, corrections or anything else can be sent through the contact page.
Start with the facts
The process page walks through set-up, verification, advances and collections before you speak to anyone.