Asset Finance for Hospitality — UK eligibility guide
Sector-specific underwriting context layered on top of the base hospitality sector page and the base asset finance guide.
Eligibility guidance only - not financial advice, not a loan offer, not a guarantee of approval. Lendrly is not FCA-authorised and is not a credit broker.
In short
Asset Finance for UK hospitality businesses combines a sector pattern Lendrly tracks closely with a finance type that has its own underwriting shape. Businesses buying or refinancing vehicles, plant, machinery or IT. In the hospitality sector specifically, the lenders that tend to fit are ones already comfortable with the hospitality cash cycle, asset profile and customer mix. Typical amounts sit at £1k to £5m+; most sme facilities sit between £10k and £500k. and decisions usually land within often 24-72 hours for standard assets; specialist deals 1-3 weeks. Final eligibility, pricing and limits are set by the lender at underwriting and depend on the full trading picture.
What underwriters in the hospitality sector typically watch for
The list below is specific to UK hospitality businesses seeking asset finance — distinct from the generic blockers for either the sector or the product on its own.
- Bespoke kitchen fit-out (custom counters, branded fascia) has weak resale value and usually attracts a higher deposit — often 20-30% rather than the headline 10%.
- A remaining lease shorter than the desired hire-purchase term is a near-universal blocker — most asset lenders want the lease to cover the term plus a buffer.
- Used commercial kitchen kit bought from an auction or undocumented supplier can stall at asset-validation if the lender can't trace the asset history.
- Late-night licence venues in some postcodes attract a slightly tighter underwrite on the working-capital side of any combined deal.
Documents that help in hospitality asset finance applications
Lenders ask for slightly different documents depending on the sector. Expect to provide most of the following when applying for asset finance as a hospitality business.
- Supplier proforma invoice listing each piece of kit (combi oven, walk-in chill, dishwash, bar fridges) with serials where available.
- Copy of the premises lease with assignment and alteration clauses visible.
- Premises licence and food hygiene rating.
- Last 12 months of accounts plus current-year management accounts.
Timing the application
Kitchen and bar refits booked for January-February (the post-Christmas quiet window) need finance signed off in November — supplier lead times on commercial cooking kit run 6-10 weeks, longer for imported Italian or German equipment.
Worked example
A 70-cover restaurant putting in a £60,000 kitchen refit — combi oven, dishwash line, walk-in chill, new front-of-house bar fridges — could typically finance it through a 5-year hire purchase agreement with a 10-15% deposit, against 3 years of trading accounts and clean director credit. Lombard, Novuna and Propel all routinely underwrite this exact shape of deal in the UK hospitality market.
Illustrative only. Final amounts, pricing and structure are set by the lender at underwriting.
Practical lender tips for hospitality asset finance
- Refinancing existing owned kitchen kit can release working capital and is sometimes a cleaner alternative to a second MCA on a hospitality bank account already showing one.
- Bundling kitchen kit, bar fridges and EPOS into a single facility usually beats three separate agreements — one end date is easier to manage.