SERVICE AGREEMENT
Authorisation
Optimal Business Finance Ltd (company registered number 15074751) is a finance brokerage established since 2023. Optimal Business Finance Ltd will be acting as a Credit Broker on your behalf and is not a lender.
Optimal Business Finance Ltd (OBFL) is authorised and regulated by the Finance Conduct Authority under permission number 1004627. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates financial services in the UK and you can check our authorisation and permitted activities on the Financial Services Register by visiting the FCA’s website https://register.fca.org.uk/ or by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 6768.
OBFL is a member of the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB). We adopt a strict Code of Practice and Minimum Standards set by the Association. You can check our membership status by contacting the NACFB on https://www.nacfb.org/
Our Services
We will endeavour to act in your best interests at all times. We will source borrowing facilities from the market that we believe are suitable to the requirements you disclose to us. When the preferred option has been agreed, we will provide you with information about the borrowing facility and the provider of this to ensure you understand your responsibilities and commitments before proceeding.
Scope of Service
We source funding from a selected panel of over 100 lenders, spanning high street bank-owned finance houses and independent commercial sources aimed at specific industries or customer profiles. OBFL has no connection, particular allegiance, bias or commercial preference for any particular finance source. Our experienced team will look to arrange and deliver a finance package to suit your circumstances, needs and requirements.
Please ask for details of the panel of lenders we use if you require this information.
In this role we are doing no more than effecting an introduction between You and the lenders to enable you to choose a finance product which, in your sole opinion, is suitable for you. We are not your agent or otherwise acting on your behalf and there is no duty upon us to provide you with impartial advice, information or recommendations.
Data Protection
Any information that you provide us with in the course of your application for finance will be kept securely in accordance the terms of the Data Protection Act (OBFL are registered under No. ZB602848). The information we collect will be only what is necessary and specific to your application and will only be kept for as long as necessary. You may make an application in writing to see any information we hold on you.
You will be asked to provide photo ID and proof of address. You will also need to sign our Data Protection Authority giving us permission to search you. Permission to search will be required from all directors and beneficial owners of your business.
When we provide services to you we will need to gather information about your personal circumstances. The information you provide to us will be subject to the Data Protection Act (the “Act”). By signing our Data Protection Authority you consent to us or any company associated with
us processing, both manually and by electronic means, your personal data for the purposes of providing advice, administration and management.
“Processing” includes obtaining, recording or holding information or data, transferring it to other companies associated with us, lenders or statutory, governmental or regulatory bodies for legitimate purposes including, where relevant, to solicitors and/or other debt collection agencies for debt collection purposes and carrying out operations on the information or data.
Our Privacy Notice is issued as a separate document.
For processing of data to be lawful under GDPR OBFL use;
a) Consent: the individual has given clear consent for OBFL to process their personal data for a specific purpose.
b) Contract: the processing is necessary for a contract OBFL have with an individual, or because they have asked you to take specific steps before entering into a contract.
c) Legal obligation: the processing is necessary for OBFL to comply with the law (not including contractual obligations).
d) Legitimate interests: the processing is necessary for OBFL’s legitimate interests of a third party unless there is a good reason to protect the individual’s personal data which overrides those legitimate interests.
In order to provide services to you we may be required to pass your personal information to parties located outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) in countries that do not have Data Protection Laws equivalent to those in the UK. Where this is the case we will take reasonable steps to ensure the privacy of your information.
We may also contact you or pass your details to other companies associated with us to contact you (including by telephone) with details of any other similar products, promotions, or for related marketing purposes in which we think you may be interested.
If at any time you wish us or any company associated with us to cease processing your personal data or sensitive personal data, or contacting you for marketing purposes, please contact The Data Protection Officer on 07885 879684 or in writing to Optimal Business Finance Ltd, 15 Rye Hill Road, Harlow, England, CM18 7JE .
You may be assured that we and any company associated with us will treat all personal data and sensitive personal data as confidential and will not process it other than for a legitimate purpose. Steps will be taken to ensure that the information is accurate, kept up to date and not kept for longer than is necessary. Measures will also be taken to safeguard against unauthorised or unlawful processing and accidental loss or destruction or damage to the data.
Subject to certain exceptions, you are entitled to have access to your personal and sensitive personal data held by us. You may be charged a fee (subject to the statutory maximum) for supplying you with such data.
The Process
Once we have obtained all the necessary information from you we will approach lenders appropriate to your needs and circumstances with a view to obtaining an offer of finance. We may secure more than one offer of finance. When an agreeable offer is received you will be asked to sign that particular lender’s finance documents and then, within a specified time frame, the funds will be transferred to the appropriate party.
Should any offer of finance we arrange require a personal guarantee or indemnity, we may also be able to arrange an insurance policy to reduce your liability. Please ask your OBFL contact.
Our Charges
Optimal Business Finance Ltd does not charge fees to customers that fall under regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority. For clients that fall outside of regulation we may charge a fee depending on the complexity or challenging nature of your circumstances. This fee is not refundable as it is to cover our time and expertise in assisting with your enquiry.
If a fee is agreed, it is payable within 7 days of the date of our invoice.
In consideration for the work and expertise we put into finding you a finance deal we get paid a commission by the finance company and by signing this document you are confirming that you have no objections to us receiving this commission. The existence and nature of commission arrangements where the commission varies depending on the lender, product or other permissible factors will always be disclosed upon request.
You do not have to accept any finance offer sourced by us on your behalf.
Client Acknowledgement
You acknowledge that:
You have been advised to seek such independent advice as you consider necessary.
You are aware that we may receive a commission from a lender for introducing you to them and you have no objections to us receiving this amount. If you wish to receive any further information concerning the commission paid to us by the lender, please let us know in writing.
Payment of Fees – If Any
Please note:
If billed a direct fee, Crystal Business Finance Ltd will issue an invoice directly to you the client.
Payment should only be made to the following bank details:
Account number – 11881264
Sort code – 40-43-28
Crystal Business Finance Ltd cannot accept responsibility for any fee payment other than in this manner.
OBFL are not tax advisors, if you require taxation advice please refer to your accountant or specialist advisor, this includes VAT enquiries.
Facilities we may be able to offer:
Below is a brief overview of the facilities which may be available to you. Please do not rely on these general descriptions but refer to the specific information in the finance documents you sign.
Hire purchase/lease purchase
You will pay an initial deposit followed by regular payments until the end of the agreed period. You will pay interests on your payments and will own the equipment at the end of the agreement providing you have paid all the monies due.
Conditional Sale
This is similar to hire purchase but you are obligated to take possession of the goods at the end of the term of the agreement.
Lease
This is a long term hire agreement at the end of which you will not automatically take legal title to the goods acquired. You will make payments for the primary period. All payments made under a lease agreement attract VAT at the prevailing rate. Once the primary period has ended the equipment can be sold. You may receive a share of the proceeds or you may continue paying reduced secondary rentals but you will never own the equipment directly.
There are several varients of a finance lease products. Please refer to your OBFL representative for the specific terms of the lease document you are considering.
Commercial Loan
This is a loan obtained typically to fund expenditure or cover project or operation costs which the company may otherwise be unable to afford.
Invoice Finance
Invoice finance provides cash flow to a business by releasing value tied up in outstanding customer invoices.
Trade Finance
Trade finance is used when financing is required by buyers and sellers to assist them with the trade cycle funding gap. Buyers and sellers can also choose to use trade finance as a form of risk mitigation.
Stock Finance
Stock finance is a mechanism which releases working capital from stock such as finished goods or raw materials, which works by lenders purchasing stock from a seller on behalf of the buyer or funding against inventory.
ABL
Asset-based lending (ABL), generates finance against a company’s existing assets including stock, debtors, plant, machinery and property. The arrangement is usually in conjunction with debtor finance, factoring or invoice discounting.
What to do if you can’t make repayments
Please contact OBFL immediately and we will seek to discuss your circumstances with the provider of your finance agreement. Please note that assets are at risk of repossession and personal guarantees (if provided) may be enforced which could result in personal financial loss and/or loss of personal assets.
Complaints and NACFB Code Of Conduct
Our aim is to provide you with a professional and confidential service that delivers the highest possible standards. However, there may be occasions where you feel this has not been achieved.
Should you wish to make a complaint about any aspect of the service we provide to you, a summary of our internal complaints handling procedures for the reasonable and prompt handling of
complaints is available on request. If you cannot settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk or by contacting them on 0800 023 4567.
If you are not happy with the service you have received from Optimal Business Finance Ltd in the first instance you should contact our Principal:
The Directors at Crystal Business Finance Ltd
How to get in contact:
Phone: 0121 506 9060
Email: management@Optimalbf.co.uk
In writing: Crystal Business Finance Limited, Blythe Valley Innovation Centre, Central Boulevard, Blythe Valley Park, Solihull, West Midlands, B90 8AJ.
We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint promptly and provide a written summary of our findings and conclusion by the close of 3 business days following receipt. If your complaint cannot be resolved within 3 business days, we will ensure that you are regularly kept informed of our progress with regards to the investigation.
We will endeavour to send you our final decision letter within 8 weeks of your complaint. If we are unable to complete our investigations within 8 weeks we will send confirmation of this in writing along with an explanation as to why we have been unable to complete our investigations within this timescale. We will confirm when you can next expect contact from us. At this stage, you may be entitled to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Also, if you have received our final decision letter and are not satisfied with the response you may refer your complaint directly to:
The Financial Ombudsman Service.
They are open: Monday to Friday – 8am to 8pm Saturday – 9am to 1pm
· 0800 023 4567 calls to this number are normally free for people ringing from a “fixed line” phone – but charges may apply if you call from a mobile phone
· 0300 123 9123 calls to this number are charged at the same rate as 01 or 02 numbers on mobile phone tariffs
These numbers may not be available from outside the UK – so please call +44 20 7964 0500 if calling from abroad.
Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
In writing: The Financial Ombudsman Service Exchange Tower
London
E14 9R
National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers – The Code
The Broker agrees to act on behalf of the Client in accordance with the terms of the Code of Practice of the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) as amended (the Code) and a copy of the Code is available on request from the Association or on the NACFB website www.nacfb.org
The Broker will investigate and deal with any complaints raised by The Client concerning the services provided under The Agreement promptly and reasonably but if The Broker is unable to resolve any complaint to The Client’s satisfaction the Code of Practice stipulates the procedures available to The Client including NACFB Mediation.
If The Client is unhappy with The Broker’s response to their complaint, and the complainant falls within the regulated activities, they may be able to complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service at:
Address: Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR.
Contact: 0800 0234567, 0300 1239123. Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
The Ombudsman will be able to confirm whether he can look at the complaint. If The Client is entitled to make a complaint to the Ombudsman, then they are not bound to follow any alternative procedure and can make their complaint to the Ombudsman within the timescales set down by the rules applicable to that scheme, details of which will be provided to the Client by Us on request.
Termination
This agreement continues for a period of 3 years from the date we first introduce you to a Lender at which stage, should you by then have not entered into a finance agreement, it will lapse. Should you then wish to continue receiving our credit broking services you may request that we renew it.
Broker Terms and Conditions
Your duty to Us
The Client agrees to be act with utmost good faith in the provision of information to The Broker. The duty is continuous and applies to all the information the Client provides, whether The Broker has asked for it or whether The Client has provided it voluntarily. The Client agrees not to withhold information from the Broker.
Exclusions
The Client accepts that The Broker shall have no liability for any economic loss (whether direct, indirect or consequential) insofar as it relates in any way to loss of business, loss of Client data, interruption of business or loss of profits or goodwill because of the manner of performance by The Broker of any obligations arising under The Agreement. This exclusion of liability will not, however, otherwise affect any statutory rights of The Client.
Choice of Law
The Agreement shall be construed in accordance with English Law and the parties irrevocably agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.