£4,000 is towards the top of what can be arranged through us, and well above the typical request. At this size, the cost over the full term runs into thousands of pounds, and there is more at stake if something goes wrong. This page covers the cost, what lenders check, and how to avoid the scams that target people looking for larger loans. Dot Dot Loans is a credit broker, not a lender.
How £4,000 compares with typical borrowing
The median amount requested in our Borrowing Barometer was £500, and only 8.8% of applications were for £2,501 to £5,000. Within that group, debt consolidation was the most common stated purpose (27.7%), followed by home improvement (19.7%).
What £4,000 costs
At the representative rate, every £1,000 over 18 months costs £89.22 a month, which is where the £356.88 figure for £4,000 comes from. Over 36 months you would repay £9,319.32 in total.
Representative Example: Borrow £1,000 over 18 months. 18 monthly repayments of £89.22. Total amount repayable: £1,605.96. Interest: £605.96. Annual interest rate: 59.97% (fixed). Subject to application approval by the lender. Not all lenders offer loans up to £5,000. Representative APR 79.5% (Variable). Any representative monthly repayment shown is for illustration only, based on our representative APR. Your actual repayments will be confirmed by the matching lender if your application is approved.
Checking the payment against your income
Someone with the median take-home pay in our data, £2,000 a month, borrowing £4,000 over 36 months would commit about 13% of their income to the new loan (£258.87 a month) (illustration, representative 79.5% APR).
Add the median £150 a month of existing credit repayments and that rises to about 20%. What matters is what is left after rent, bills and food, not the percentage on its own.
What lenders check on larger loans
- Proof of income, often through open banking, payslips or bank statements
- Your regular outgoings, which a lender may compare with typical figures for a household like yours
- Your existing credit, including credit cards, car finance and any buy now pay later plans
- How long you have been with your employer and at your address
Avoiding loan scams
- Upfront fees. A request for an "admin", "insurance" or "release" fee before you receive a loan is a common sign of fraud.
- Clone firms. Scammers copy the names and FCA numbers of genuine firms. Check the FCA Register and contact the firm only on the details listed there.
- Unsolicited offers by text, phone or social media, especially with pressure to decide quickly.
- Offers that ignore your credit history. Responsible lenders have to check affordability, so an offer that sounds too good to be true usually is.
The FCA also publishes a Warning List of firms it knows are operating without permission. Dot Dot Loans is a trading name of PJG Financial Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the FCA under firm reference number 919697.
- £3,000 loans: planning for the whole term
- £5,000 loans: a worked affordability check at the top of the range
- Direct lender or broker?: how brokers like us work