Alternative financing
Other ways to fund your business
A practical guide to alternative forms of business financing, such as grants, business angels, crowd funding and venture capital.
Lending appeals process
How to appeal against your lending decision
We explain when you can appeal and how the process works. Our lending appeals are monitored by an independent auditor to ensure fairness.
Our appeals process
When can I appeal?
You can appeal if your application was declined and
- The turnover for your business is under £25 million (if it's part of a group of companies, this applies to the full group)
- Your lending application was declined in the past 30 days
- You provided all the required information to your Business Relationship team
- You haven’t previously appealed this decision
- Your existing lending isn’t subject to formal demand or enforcement or legal proceedings
- Your application doesn’t breach UK law and regulations, doesn’t involve cross-border transactions in countries subject to UN sanctions, and isn’t linked to a product that could be used to evade tax
You can appeal if your application was approved but you’re not satisfied with the terms of this finance. This excludes the costs of borrowing, agreed fees and standard terms we apply to the lending facility.
If you don’t fit any of these criteria, please talk to your Business Relationship team to discuss other ways we can help.
How do I appeal?
You need to submit your appeal within 30 days of our original decision about your lending. Make sure to outline the reasons for your appeal and include any additional information to support your case. To give yourself the best chance of success, talk to your Business Relationship team to understand why you were declined, so you can address those reasons.
There are 3 ways to appeal
Submit the appeal to your Business Relationship team, preferably in writing
If you applied for the lending by phone, you can appeal by calling 0345 605 2345 1 (select the option for lending)
Fill in and submit your appeal online using the Better Business Finance appeals process
Who reviews my appeal?
An experienced lending specialist at Barclays will review your appeal. To make sure the appeal is handled objectively and fairly, that specialist will not have been involved in our original decline decision.
When will I get a decision?
We’ll respond within 30 days of your appeal with written notification. Following this, you can also have a detailed discussion with your Business Relationship team.
What can I do if I’ve already appealed unsuccessfully?
You have the right to make a formal complaint. If you’re not eligible to appeal, we urge you to discuss this with your Business Relationship team.
Although Barclays Business may be unable to support your borrowing request at this time, we’ve compiled a guide to other ways to fund your business.