Bounce back loan borrowers can delay repayments by extra six months
BOSS Chairman Simon Drakeford wrote to the Chancellor, Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP on the 24th December 2021, requesting support for the OP Industry. One mechanism of support requested was significant flexibility on existing repayment schedules. BOSS welcomes the announcement from government on the 8th of February that businesses that took out government-backed Bounce Back Loans to get through Covid-19 will now have greater flexibility to repay their loans. The government stated that:
· Bounce Back Loan borrowers will now have the option to tailor payments according to their individual circumstances
· There is the option to delay all repayments for a further six months
· Pay as You Grow will be available to over 1.4 million businesses, which collectively took out nearly £45 billion through the Bounce Back Loan Scheme
The Chancellor’s Pay as You Grow repayment flexibilities now include the option to delay all repayments for a further six months, meaning businesses can choose to make no payments on their loans until 18 months after they originally took them out. The option to pause repayments will now be available to all from their first repayment, rather than after six repayments have been made.
Pay as You Grow will also enable borrowers to extend the length of their loans from six to ten years (reducing monthly repayments by almost half) and make interest-only payments for six months, in order to tailor their repayment schedule to suit their individual circumstances. This is in addition to the government covering the costs of interest for the first year of the loan.
View the full government statement here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chancellor-eases-burden-on-more-than-a-million-businesses-through-pay-as-you-grow-flexible-repayment-options
Read BOSS Chairman Simon Drakeford’s letter here: https://www.bossfederation.com/industry-news/more/129581/store/24221/page/1/boss-chairman-simon-drakeford-requests-support-for-the-op-sector-from-the-chancellor/
