Direct Line offers personal loans in three loan bands, you may borrow amounts between £2,000 and £4,999 over two to five years and amounts between £5,000 and £9,999 also over two to five years but the interest rate you are likely to be charged for the larger loan amount will be significantly lower. Loans of £10,000 - £25,000 may be arranged over periods of up to seven years.

As with many lenders, Direct Line quotes a typical APR for its unsecured loans but the exact rate that you will pay will depend on your personal circumstances and the loan amount. To be eligible for a Direct Line loan you must be aged over 22 and resident in Scotland, England or Wales.

You may not use your Direct Line personal loan for business or investment purposes. Other than that there is only one stipulation as to loan usage ? loans for holidays are repayable over not more than 24 months. You may use your Direct Line loan for debt consolidation but those with County Court Judgements against them will not be considered.

The Direct Line loan does not allow you to make lump sum repayments and it does not offer the option of repayment holidays, However, Direct Line aims to give you a decision on your loan application within 24 hours and does offer optional same day fund transfer for a fee.

Direct Line was launched in April 1985 with a single product - car insurance, and just one way for its customers to buy - over the telephone. Now, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Scotland, it has more than five million customers and a broad range of products and services available over the phone and on the internet.