Veterinary practice is equipment-heavy by nature. Funding it properly keeps the cost matched to the revenue it generates.
What we fund
- Digital radiography and CR/DR systems
- Ultrasound and echocardiography
- CT and advanced imaging
- In-house laboratory analysers and haematology
- Surgical equipment, anaesthesia and monitoring
- Veterinary dental equipment
- Endoscopy and arthroscopy
- Kennelling, practice management systems and IT
For how asset finance works across sectors, see our asset finance guide. To test a monthly figure before you speak to anyone, try the asset finance calculator.
The in-house laboratory question
Bringing diagnostics in-house is one of the more common capital decisions a veterinary practice faces, and one where the arithmetic is usually clear. An analyser has a monthly finance cost and a per-test revenue. At a realistic test volume, it either covers the cost comfortably or it does not.
Model it at the volume you actually run rather than the volume the supplier’s business case assumes. If it works at your real numbers, it works.
Hire purchase or lease
Hire purchase spreads the cost and you own the equipment at the end. It suits imaging and surgical equipment with a long working life.
Leasing keeps you using the asset without owning it, which suits equipment where the technology moves and reagent or service contracts tie you to a manufacturer anyway. How a lease is treated for tax and in your accounts depends on the agreement and your circumstances, so check it with your accountant.
For analysers specifically, look carefully at how the finance interacts with the consumables contract. A cheap machine on an expensive reagent tie can cost more over five years than the reverse.
Compare the supplier’s finance
Veterinary equipment suppliers routinely offer finance, often quoted as a monthly figure alongside the equipment price. It is convenient, but it usually comes from a limited panel of funders.
Bring us the quote you have and we will compare it against the wider market. The number that matters is the total payable over the term rather than the monthly payment.
Refinancing equipment you own
Practices that have invested steadily over years often own substantial equipment outright. Refinancing it can release capital for a practice purchase deposit, a refit or working capital, without new property security.
It can apply to both encumbered and unencumbered assets, and it is often overlooked.
Common questions
Can a newly acquired practice finance equipment?
It is harder in the first year, because the acquisition borrowing is fresh and there is no trading history under your ownership. Asset finance is still usually the most accessible route, because the security sits in the equipment itself.
How quickly can it be arranged?
Asset finance is usually the quickest form of funding to arrange. Straightforward cases can often be decided within a day or two, with payout usually soon after signed documents are returned.
Can I finance used equipment?
Often yes, though age affects term and pricing. Refurbished imaging from established manufacturers is generally straightforward.
Does it matter if the practice is a sole trader or small partnership?
For smaller agreements, yes. Where the borrower is a sole trader or a partnership of two or three partners, finance of £25,000 or less is regulated consumer credit. We do not arrange regulated agreements, so that would need an FCA-authorised provider. Limited companies, LLPs and larger agreements are outside this and are the business-purpose finance we arrange.
For funding across the whole practice, including acquisitions and premises, return to veterinary practice finance.
All figures are indicative and subject to lender assessment, your circumstances, valuation and prevailing market conditions. Commercial mortgages and unregulated bridging loans are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Property offered as security may be at risk if you do not keep up repayments.