How Lenders Can use Charge and Mortgage Data on Beauhurst

Uncover commercial opportunities and competitor insights

In today’s lending market, getting the full picture with detailed financial information is a must. And so, due to popular demand, our team rolled our charge and mortgage data last autumn.

From risk management to understanding your portfolio, charge and mortgage data plays a critical role for lenders’ decision-making.

Does the proposed recipient have the means to pay back a loan? Do they have any loans outstanding? And from a commercial perspective, could a lender capitalise on a company’s mortgage for an upcoming renewal?

Our charge data covers all this, and more. And in this article, we’ll walk you through how lenders can get the most out of this data — plus present a few handy tips on how to get started.

What are Beauhurst Signals?

We know that just having data isn’t the answer — you also need to be able to interpret it. That’s why we created Signals as a way to make our data easier to understand. We have five groups of Signals that indicate whether a company has a particular characteristic. They are: 

• Growth
• Innovation
• Environmental
• Social & Governance
• Risk

Beauhurst Signals mean that our clients don’t need to be data analysts to do sophisticated work, they just need to hit a few buttons.

A brief guide to charges and mortgages

A charge is essentially an agreement of assets used to secure a loan. Where these assets are a property, the charge is a mortgage (i.e. a loan secured by a property).

To put it another way, mortgages are a type of charge, and charges signify a loan. For the purposes of this article, we will therefore be referring primarily to charge data as an umbrella term.

Companies House defines a charge as a ‘security for the payment of a debt or other obligation that does not pass ‘property’ or any right to possession to the person to whom the charge is given’.

So, if Company X doesn’t pay Company Y back the agreed amount, Company Y is entitled to claim a certain amount of assets from them. These assets are defined in the charge.

Meanwhile, a mortgage is more specific. Companies House defines it as a ‘security for the payment of a debt or other obligation that passes ‘property’ but no right to possession to the person to whom the mortgage is given’.

To revisit the above scenario, Company Y would be able to seize the mortgaged property from Company X, but only in the situation where a mortgage is defaulted on.

Why charge data matters to lenders

As a lender, it’s essential to know whether a company has debt, and knowing whether a company has an outstanding charge is a key part of that research. With this information in hand, they can then wait for an opportunity to offer their prospect a better deal and win over the client.

And so, instead of manually searching for this information through Companies House, you can get reliable answers in seconds by using our data.

By combining charge and mortgage data with other search criteria, such as industries and risk signals, you can easily identify the companies you want to target.

How lenders can use Beauhurst charge data

The secret to getting the most out of charge data is combining it with other datasets. On Beauhurst, for example, you’re able to automatically track companies via Collections.

You can also use Risk Signals in conjunction with this data to avoid potentially risky lendees. Alternatively, Growth Signals could denote a scale-up company in need of a loan or mortgage.

Here are a handful of examples of how our subscribers in the lending sector use charge data.

Uncovering commercial opportunities

Lenders, particularly invoice financiers, can use charge data to attract clients from competitors.

By examining the creation date of a charge, lenders can estimate when a company might be ready for refinancing. This allows the lender to approach the company and negotiate terms to win them over as a client.

Competitor analysis

Creating a collection on Beauhurst can automatically add new companies to the list when a new charge is created, giving your team a view of when a competitor takes a charge or mortgage.

Combining this with other data sets on the platform, including growth and risk signals, can provide you with a competitive advantage.

Creditworthiness

If a company already has a charge, it indicates that the company has already been pre-vetted by another financier.

This is a positive indicator for a lender, and can be combined with other contextual data to determine how creditworthy a company is. It also makes the due diligence process less complex, saving time and money.

Industry benchmarking

Lenders can use charge data in conjunction with wider financial data on the Beauhurst platform. This enables subscribers to compare a company’s financial performance against industry benchmarks.

This comparison provides much-needed context for evaluating a company’s financial health relative to its peers.

Risk management and due diligence

By examining charge data, lenders can identify potential risks associated with lending to a company. This includes signs of financial instability and outstanding, long-term charges.

Access to detailed charge data also enhances the due diligence process, delivering a thorough analysis of a company’s financial operations, reducing the risk of default.

How charge data benefits lenders

Lenders today have access to a wealth of charge data that can significantly enhance their decision-making processes. Let’s explore the key benefits of utilising charge data.

Higher performance portfolio

The last thing lenders want are companies with a history of poor financial health. Lending only to creditworthy borrowers means a healthier, more reliable portfolio.

Save time and money

Approve charges faster with centralised data in one place. Using Beauhurst for charge data means significantly reduced work for approval, saving your team valuable time and resources.

Reduced risk of default

Knowledge breeds confidence. Lenders can take far greater confidence in working with a company, knowing that they are in good financial standing, have been pre-vetted, and having a more complete understanding of their history and operations.

More repeatable business

All of the above lead to a stronger client relationship; they know they can rely on your lending power and you know they’ll always pay you back. This invariably leads to repeatable business with the right companies, benefitting both of you.

This is just a snippet of the wider features on Beauhurst. Check out the other articles in our series including how to spot risk signals, calculate a company’s GVA, and finding companies excelling in ESG.

And if you’d like to see Beauhurst in action, book a slot with our team and we’d be delighted to demo the platform with you.