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Workboat Finance

Spread the cost of commercial workboats from £60,000 to £450,000+ with flexible finance options. HP, lease, or refinance, compare rates from 40+ lenders.

Can you finance a workboat?

Yes, workboats are financed as a standard asset purchase, usually on hire purchase or a lease, with the machine itself acting as the security. UK prices typically run £60,000 to £450,000, and most deals are written over 24–84 months with a deposit of around 15–25%. Decisions typically take 48–72 hours. Used machines are financeable too, usually with a shorter term.

200+ UK lenders
2-minute application
No credit check to apply
FCA-regulated brokers

Typical Cost

£60k – £450k

Approval Speed

48–72 hours

Same-day agreement in principle for < £100k

Rates From

5.5% APR

What would a workboat cost per month?

£150,000
10%
60 months
9%
£0

Your estimate

Indicative only. Not a quote and not an offer of finance.

Pre-filled with a typical workboat price. Indicative only, not a quote.

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Finance options

Hire Purchase (HP)

Rate
From 5.9% APR
Term
24–84 months
Deposit
15–25%
Ownership
Yours at the end
Best for
Operators wanting to own the vessel outright

Finance Lease

Rate
From 5.5% APR
Term
24–84 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return or buy (balloon payment)
Best for
Tax-efficient, claim the full lease payment against profit

Operating Lease

Rate
From 6.2% APR
Term
24–60 months
Deposit
None required
Ownership
Return at end
Best for
Keep a younger vessel without carrying the resale risk

Representative example

On a purchase price of £150,000: a 10% deposit of £15,000, then 48 monthly payments of £3,164 at 5.9% APR representative (fixed). Total amount payable £166,872, including the deposit. The rate you are offered depends on your business and the asset.

What buyers actually specify

Guide prices for sizing a finance agreement, not quotes. Manufacturers in this market mostly price on application, so where a current UK list price could not be confirmed the row describes a specification class rather than naming a model. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.

Machine or specification Guide price Type
8m Aluminium Workboat (spec class) £90,000 – £160,000 Aluminium Multi-Purpose Workboat
Alnmaritec-class Aluminium Pilot/Patrol Boat, 10–12m £150,000 – £320,000 Aluminium Pilot/Patrol Boat
12m Steel Multicat Workboat (spec class) £200,000 – £450,000 Steel Multicat Workboat
6m Aluminium Work Punt (spec class) £35,000 – £70,000 Small Aluminium Workboat

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Tax benefits

Workboats used for business qualify for Annual Investment Allowance (AIA), letting you deduct the full cost from taxable profits in the year of purchase, up to £1,000,000. HP agreements let you claim capital allowances on the vessel; lease payments are generally deductible in full against profits.

Market context

Workboats are bought by harbour authorities, marine contractors, dredging and civil engineering firms, and aquaculture operators needing a vessel for towing, personnel transfer, cargo or general port duties. Any vessel used commercially must be coded by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency for its intended area of operation, and the coding category has a direct bearing on build cost and on what a lender is prepared to fund. Because a workboat can be moved between operators and jurisdictions relatively easily, some mainstream lenders are cautious about the asset and buyers often end up placed with a marine finance specialist instead. On the used market, hull and machinery survey condition, rather than age alone, is the biggest single driver of value.

Bad credit?

Several of our 200+ lenders specialise in businesses with imperfect credit histories. You may need a larger deposit or personal guarantee, but options exist. Checking your options here does not affect your credit score, because we do not run a credit search to match you. A lender will run their own checks only if you decide to apply.

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Frequently asked questions

Do I need MCA coding before I can finance a workboat?
Lenders will want to know the coding category you're applying for or already hold, since it affects the vessel's specification, its resale market and how the finance is structured. You don't usually need the certificate in hand before an application is submitted, but a funder will typically make the agreement conditional on coding being completed, especially for higher categories covering unrestricted or offshore service.
Can I finance a second-hand workboat?
Yes. Most funders will finance used workboats, but they lean heavily on an independent marine survey to establish hull, engine and equipment condition rather than age alone. A vessel with a clean survey and up-to-date coding certificate will get better terms than an older but well-maintained boat with lapsed paperwork, so it's worth having survey and coding documents ready before you apply.
Why do some lenders avoid workboat finance?
Workboats are mobile assets that can, in principle, be moved to another operator or out of the country, which makes recovery and resale harder to control than for fixed or road-registered equipment. This pushes a lot of workboat lending toward marine finance specialists who understand vessel registration, mortgages and coding, rather than generalist asset finance houses. It doesn't stop finance being available, it just narrows the pool of realistic funders.
What deposit should I expect to put down?
Hire purchase deals typically ask for 15–25% deposit on a workboat, higher than the 10–20% common on other commercial assets, reflecting the specialist nature of the security. Finance and operating leases can often be arranged with no deposit at all, since the funder retains ownership throughout the term. A larger deposit, or an existing vessel offered as part-exchange, will usually improve the rate on offer.

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Guides and resources

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