Credit Buyback Refusal: Understand the Causes and Protect Your Finances
Multiple ongoing loans, increasing monthly repayments, and growing administrative pressure can quickly put your budget under strain. A credit buyback is often an attractive solution to regain control, but banks do not always approve it. Discover why your credit buyback might be refused in 2026 and how to improve your chances of approval.
Whether you are combining a car loan, a mortgage, and a personal loan, consolidation can significantly reduce your monthly repayments. Yet, certain risk criteria strictly monitored by banks may slow down or block your request. Anticipating these obstacles allows you to prepare a stronger and more reassuring file for lenders.
Example of a situation with several loans
Imagine you have the following ongoing loans:
- Car financing of €22,000
- Mortgage loan of €158,000
- Personal loan for garden renovation of €8,500
Three different monthly repayments, three interlocutors, and a high total monthly amount. A credit buyback could help you simplify and reduce your repayments, provided your file meets the bank’s acceptance criteria.
What Is a Credit Buyback?
A credit buyback, also called credit consolidation, consists in grouping several existing loans into a single new loan. Instead of paying three separate monthly repayments (car, mortgage, personal loan), you repay one single monthly instalment to one interlocutor.
Concretely, the new bank or credit intermediary repays your existing balances and replaces them with a single consolidated loan. This new loan usually has a longer duration, which allows you to reduce the amount of your monthly repayment and breathe again in your day-to-day budget.
This restructuring is particularly suitable when the accumulation of several loans weighs too heavily on your income, or when you want to smooth your repayments over time. However, like any form of credit, the bank evaluates your financial profile before accepting a credit buyback, and some situations can lead to refusal.
What Are the Advantages of a Credit Buyback?
The first major advantage is administrative simplification. With a credit buyback, you no longer have to manage several monthly repayments with different due dates and several contacts. You only have one single ongoing loan, one contract, and one point of contact to manage.
The second key advantage is the reduction in the total amount of your monthly repayments. Even if the consolidated loan amount is higher than each of your initial loans taken separately, the fact of combining them over a unified and often longer duration generally allows you to obtain a lower monthly amount than the sum of your previous premiums.
This financial flexibility can help you avoid payment incidents, better absorb unforeseen expenses, and regain a more stable budget. However, it is important to keep in mind that extending the loan duration can increase the total cost of credit over time.
Main Causes of Bank Refusal for a Credit Buyback in 2026
Even if a credit buyback seems logically beneficial for your situation, a bank can still refuse your application. Its decision is based on a detailed analysis of your risk profile, your payment history, and the guarantees you offer. Below are the main reasons that can lead to a refusal in 2026.
Contentious situation
If you already find yourself in a contentious situation because you have not repaid your monthly instalments on time, it will be very difficult to obtain a credit buyback. In such cases, you may be listed at the National Bank of Belgium, which considerably reduces lenders’ appetite for risk.
Excessive debt ratio
Your banker carefully analyses your debt ratio, i.e. the share of your monthly income devoted to loan repayments. As a general rule, this ratio should not exceed 35 to 40% of your monthly income. Beyond that, your repayment capacity is considered too fragile, and the bank may refuse your credit buyback request.
Repayment history
Your banker also takes into account your credit repayment history. Regular delays, repeated incidents, or restructurings can be perceived as warning signals. Conversely, a stable, incident-free history reinforces your credibility and increases your chances of acceptance.
Quality of guarantees
To protect itself in the event of default, the bank assesses the quality of the guarantees you can offer: property pledged as security, stable income, long-term employment contract, etc. Insufficient or inadequate guarantees can lead to a refusal or to a more restrictive offer.
Spousal consent
If you are married, both spouses must consent and sign the credit contracts. In the absence of mutual agreement, the bank cannot validly set up the credit buyback, which may result in a refusal or the suspension of the process until a joint decision is reached.
Prepare a stronger credit buyback file in 2026
Analyse your situation, anticipate the main causes of refusal, and simulate the impact of a credit consolidation on your budget. Take the first step towards more balanced finances.