Utility trucks are built to work a job site or a service call, not to haul freight. They carry tools, parts and equipment in a service body or are fitted with a bucket, crane or aerial device. Most buyers in this category are trades contractors, telecom or utility service providers, or fleet operators adding a work truck to their operation.
Reviewed by Hard Money Truck Loans Team | Updated October 11, 2026
Every application is reviewed on its own facts. Credit is reviewed, but it is not the deciding factor. Low scores, collections, charge-offs and late payments are workable. No bankruptcy or repossession within the last 5 years.
The lender reviews the specific truck as part of the transaction, including year, make and model, mileage, truck type and specifications. On a utility truck the service body, bucket, crane or aerial device is part of those specifications.
Utility trucks price across the $21,000 to $145,000 range depending on the chassis and the mounted equipment. An established business is 30% down and a startup is 40% down with 2 years of industry experience.
The truck must be purchased from a licensed dealer and there is no minimum credit score. The trades, telecom and utility examples on this page are educational context only, so you can independently confirm the truck fits the work you plan to perform.
Trades contractors and field service operators lose credit when a big customer pays late or a slow stretch hits. The work comes back, but the score does not recover as fast. Banks decline on the score. We look at your trade experience and the truck you need to do the work.
There is no minimum credit score. Collections, charge-offs and late payments are workable. Bankruptcy or repossession in the last 5 years disqualifies the file.
We specialize in credit challenged commercial truck and trailer buyers, including many borrowers with scores around 500. Credit is reviewed, but it is not the deciding factor. Low scores, collections, charge-offs and late payments are workable.
Example based on 20 working days at $700 per day on subcontract field service work. Expenses include fuel, insurance, tools and parts, maintenance and tires. The truck payment is not included because your payment depends on the price, term and rate quoted to you.
Money left on the table before any truck payment, while you keep applying and hearing no.
We will be straight with you. Because we lend to credit challenged buyers, you put more money down than a bank would ask for and you pay a higher rate than a bank would charge. That is the honest cost of getting approved when the bank already said no.
The difference is that a bank decline earns you nothing. A utility truck that is working earns money every month. Used wisely, that income covers the payment, pays down the collections on your credit and builds the track record that gets you better terms on your next truck.
Keep the utility truck earning. Revenue is what makes everything else possible.
Make every truck payment on time. That history is proof you perform.
Use part of your profit each month to pay or settle collections, oldest and smallest first.
With collections handled and a clean payment record, you are in a better spot for your next truck.
A licensed electrician with ten years of field work has a score near 540 after a divorce left several accounts in collections. He finds a service body truck at a licensed dealer for $65,000.
At 30% down he brings $19,500 and finances $45,500. He takes subcontract service calls directly, and the truck payment history helps rebuild what the divorce damaged.
This shows how the numbers can work. It is not a specific customer.
Different truck, same kind of credit problem. These are real loans funded for our customers, and the credit situations look a lot like what utility truck buyers bring us.
$47,000 purchase price, $14,100 down (30%)
5 collections totaling $21,450. Lost his job and exhausted his savings during several months of unemployment, causing multiple accounts to go into collections.
$52,000 purchase price, $15,600 down (30%)
4 collections totaling $9,300. Lost several delivery routes, forcing him to rely on credit cards for living expenses and eventually miss payments.
All applications are subject to review and approval.
See All Recent LoansYes. There is no minimum credit score and collections are workable. The truck must be purchased from a licensed dealer. Approval is not guaranteed.
The service body, crane or aerial device is reviewed as part of the truck and included in the financed amount.
Banks lend to borrowers with clean credit and decline everyone else. We lend to credit challenged buyers, so the risk is higher and the terms reflect it: 30% down for an established business, 40% down plus 2 years of industry experience for a startup, and a rate higher than a bank would charge. The tradeoff is that you get the utility truck working and earning instead of waiting on a yes that may never come.
No bankruptcy or repossession within the last 5 years. The utility truck must also be purchased from a licensed dealer and the purchase price must fall between $21,000 and $145,000.
It can, if you use it that way. The income from the utility truck can be used to pay or settle collections and keep your personal accounts current, and a clean payment history on your truck loan shows the next lender you perform. Results depend on your own habits and are not guaranteed.
Same day approvals may be available. Funding can occur in as little as 3 days. Timing depends on how quickly the dealer and you provide what is needed.
Reviewed by the Hard Money Truck Loans Team. Last updated October 11, 2026.
Program terms on this page come from our current lending program. Recent loan examples are real funded deals. Read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Send us the truck you found at the dealer and we will tell you where you stand. No obligation.
Banks won’t touch you, but guess who will!?
