Crisis loans are emergency loans provided for people who have met with an emergency or a disaster and in absolute need of financial help. These are interest free loans, that could be applied online if needed, and the sanctioned loan amount would be directly credited into the bank account of the borrower.

The loan is provided from the social fund of the Department of work and pensions (Apply for a Crisis Loan (form SF401), 2007) and there should be a repayment agreement between the borrower and social fund authorities. It would not be counted as an income of the borrower and would not affect any of the benefits he is enjoying (Crisis loans, 2007).

A person would be eligible for crisis loans only on the basis of certain criteria. He should be more than 16 years old, and should have faced an event or disaster and would face serious problems in health and safety, if the loan is not sanctioned. Yet another condition is that the person should have been getting community care grant and are moving out of the present accommodation and not having enough money to pay the rent advance for the next accommodation. The amount of crisis loan sanctioned would depend on the circumstances of the borrower and also on his savings and whether or not he had applied for such a loan before.

A crisis loan in UK is a loan approved to a person in dares need of financial help to support him and his family. This is a great help provided without any interest by the Government. Thus anybody living in UK could have a peaceful and happy life without much concern for his or her immediate future because of this type of loan.

References:-
Crisis Loans (2007) [online] Available at: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTax CreditsAndOtherSupport/ On_a_low_income/DG_10018856 (accessed on 22-11-07)
Apply for a Crisis Loan (form SF401) (2007) [online] Available at: http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/idcplg?IdcService= SS_GET_PAGE&siteId=en&ss TargetNodeId=406&ssDocName=DG_4017683 (accessed on 22-11-07).