The global recession is making it more difficult for families to access credit - even with a great credit rating it is now increasingly difficult to get approved for a loan or even an overdraft. If you’re a mom looking to borrow, what can you do to increase your chances of success?

Your first step should be to check your credit rating. Whenever you apply for a loan, your creditor checks this out and you need to have a good rating in order to be approved. You can check your credit rating for free online now, and when you do, check it over for any errors. If you have any disputes, then take care of them, and make sure that you are not behind on payments with any of your existing accounts, loans or credit cards.

If you’ve been late with payments recently, wait a while before you go applying for any loans so that these late payments have time to clear from your credit report.

 Try to pay off as much of the debt that you owe as possible before applying for a loan. Each time you apply for a loan and are not approved, this is added to your credit report, so try to hold off on applying for any loan until you know that your credit rating is in the best possible shape.

 Shop around for lenders with the most favourable rates. The internet makes it easier than ever to compare lenders rates and terms and conditions, so do your research to make sure you’re getting the best deal available to you.

 Look realistically at your finances. You need to determine exactly how much you really need to borrow, as well as looking at your existing budget to see how much you can afford to make in repayments each month. Now is not the time to overstretch your finances, as the economic situation looks set to get worse before it gets better.

 Talk to your bank – they may have products available that you are unaware of and they can be surprisingly helpful. Moms in the UK should talk to their existing banks too as many major UK banks, including Santander, are currently offering existing customers more favourable rates on their personal loans.