Medical loan mediation with banks: the right amount, the right borrower, a contract seen through a lawyer's eyes
The operation is scheduled for Thursday, the clinic wants payment in advance and the family has three days. Under that pressure people sign the first offer, borrow more than they need and miss the line in the contract that turns out to be the most expensive two months later. This page describes how we prepare a loan package the bank approves quickly, how we compare offers by effective rate and what an Advocat.Ge lawyer reads before you sign. We do not lend money; the bank makes the decision.
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Comparison by effective rateSeveral lenders in one table, including fees and insurance
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A lawyer reads it before you signEarly repayment, penalties, collateral and insurance terms
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No commission from lendersAdvice in your interest, not the bank's; our fee is fixed
Four types of loan and which situation each one fits
A medical loan is not a separate product at every bank. More often it is one of these four products, with a medical purpose and supporting documents.
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Targeted loan paid to the clinic
The bank pays the money into the clinic's account against its invoice. It is approved fastest because the purpose is documented, and the family never handles the money, which lowers the risk for the bank. Not possible if the clinic is abroad and the bank does not accept a foreign invoice.
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Unsecured consumer loan
The money goes to the borrower's account, without proof of purpose. It is flexible, but the limit depends on income and the effective rate is high. Suitable for small amounts and when the costs are split between several providers.
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Loan secured on real estate
The lowest rate and the highest limit, but also the greatest risk: if you fail to pay, the property is sold. We advise pledging the family's only home only when the payment is a small part of the family's income and there is no other source.
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Instalments at the clinic or an insurance co-payment
Some clinics offer instalments with a partner bank right at the reception desk. It is convenient, but you cannot judge the offer without a comparison; we put it in the same table as the other banks' offers.
What we compare in offers, line by line
A bank's offer highlights one figure. We read seven, because the real cost of a loan lies in their sum.
| Criterion | What it means | What we ask the lender |
|---|---|---|
| Effective interest rate | The full annual cost, including fees and insurance | Is it fixed or variable, and what index is it linked to |
| Term and monthly payment | A short term is cheaper overall, heavier each month | How large the payment is relative to the family's income and what the responsible lending rule allows |
| Early repayment | A fee for closing the loan early | What full repayment costs in month three, when the campaign money arrives |
| Arrangement and service fees | One-off and monthly charges on top of interest | Are they deducted from the amount or added, and are they refunded on early repayment |
| Compulsory insurance | Life or property insurance attached to the loan | Who is insured, what exclusions apply to the diagnosis and what it costs each month |
| Late payment penalty | What happens after a single late payment | The size of the penalty and when notices and enforcement begin |
| Collateral and guarantor | Who or what answers for the loan besides the borrower | What rights the bank has over the property and the guarantor's income |
We do not publish rates on this page: they are the bank's and change weekly. You receive the comparison table with the figures of your specific offers, with the lawyer's comment on every line of the contract that creates a risk.
What we protect the family from, and when we say a loan is not the answer
A serious diagnosis leaves a person vulnerable to any offer that promises speed. So before anything is signed we ask three questions and say the answers plainly.
- Licence: is the lender on the National Bank's register? An unlicensed online loan neither follows responsible lending rules nor gives you anywhere to complain.
- An intermediary with an upfront fee: someone who promises guaranteed approval and asks for money before the application will not get you a loan. The bank makes its own decision, and nobody can guarantee it, us included.
- Payment relative to income: if the monthly payment exceeds the share of the family's income allowed by the responsible lending rule, the bank will refuse, and if it does not, that is a warning sign for us.
- The only home as collateral: only when every other route has been tried, the payment is light and the family has acknowledged the risk in writing. In that case the lawyer reads the mortgage agreement separately.
Frequently asked questions about medical loans
Can a bank refuse a loan because of the diagnosis?
A bank does not assess the diagnosis; it assesses creditworthiness, but in practice the two overlap: if the borrower is the patient and their income stops during treatment, the bank sees a risk and either refuses or offers a short term. Some products also require life and health insurance, which an insurer will not issue to someone with a serious diagnosis. So the borrower is usually the family member with a stable, documented income, while the patient appears in the purpose of the loan through Form 100 and the cost estimate. This is not hiding the diagnosis: these are exactly the documents on which a bank approves a targeted medical loan, and it often pays the money directly to the clinic. The decision is always the bank's, and nobody can guarantee you approval.
What is the effective interest rate, and why is the nominal rate not enough?
The nominal rate is the figure you see in the advert. The effective rate adds up everything you actually pay: the nominal interest, the arrangement fee, the monthly service charge, compulsory insurance and account maintenance, converted into an annual percentage. In Georgia a lender is required to state the effective rate in the contract, and that is the figure we use to compare offers: two loans with the same nominal rate can differ by several percentage points in effective terms. Then there is the term, since a short term is cheaper overall but heavier each month, and the early repayment condition, which determines how much it will cost you to close the loan with campaign or state funding money.
Can a loan be repaid early with campaign money or state funding?
Yes, and this is the most common scenario: surgery is days away, the loan pays the clinic on time, then the money from City Hall, the referral programme or the campaign arrives and the loan is closed. By law a consumer has the right to repay a loan early, but the lender may charge a capped fee, which is stated in the contract. So when comparing offers we look at this condition separately and choose a product where early repayment is free or minimal, even if the nominal rate is slightly higher. A second detail: repaying a loan with campaign money must be reported to donors, because the money goes to the bank rather than the clinic; we write this into the campaign text itself.
A bank or a microfinance organisation: what is the difference in risk?
Both are supervised by the National Bank and both are subject to responsible lending rules, but the difference lies in price and speed: a microfinance organisation approves faster and with fewer documents, but its effective rate is usually higher. With a serious diagnosis that difference runs to hundreds of lari a month, so we try banks first and turn to microfinance only when time cannot wait for the bank's answer. In both cases we protect the family from: unlicensed online loans, intermediaries who promise guaranteed approval for an upfront fee, and pledging the family's only home when the monthly payment exceeds the family's income. In that situation we say plainly that a loan is not the answer and look for other routes.
What happens before and after the loan
- Charity campaign and crowdfunding The money that closes the loan, and the reporting that tells donors about it.
- Financial document translation A foreign clinic's cost estimate and invoice in Georgian, so that the bank will consider a targeted loan.
- Finding sources of funding State programmes and foundations whose replies reduce the amount you need to borrow.
Borrow only what you really need, on terms you have read
Give us the amount in the cost estimate and the date of surgery. Within 1-2 days you will know what remains after free sources, which product fits and what the lawyer will read before you sign.