Fleet Refinance & Restructure: Cleaning Up Expensive Truck Loans in 2025
Fleet refinance and restructure for transport business owners – Switchboard Finance
Quick way to tidy messy truck loans — different lenders, rates and balloons — so repayments line up with your contracts instead of fighting them.
Quick check: does your fleet need a reset?
A lot of fleets were built on “whatever got approved at the time” — promo rates that rolled off, short terms on some rigs and big balloons on others. It kept the wheels turning but left everything hard to track.
If two or more of these sound like you, it’s usually worth running a simple refinance scenario instead of just adding another loan.
- Multiple lenders and repayment dates you need a spreadsheet to track.
- Large balloons due in the next 12–36 months with no clear exit plan.
- Repayments biting hardest in your quiet months, not when contracts peak.
How a simple fleet restructure actually works
It starts with a short inventory: each truck, who it’s with, rate, remaining term, balloon and rough value. That gives one clear picture of what should be kept, refinanced or exited.
From there, we build a single fleet story lenders can say yes to — often grouping prime movers, rigids and trailers into a small set of simple facilities instead of scattered one-offs.
- 1.List every truck, loan balance, repayment, balloon and contract it supports.
- 2.Mark trucks as keep, upgrade soon or sell when the numbers make sense.
- 3.Design a new structure that suits your contracts and upgrade ladder.
- 4.Submit one refinancing story instead of three disconnected applications.
Before vs after: repayments on one page
A refinance should be decided with numbers, not just a sharper rate. Good modelling compares “stay as is” with a couple of realistic restructure options side by side.
Here’s the simple snapshot we walk through with operators before anyone signs anything.
| Messy fleet | Reset fleet | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly repayments | Spiky and hard to predict around rego, tax and downtime. | Smoother number that fits your quiet months and peak work. |
| Number of lenders | 3–4 different lenders with different rules. | 1–2 core funders who understand your story. |
| Balloons & end-of-term | Large, scattered balloons with no clear plan. | Right-sized balloons with a set upgrade plan for each rig. |
| Upgrade path | Hard for banks to see how the next truck fits. | Clear ladder that supports extra units when the time is right. |
When to refinance, wait or sell a truck
Not every unit should be refinanced. The goal is a stronger fleet and clearer story for lenders, not keeping every truck alive forever.
A simple decision grid keeps the call tight and stops you over-committing just because a rate looks sharp on paper.
- Good contracts and strong repayment history.
- Decent equity in the truck and balloon too big or messy.
- Income still lumpy or new contracts not locked in yet.
- Need a few more clean bank statements before making the move.
- Truck is unreliable or near end of useful life.
- Equity is better used as a deposit on a newer unit.
If your fleet feels messy — different lenders, confusing balloons and repayments that don’t match your contracts — it’s usually a sign you’re due for a reset, not just another truck loan.
Switchboard Finance works with owner-drivers and transport businesses across Australia to design practical fleet strategies. You can go deeper via the multiple truck loans cash flow guide, the truck finance checklist, the prime mover vs rigid comparison or jump into the Truckie Hub and Business Owners Finance Hub.
Fleet refinance & restructure – FAQs
1. What is fleet refinance and when does it make sense?
Fleet refinance is reshaping your existing truck loans into a cleaner asset finance structure. It usually makes sense once you have stronger contracts, an ABN with trading history and your current mix of lenders, rates and terms is putting pressure on monthly cash flow or blocking future upgrades.
2. Will refinancing my trucks hurt my cash flow?
Done properly, it should help. A good restructure looks at your true cash flow pattern and builds repayments that still work in quieter months. The risk comes from stretching terms too far just to chase the lowest monthly number, so side-by-side “before vs after” modelling is critical.
3. Can I change the balloon when I refinance my fleet?
Often yes. Many operators use a refinance to fix an oversized balloon payment that no longer matches the value of the truck. If there’s enough equity and the numbers stack up, lenders will usually let you reset balloons to something more realistic with a clear plan at end of term.
4. Do I have to keep using a chattel mortgage when I restructure my trucks?
Not always. A lot of fleets use a chattel mortgage because it’s simple and tax-effective, but some situations call for leases or other structures. When we review a fleet, we look at ownership, GST treatment and upgrade plans before deciding whether to keep chattel mortgages across the board or mix structures.
5. How does a fleet refinance affect my working capital buffer?
The right restructure should protect your working capital by smoothing repayments and reducing balloon shocks. We’ll usually test the new structure alongside tools like a business line of credit or invoice finance so you’re not left short on fuel, tyres or repairs when something unexpected hits.
