This is the time of year when many of us aren’t simply pledging to shed some of the extra weight we’ve accumulated over the festive season. There are some other pounds we’d rather be without, too – the ones we’ve accumulated on our credit card bills.

There may be an easy solution: could you be sitting on the cash you need to clear that credit card debt without realising it?

Think about your house insurance. What have you taken the trouble to insure? If it’s a high-value possession, then you may have the means to settle your post-Christmas financial woes. Why not use it as collateral for a secured asset loan from peer-to-peer lender Unbolted?

Let’s give an illustrative example: Rafi is a session musician in his late twenties. Given his financial predicament, he could be you. Although he’s a freelancer, he’s fortunate enough to be steadily in demand, and he’s supported some big acts on UK tours and in the studio to date. He and his partner Melissa splashed out at Christmas, spending a week in a luxury hotel in Bermuda and buying expensive presents for one another courtesy of the plastic in their wallets.

Now it’s payback time. Rafi has a major gig coming up when an internationally renowned vocal artist makes a long-awaited UK tour. He knows he’ll make a small fortune from it; the trouble is, it’s yet to happen and his bills need paying now. With his credit cards almost groaning under the weight of his recent borrowing, he doesn’t want to apply for a bank loan. As a freelancer, he’s had difficulty accessing bank credit in the past, and he feels sure that his credit rating signals financial stress (which is currently true but won’t be when he’s been paid for his upcoming gig).

Necessity, it’s said, is the mother of invention. When Rafi’s thoughts turn to the growling monster he has locked in his garage – a classic 1953 Vincent Black Shadow motorbike that had once belonged to his uncle – he starts to get inventive. He could pawn it, raise the cash for the credit card bill, and buy it back when he has his payment. However, that’s where he encounters another obstacle: the high-end pawnbrokers he finds are, without exception, incredibly expensive. Interest rates vary from a representative APR of 69% at best to a staggering 162.54%. Suddenly, the pawnbroker option doesn't seem such a good idea after all.

If Rafi comes to peer-to-peer lender Unbolted, however, he’ll be pleasantly surprised. Our representative APR for a secured asset loan like the one Rafi is seeking is just 44%. He won’t be subjected to a credit search, which would leave a footprint against his credit rating. At Unbolted, we collateralise assets like that fabulous motorbike as security for any borrowing we lend.

With our specialist partners (in this case, H&H, an established auction house dedicated solely to the sale of collectors’ motorcycles and motorcars), we determine the value of the asset on a secondary market, and offer loans based on that value. Rafi can easily raise the £20,000 he is seeking, and he’ll be able to settle the loan as soon as he receives his remuneration for his tour support.