Durham nurse Christine Forster has a double celebration to enjoy with her family this summer. For as well as celebrating her silver wedding anniversary this month (June), she's also won top prize in Lombard Direct's nationwide competition.

Now Christine of Sacriston, in County Durham no longer needs to make payments to settle her personal loan - Lombard Direct has paid the £7000 off in full.

The mum-of-two's winning entry was selected from tens of thousands received by Lombard Direct, one of the UK's leading direct lenders.

A delighted Christine (46) said: "I couldn't believe my luck. My husband Keith and I have never been lucky in competitions before, but if I wanted to be a winner, then this was the right competition for me to win."

"I can't believe that I've had my personal loan paid off - and five years early as well. It is like a dream come true for us. All I can say is 'thanks Lombard'."

Christine has been a team assistant at the University Hospital of North Durham for the past six months after a career change. She says she enjoys her work immensely, even when she has to work shifts which turns her night into day!

She came to Lombard Direct in April when she and Keith, a sheet metal worker, needed to take out a loan after their car broke down.

"Our old car was going to cost too much to fix, so we decided the time was right to buy a newer, but smaller car. We found the ideal car for us, a four-year-old lime green Corsa and needed to take out a personal loan.
At the same time, we decided to install a new combi boiler in our home. We've lived in our three-bedroom house for 22 years and we've been improving the property over the years.
But when you've got two teenage children, Kathryn (19) and Shaun (16), you need to have a plentiful supply of hot water for showers and baths, so we thought we'd borrow the extra money this time and have a new boiler installed as well." explained Christine.

It's not the first time Christine has had a loan from Lombard Direct. She'd previously taken a loan to make further home improvements and had been so happy with the friendly service she'd received from Lombard Direct, that she was more than happy to come back.
"I've always found the service at Lombard Direct to be top class. Everyone is always really friendly and they make the whole process so simple and easy for you. When we decided we wanted a loan for the car, I had no hesitation in picking up the phone and calling Lombard Direct - it was the obvious choice."

When Christine took out her loan, she wanted the reassurance that her loan payments would be met if any unexpected circumstances occurred, so she also took out Lombard Direct's Loan Payment Protection insurance.
"I've always taken out this type of insurance because you never know what's round the corner. The payment protection insurance gives you peace of mind for anything life throws at you." explained Christine.

Christine hasn't decided what she's going to do with the extra money each month now she doesn't have to make her loan payments.
"Keith and I really haven't decided how we will spend the spare money every month. Perhaps we'll give ourselves a few more treats, but I'm sure Kathryn and Shaun will help us spend it." she joked.

"Whatever we do, we've just been so lucky. It's a wonderful position to be in and I cannot thank Lombard Direct enough."

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