New research has found older people with higher incomes are the fastest-growing group of users of deferred payment schemes, which have been mostly associated with millennials in the past
At the age of 74, Vivienne doesn't seem like your typical Klarna customer.
In the UK, more than a third of people have said they have used BNPL in the last 12 months, according to money experts Finder, who surveyed 2,000 people across Great Britain at the end of January 2023. And amid growing financial pressures and soaring inflation, more customers are welcoming the ability to break payments up into smaller, more manageable, chunks.
"I use it to buy the luxuries I would otherwise wait for the sale for, or end up raiding my savings.""I didn't have that money, but I could afford it over time," she said.Millennials and Gen Z remain the most likely to have used BNPL overall, but those aged 45 to 54 are the second most likely to have used BNPL for the first time over the past 12 months.
Not all BNPL firms report to credit agencies, or CRAs - also known as credit bureaux - but more than half do and the rest are expected to follow suit.This can be both positive - for consumers struggling to build up their score via more traditional means - or can also pose a risk of ruining your score if you fall behind with payments.But campaigners from the Centre for Financial Capability have expressed concern about the growing demand among older people.
But there has been concern that the ease of BNPL could encourage people to spend more than they can afford. "When you can take something out so quickly, do you have that moment of pause? We've done polling that suggests that lots of people who take out buy now pay later don't even recognise they've taken out credit, they don't think of it as credit or debt."Alex Marsh, head of Klarna UK, told Sky News responsible lending was key.
Currently, you don't have late fees if you miss a payment with Klarna - something that is changing on 16 March, when the company introduces fees of up to £10 if you don't pay.When it comes to who is using Klarna, he said it's"not surprising" the older and wealthier are turning to the platforms."There isn't that same barrier or stigma for them."
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