Buy now, pay later (BNPL)

‘Buy now pay later’ (BNPL) is a way of spreading payments, interest free, for something you buy over a short period of time – no longer than 12 months. For example, you might buy something with BNPL and split payments into 3 or 4 equal instalments.

Most types of BNPL agreements are also known as ‘deferred payment credit’ (DPC).

Find out more about BNPL on the MoneyHelper website.

We can look at your complaint if you took out the agreement on or after 15 July 2026 and you believe:

• your application for a BNPL agreement was declined unfairly or you believe the lender made a mistake
• you believe that any charges you’ve been asked to pay, or have paid, were unfair because you weren’t aware of them or the amount you’ve been charged is incorrect
• information on your credit file is incorrect
• you’ve already paid what you owe but you’re now being asked to pay
• you want to return, or have already returned, what you bought because it’s faulty
• you were mis-sold BNPL or a deferred payment credit agreement, because:
  • it wasn’t suitable for you or it was the wrong type of agreement
  • the terms and conditions weren’t explained clearly
  • information you received wasn’t correct
  • you were pressured into taking BNPL or a deferred payment credit agreement
• your small business has a problem with merchant services such as payment settlements or chargebacks.

If you believe a financial business should have helped you more –  or did something wrong – when you were in a vulnerable situation, see our guidance on complaints involving vulnerability.

We also have separate guidance on complaints about:

• Discrimination
• Disputed transactions
• Financial difficulties
• Unaffordable lending

Our service is free and easy to use. 

1. Before bringing your complaint to us, you should complain to the company involved. If they don't send you a final response within eight weeks – or you're unhappy with their response – you can complain to us.
2. Fill in our complaint form. If you're considering using AI to help you complete the form, read our guidelines on using AI before you start. If you feel your case needs to be dealt with urgently because you're in financial difficulty or vulnerable circumstances, please let us know when you make your complaint. 
3. As you complete the form, we'll ask a few questions about some of the things we need to know to get started. 
4. If we can help you, your case will be assigned to a case handler who will contact you when they start to investigate.
5. To help us consider a complaint fairly, we may ask you for more information later.

We’ll assess what happened using evidence from you, the financial business and any relevant third parties. We may also consider:  

• the relevant law, and any regulations and industry codes of conduct that applied at the time 
• the terms and conditions of the credit agreement
• correspondence between you and the business, including their final response
• payment records
• your credit file.

Once we’ve investigated, we'll tell you whether we believe you've been treated unfairly or not. And we’ll explain how we reached our decision. 

If we think you've lost money, we'll tell the lender to put things right.

We may also tell them to pay you compensation for any distress or inconvenience you have suffered.