While I agree that increasing consumer debt is a problem, I think Klarna provides a valuable service for online shopping.
I can get my goods delivered and inspect them before paying anything. If the goods are not as stated (or don’t arrive at all) I just dispute it and then it is Klarnas problem, I haven’t risked anything of my own money. If I had paid up front, I would have to try to get my money back. It’s almost always harder to get money back than to dispute and refuse to pay.
Some regulations are welcome, but I don’t see BNPL as a bad concept in itself.
Klarna is permanently on my do not trust list, as what I experienced told me they can’t manage their system correctly. And for someone who can put a derogatory mark on your credit, I’m not risking it.
(Bear in mind when I got the first email, just to be safe, I paid off the remaining balance the Friday of that week.)
I figured they caught and corrected it, so no harm, no foul.
When I tried using them at the end of the month however, (I think for upgrading my comp) they rejected my finance request. I wasn’t sure, but I had my suspicions it was due to their fuck-up as I only used them once.
It’s the people they’re counting on not paying after the BNPL period is over that need more protection. That’s where the trap is, and where these actors make their money.
You can already do all that with a credit card, and your bank is more likely to side with you. Why not just use that? There’s several decades more regulation on credit cards, too.
While I agree that increasing consumer debt is a problem, I think Klarna provides a valuable service for online shopping.
I can get my goods delivered and inspect them before paying anything. If the goods are not as stated (or don’t arrive at all) I just dispute it and then it is Klarnas problem, I haven’t risked anything of my own money. If I had paid up front, I would have to try to get my money back. It’s almost always harder to get money back than to dispute and refuse to pay.
Some regulations are welcome, but I don’t see BNPL as a bad concept in itself.
Klarna is permanently on my do not trust list, as what I experienced told me they can’t manage their system correctly. And for someone who can put a derogatory mark on your credit, I’m not risking it.
(Bear in mind when I got the first email, just to be safe, I paid off the remaining balance the Friday of that week.)
I figured they caught and corrected it, so no harm, no foul.
When I tried using them at the end of the month however, (I think for upgrading my comp) they rejected my finance request. I wasn’t sure, but I had my suspicions it was due to their fuck-up as I only used them once.
3 weeks later, they sent this.
It’s the people they’re counting on not paying after the BNPL period is over that need more protection. That’s where the trap is, and where these actors make their money.
You can already do all that with a credit card, and your bank is more likely to side with you. Why not just use that? There’s several decades more regulation on credit cards, too.
Mostly convenience, the Klarna app is miles ahead of what my bank offers.
That’s not even true. Oftentimes, the debit card transaction is completed long before the product arrives…
You should never use a debit card, at least in the US. Always use a credit card.
Debit cards are defacto standard in the EU, far fewer uses credit cards.
BNPL encourages higher prices.