The rapidly growing e-commerce industry is causing online platforms to outdo each other with solutions to increase online sales. In today's publication, we will focus on the issue of deferred payment purchases.

What is the deferred payment scheme?

The deferred payment system consists of the customer selecting, when making a purchase, a more or less distant date of obligation to pay for this item. This is done with the help of deferred payment operators with whom the specific online shop has a cooperation agreement. After the expiry of the agreed date (in practice, this is often 30 days from the date of purchase), the customer is obliged to make payment for the item he or she has already purchased. This solution has been received very optimistically in our country, somewhat following the example of the e-commerce industry in other parts of Europe. Further development of this type of payment system is expected, especially as competition among operators is growing quite rapidly.

What are the most popular deferred payment systems that serve the e-commerce industry in Poland?

Such systems called - 'Buy Now, Pay Later', from English - 'Buy Now, Pay Later', include:

  • PayPo;
  • BNPL;
  • Klarna;
  • Payu;
  • Dotpay;
  • Allegro Pay;

In addition, it should be pointed out that more and more new platforms are emerging that offer this type of deferred financial solutions, effectively supporting turnover in the e-commerce industry. When mentioning deferred payment systems for the e-commerce industry, it is impossible to mention solutions for buyers who are entrepreneurs (the equivalent of Allegro Pay for consumers). The option of postponed payment has been provided for a long time by a well-known auction platform. It is through the Allegro Pay Business service that customers gain up to 60 days of deferred payment.

Deferred payment scheme - what should be taken into account and is such an arrangement legally permissible?

From a legal point of view, this solution is certainly permissible, as the obligation to pay is temporarily transferred to the deferred payment operator. However, what should be taken into account when using this payment model. Well, it is worth keeping to the payment deadlines - especially when using deferred payment systems, as exceeding the payment deadline by even one day is usually associated with the obligation to make an additional payment or pay interest. At this point, it is worth pointing out that a suggested solution is to examine the terms and conditions that apply at the specific operator of the deferred payment system. It is always a good idea to check the financial conditions in detail - including the APR. This is important from the point of view of both the terms and conditions, the charges and the possible consequences of not paying on time for an item that was previously purchased in an online shop or on an auction platform.

Summary.

The deferred payment system definitely makes online shopping more attractive. In addition, it stimulates the purchasing response of consumers who, encouraged by the deferred payment period, are more likely to decide to make a purchase. This solution is safe, intuitive and easy to use. However, it is important to carefully read the terms and conditions of the specific deferred payment system operator. It is also important from the perspective of online shop owners to properly analyse the terms of cooperation offered to them, as this may expose them to financial and image losses. If a customer is not satisfied with the service provided by a deferred payment scheme operator when making a purchase in a particular shop, his dissatisfaction and poorer opinion may certainly affect the overall assessment of the entire purchasing process - and therefore also (unfortunately) the opinion of the online shop owner.