How to stop using buy now, pay later services (and make it stick)

The government is trying to tighten buy now, pay later regulations by the end of 2023. How to work out whether the way you're using BNPL services is concerning "With the cost-of-living crisis, rising interest rates and rents, BNPL services have the power to impact anyone's financial wellbeing, but especially low-income earners," Ms Zhong says. Both experts say some signs you might have taken on more BNPL debt than you can manage or need are: Cutting back on essentials like food to make payments on time Using multiple BNPL accounts Finding yourself constantly needing to pay off past purchasing decisions Struggling to make payments on time Being hit with late payment fees Using other forms of credit to pay off your BNPL purchases Using BNPL to pay for things simply because it's there Finding yourself being lured to spend more on items than you would if you had to pay for them outright Impulse shopping was my guilty habit, so I tried four tactics to curb it Photo shows Grace surrounded by shopping and sale graphics I introduced four small tweaks to curb my impulse buying, both online and in-store. "At the moment, BNPL isn't regulated like most debt products, which is why consumers may not see them as debt — but they are," Ms Zhong explains. "If you've got multiple, you could try using one instead of three, and then slowly cut back one service at a time and as you go, reduce spending limits on the accounts you have left," she says.