Does Klarna affect your credit file?

Yes, Klarna can affect your credit file. Klarna reports existing, late and unpaid balances to Experian and TransUnion, and it started reporting to both in June 2022¹. That means what you owe and how you manage it can be visible to other lenders when they assess you.

The practical effect depends on what happens. A soft credit check when you apply does not affect your credit rating, and most of the big providers, including Klarna, PayPal and Zilch, only run soft checks³. But a missed payment is different: missed payments on buy now pay later agreements show on your credit score and can make it harder to get credit in the future⁴. Klarna also charges a £5 late payment fee for payments made more than seven days after the due date, capped at two late payment fees per order⁵.

Klarna's pay-later plans are now regulated credit, which brings them closer to the protections attached to credit cards under the Consumer Credit Act⁴. One consequence is that there is no right to cancel a regulated deferred payment credit agreement covered by section 66A of the Consumer Credit Act⁶. If you are struggling to repay, free debt advice does not affect your credit file or credit score, and discussing your options with your lender will not either if you are up to date⁷.

Klarna reports to credit reference agencies

Klarna reports to Experian and TransUnion, and its reporting of existing, late and unpaid balances means those details can be visible on your credit file¹. It began reporting to both agencies in June 2022². This is not unusual: most BNPL companies now report information to credit reference agencies, including how you are managing your account⁵.

The UK has three main credit reference agencies, and each one gets different information from lenders, so your credit file may not look the same at each⁹. That matters if you are checking your own record, because a gap at one agency does not mean a gap at another. It also matters if you are disputing something: you may need to contact each of the three agencies and ask for a notice of correction to be added to your credit report¹¹.

What lenders see is not a single score but a record. When you apply for a credit card, for example, the provider checks your credit record with a credit reference agency to see whether you are credit worthy¹². The same record can be looked at by a landlord, and a poor credit history can affect renting as well as borrowing¹³. A county court judgment appears on your credit report, and that is the information a credit reference agency provides to companies¹⁴.

Missed Klarna payments can harm your credit file

A missed payment is where the credit file consequences bite. Missed payments on a BNPL agreement show on your credit score and can make it harder to get credit in the future⁴. More generally, if you do not pay a bill on time, this can affect your credit rating and will appear on your credit file¹⁵. Missed payments go on your credit file and can make it harder to get credit in future and to remortgage¹⁶.

The size of the hit varies. One late payment on a credit card or loan can dent your score by as much as 130 points, according to Experian². That figure is for credit cards and loans rather than BNPL specifically, but it shows how much weight a single missed payment can carry. If an account defaults, your credit file will show that you did not make your agreed payments, which impacts your credit score¹⁷.

There is also a direct consequence with Klarna itself: missed payments can affect your ability to use Klarna³. And the fees add up. Klarna adds a £5 late payment fee for any payments made more than seven days after the due date, capped at two late payment fees per order⁵. If you miss payments, providers can add on fees, so you may end up paying more than you would have if you bought something upfront¹⁸.

Klarna pay-later plans are now regulated credit

Buy now pay later now has similar protections to credit cards, which are covered under the Consumer Credit Act⁴. That shift matters for what you can expect if something goes wrong, and for how the agreement is treated.

Klarna provides regulated credit in the UK through its Klarna Financing and Klarna Credit Card products¹⁹. Its Pay in 3 and Pay in 30 plans have historically been treated differently: Klarna uses soft searches with credit reference agencies, which do not affect your credit rating³. Klarna has also introduced new wording for retailers to use at the checkout, which it says will make it absolutely clear that BNPL options are credit products with consequences for missed payments, and it updated its terms and conditions with the help of consumer group Fairer Finance to ensure they are clear, simple and easy to understand³.

The regulatory picture continues to develop. Buy now pay later products such as Clearpay, Klarna and Laybuy will also be covered by Section 75 once they become fully regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority at some point in 2026²⁰. Section 75 gives consumers a right to claim against a credit provider when something goes wrong with a purchase, and it is one of the protections that credit card users already have. In the long term, BNPL borrowing should be reflected on consumers' credit files in a proportionate way, according to independent policy work on the risks BNPL poses to consumers²¹.

No cancellation right on regulated deferred payment plans

If you sign up to a regulated deferred payment credit agreement covered by section 66A of the Consumer Credit Act, there is no right to cancel under CONC 11.1.1R⁶. The Financial Conduct Authority's guidance confirms this position, and it was added to the handbook on 15 July 2026⁶.

That is a meaningful difference from some other credit agreements. Under the Consumer Credit Act, some agreements carry a cancellation right, but regulated deferred payment credit agreements covered by section 66A do not⁶. The practical effect is that once you have committed to a pay-later plan, you cannot simply change your mind and cancel it in the way you might with other financial products.

What happens if you cancel a contract more generally depends on the terms you signed. There may be a notice period, and there may be a cancellation fee²³. It is also worth knowing that cancelling a recurring card payment does not necessarily end your contract with a business; it will still be your responsibility to pay any money that you owe under a contract²⁴. If you used credit to finance a purchase and then cancel the credit agreement, the contract for the item or service itself is not affected, so you would need to find another way to pay for it unless you have some other right to cancel that contract²⁵.

If you are struggling to repay Klarna

The first thing to know is that asking for help does not damage your credit file by itself. Discussing your options with your lender will not have any impact on your credit file if you are up to date with payments⁷. Debt advice does not impact your credit file or credit score²⁶. Getting advice will not affect your credit file or impact your credit score⁹.

If you have already missed payments, the position is different. Any help you receive will impact your credit file if you have already missed payments⁷. Your credit file will be affected any time you pay less than what you agreed to when you took out the debt²⁷. Making reduced payments towards a debt can impact your credit file, and this could make it hard for you to take out more credit²⁸.

There are several routes if you cannot keep up. A debt management plan affects your credit file since you are paying less than you first agreed to²⁹. Creditors may allow you to pay less, but this will be marked on your credit file³⁰. Your creditors will sometimes mark lower payments on your credit file as an arrangement to pay if you get debt help before your accounts have defaulted³¹. A temporary repayment plan means making reduced payments, which can impact your credit file²⁸. Debt consolidation may help you repair your credit file over time if you keep up with payments, but if the cost of the new loan is hard to manage and you miss payments, this will show on your credit file and affect your credit score³².

Free help is available. StepChange offers debt advice, and getting advice will not affect your credit file or impact your credit score⁹. The Financial Ombudsman Service can look at complaints about financial difficulties with mortgages and about how lenders have treated you⁷. If you are self-employed, debt advice services can also help with the specific issues that arise for sole traders³⁵.

How to check what Klarna has reported about you

You can check your credit report by contacting the credit reference agencies. Klarna reports to Experian and TransUnion, so those are the two to start with¹. But checking all of them means you do not miss anything, because each agency gets different information from lenders and your credit file may not look the same at each⁹.

There are three main credit reference agencies in the UK³⁶. You can get in touch with one of them to see what your credit score is³⁶. If you find something that is wrong, you can contact each of the three credit reference agencies and get a notice of correction added to your credit report¹¹.

It is worth knowing what else can appear on your file. A county court judgment will appear on your credit report¹⁴. A default notice can affect your credit rating and your debt can be passed on to a debt collection agency³⁷. If you have missed payments on a joint debt, a missed payment is recorded on both parties' credit files even if the ex-partner agreed to repay the debt³⁸.

Some things do not appear. Council tax debt will not affect your credit rating, according to credit reference agency Experian, because councils do not share information with credit reference agencies and court fines do not appear on credit reports³⁹. Liability orders for council tax do not impact your credit file, though county court judgments, High Court judgments, decrees, money judgments and magistrates' financial penalties can⁴⁰.