Consumer Council research finds BNPL is second highest form of credit used

The Consumer Council, which describes itself as independent, published research on 6 December 2023 showing that Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) was the second highest form of credit used in the past three years¹. The finding appears in a news item on the council's site titled "New research on Buy Now Pay Later"¹.

The research is listed among the council's personal finance and financial services output, alongside separate work on credit scoring, access to cash and budgeting¹. The council's financial services section states that most people will need to borrow at some stage, whether for an unexpected bill, to fix the car or for a special occasion, and that a higher credit score can mean a better chance of approval and possibly a lower interest rate¹.

The same section reports that 90% of people in Northern Ireland say they are concerned about the cost of everyday living¹. That figure appears in a separate news item dated 6 October 2025 about budgeting and staying on top of bills, not in the BNPL research itself¹.

The research does not name the form of credit that ranked first, and no breakdown by age, income or amount borrowed is given in the published material¹. The council has not reported which BNPL providers were used, what sums were spent, or how many people took part¹.

Why it matters for households

BNPL lets shoppers split a purchase into instalments, usually interest free at the point of sale, and it sits alongside credit cards, overdrafts and personal loans as a way of borrowing. The council's finding that it is the second most used form of credit over three years indicates how common the arrangement has become among consumers in Northern Ireland¹. Because BNPL is often offered at online checkouts rather than applied for in advance, it can be used without a credit check in the way a loan or card application involves one. How a BNPL arrangement is recorded, and whether missed payments affect a credit file, depends on the provider and the type of agreement; our guides to buy now pay later explained and BNPL and your credit report set out how the products work and what appears on a file. Anyone weighing BNPL against a card can read buy now pay later or a credit card?, and the main providers are covered in buy now pay later providers. Borrowing generally, including credit utilisation and rights under the Consumer Credit Act, is covered in our loans and credit scores sections.

The council's wider financial services pages also cover credit scoring and the effect of benefits on a credit file, in benefits and your credit file, and checks faced by renters in tenant credit checks.

What happens next

No next steps arising from the BNPL research are set out in the published material¹. Separately, the council's financial services page states that on 30 March 2026 the Financial Conduct Authority announced the motor finance consumer redress scheme, and it links to a dedicated page on that scheme¹. That announcement concerns motor finance, not BNPL¹.