Building profiles of consumers is becoming more important in developing more granular and strategic collection strategies. In order to build those profiles, data is needed. You need to know as much about a person as possible so you can make the best decisions about how to attempt to collect on a debt. For those collecting on Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) accounts, there is new data out there, but it’s also helpful if you’re not collecting that type of debt because it addresses other types of debt, too.
Generally speaking, BNPL users tend to be younger, more affluent, and considered to be “underbanked.” An underbanked consumer is someone who has a bank or credit union account, but also used either a check cashing facility, sent a money order, or used a bill payment service in the past month. So BNPL users have money, but may not be using a traditional savings or checking account to keep it.
BNPL users are also more likely to be carrying other types of debt — so this either makes them more financially savvy and aware of the credit that is available to them, or it makes them more reliant on credit because they don’t have enough to pay for purchases all at once. For example, 55% of BNPL users also have outstanding credit card debt, compared with 38% of all adults in the United States. Thirty-eight percent of BNPL users have medical debt, compared with 23% of all adults, and 35% are paying off personal loans, compared with 17% of the overall population.
Forty-six percent of BNPL users said they are just getting by financially, compared with 35% of all U.S. adults. Thirty-six percent of BNPL users said they are behind with their finances, compared with 26% of all U.S. adults.
