Buy Now, Pay Later Services

Buying a pet is not a purchase like any other. In buying a pet, an individual is making a commitment to provide care for that animal, in most cases, for its whole life. Pet owners must budget for food, enrichment, preventative health care costs - such as anti-parasitic treatments, vaccination, microchipping and neutering - and veterinary care for sickness and injury. Some species have additional costs such as heating and energy. A prospective pet owner must consider all of this before they make a decision to get a pet. Buying a pet should not be an impulse purchase.

Several studies have indicated that buy now, pay later services encourage impulse buying by making consumers feel that they have more funds available to them than they actually do. Some individuals may even find themselves in debt because these services give them a false impression of their financial security.

PAAG is very concerned that in offering buy now pay later services to buy pets, consumers won't take into consideration whether they can provide proper care for that animal for its whole life. This, in turn, could lead to an increased rate of relinquishments to rehoming organisations, abandonments, or at worst the neglect of these animals.

As a result, PAAG believes that classified pet selling websites must not offer buy now, pay later services which allow consumers to split, or delay the upfront cost of a pet.