Abstract

This article addresses the issue of the application of the Consumer Credit Act to the buy-now-pay-later service (so-called BNPL service), in particular, whether this service should be regarded as a consumer credit at all, and if so, whether the provisions of the Consumer Credit Act should apply. Having determined that the Consumer Credit Act does not apply to the BNPL service, the article explores the legal consequences of excluding the application of the provisions of the Consumer Credit Act for the legal situation of a consumer credit lender itself and its obligations towards the consumer. The presented legal consequences go beyond the Consumer Credit Act and also refer to such legal acts as the Consumer Rights Act and the Act on Counteracting of Money Laundering and Financing Terrorism. In addition, the article also discusses the proposed amendments to the Consumer Credit Directive with regard to the BNPL service.