'I spiralled into £3,000 debt through buy now, pay later - I went without food or heating'

One man has shared how the new Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) regulations have come "too late" for him after he spiralled into £3,000 worth of .

Ged, 52, from Manchester, had used BNPL services for several years, and although he struggled, he was always able to manage the repayments. However, this all changed one Saturday morning two years ago, when he was rushed to hospital after suffering from an epileptic seizure.

After his diagnosis, the dad of six began to rely on and , and this was where the payments "spiralled out of control". As he was out of work, Ged began to shop online more, describing it as an "addiction" with the BNPL services allowing him to make multiple purchases within one day.

He added: "There were no checks to see if I could pay, but I was a shopaholic. I was buying things I didn't need to buy because it was there. For me, it's like the temptation of it, if it's there and you can get it, it's as simple as that. So I just kept buying stuff, so what I owed just kept going up."

Ged began to miss his BNPL repayments and his debt began to grow. BNPL allows you to borrow interest-fee - but providers charge a late fee when you miss repayments. Each firm has a different charge but it is generally around £5. Ged "tried his best" to cover the payments whenever he could, but things soon spiralled as his benefit payments only just covered his day-to-day living expenses. This meant he often went without. He added: "I did go without, like food and heating, just so I could pay my bills; I know it was my own fault, but I started to ignore it. With my health, I started to not care, like it would go away."

He added: "I used to be a wagon driver, but then I wasn't. I have epilepsy for the rest of my life now. I can have a lot of seizures in a week so I can't work." At his lowest point, Ged had accumulated debts worth £21,000, including £3,000 which were BNPL. The BNPL companies did start to chase Ged for the money, at first with calls which Ged said made him "scared" to answer the phone.

Debt collectors became involved, and Ged said this pressure made him "terrified to answer the door" and he fell into a dark place. He said: "I just didn't know what I was going to do, like I genuinely thought there could be no way out. I was so depressed, I couldn't get out of bed, it sounds ridiculous, but I was so backed into a corner."

At this point, a friend of Ged recommended that he reach out to the company Money Wellness for help. After contacting them, Ged said he immediately felt a "major weight" had been lifted. Adding: "They helped calm things, I told them everything and they worked out a plan for me. I've had to get a Debt Relief Order. They said it was the best route for me to take, but it's helped so much. So I've got a plan now which is so great, I know what I'm going to do, when I didn't before."

Ged is not the only one who has seen their debts spiral out of control through BNPL. Money Wellness says it helped 1,892 in September this year alone and that 19% of all the people it helped last month had BNPL debts. Alongside this, nearly half of those seeking help with BNPL debts were classed a "vulnerable" with 23% of those having benefits as their source of income. In almost a third of BNPL debt cases, Money Wellness has had to refer someone to a food bank.

Last week, the government launched a consultation that looked into proposals that would regulate the industry. This includes bringing BNPL companies under the supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), have them openly advertise that it’s a debt, put affordability rules in place, and allow people to go to the ombudsman if things go wrong.

Sebrian McCullough, director of external relations at Money Wellness says it welcomes the plans noting that the introduction of thorough affordability checks and essential consumer protections was "critical step that’s long overdue". She added: "Over the past year, we’ve witnessed a threefold rise in individuals seeking help with overwhelming BNPL debts, many of whom are vulnerable."

Ged believes these types of checks would have helped prevent him from sliding further into debt. He said: "If it said 'you cannot afford to get this' and if I was trying to buy something, then obviously I wouldn't have got it. Like that's it, because I was so addicted and tempted, I just couldn't stop. So it's like not giving a drink to an alcoholic, its just that."

"It will save a lot of people from getting in too deep. It would've helped, cos I had the good intention to pay everything off, I never thought I wasn't going to pay. But things happen and it snowballed. So it's needed, I can't believe there were never rules in place at first. Just mad."

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