Are you going to buy a car, a television or a smartphone and pay in instalments?

09/02/2018

Then pay particular attention to the following information:

If you’re planning to purchase a certain product and you are offered the option to pay in instalments, make sure you are informed, at least, about the following:

• Cash price

• Total price in instalments

• Amount to be financed

• Nominal or borrowing interest rate

• Number of instalments and their amount. If you are offered to choose how much you want to pay in each instalment, you will see that the term will vary accordingly  

• Down payment, if required

• If the last instalment accounts for a different amount. In some cases, for instance when buying a car, the last instalment is usually different and much higher than the rest

• If there are fees (arrangement or assessment)

• If there are additional costs (such as taking out an insurance)

• …and last but not least, the APR or annual percentage rate of the transaction

In any case, compare the cash price with the total price in instalments to see how much it will cost to finance the product you wish to acquire.

Whether in advertisements or in the contract, the small print usually includes relevant information that must not be disregarded.

To learn more about this topic, please click here.