Whether a foreign destination or a domestic trip, your funding is now taken care of by the new offering of Travel Now Pay Later, which is catching the attention of the younger audience aiming to fulfil their aspiration of travel to new destinations and with the Christmas and New Year travel season going on, the fintech, travel companies and travel aggregators have witnessed sharp traction to the TNPL scheme that starts from a repayment period of one month to six months in pocket-friendly EMIs. While many companies are providing TNPL service for flight bookings, some recently have partnered with IRCTC to offer a later pay facility for people travelling by train and have already witnessed an uptick in the segment.
Be it a foreign or a domestic destination, leisure or adventurous getaways, TNPL options make it all within reach for India’s growing tribe of ‘travel-philes’ busy ticking off their bucket lists. India has a growing appetite for travel and TNPL could soon revolutionise the travel space and lending segment since with TNPL payment option, booking and paying for rail tickets on the IRCTC travel app has become more accessible and hassle-free for millions of Indian Railway passengers while promising a seamless user experience by automatically qualifying all users to avail of the TNPL facility without any documentation.
As many wonder why wait for year-end bonus cheque to explore the world when one can avail Travel Now Pay Later facility, experts caution against things you should be careful about when availing TNPL. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Yashoraj Tyagi, CBO and CTO of CASHe, shared, “Travel now pay later, a concept relatively new in India, is becoming popular as it provides you with an option of delaying the payment for what you need, without incurring interest on the purchases. When you are availing TNPL, you are agreeing to pay the aggregator the amount you have spent from your credit limit after a predetermined period of time.”
He warned, “If repayment is not done on time, you may have to face late fees. Impulsive buying hence, impulsive spending or access to available credit can frequently result in impulsive purchases, which can encourage impulsive spending. The fact that you won’t be paying out of pocket right away while using TNPL services may encourage customers to spend more than they had planned. It’s critical to monitor your money so that you don’t spend more than you can afford.”
Bhavin Patel, Cofounder and CEO of LenDenClub, opined, “After two years of Covid-19 restrictions, travel has outgrown its initial scope. With InstaMoney, we observed a remarkable increase in travel loans of more than 150% between July and October of this year compared to last. Naturally, there has always been a demand for this type of loan but with so many people travelling these days, banks and NBFCs need to focus more on this category.”
He added, “Since September 2020, India’s digital travel purchase behaviour has seen a significant transformation. These days, a sizable number of people use such services online. Non-repayment or late repayment will not only result in additional fees but might impact one’s credit score as it infers that you are unable to repay your debts on time. One needs to be mindful of this and make sure they pay their dues on time.”
