Your options for letting clients pay monthly
A few ways to do this in the UK. We are one of them. Here is where each one wins, including where we are not the answer.
| Monthly plans (us) | Instalment credit | Card instalment products | Deposits & transfers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Client borrows | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| Credit check | No | Yes | Sometimes | No |
| Client receives treatment | Membership: monthly. Package: after the schedule completes | Immediately | Immediately | When you decide |
| You are paid | As collected | Usually upfront | Usually upfront | If and when they pay |
| Chasing | None | None | None | All yours |
| Records | Automatic | Lender holds | Minimal | None |
| Regulated credit | No | Yes | Yes | No |
When instalment credit is the better choice
Be honest about this. If your client needs the treatment now and cannot pay for it now, credit is the only thing that solves it. A regulated lender pays you upfront and carries the default risk.
The trade-offs: it is considerably more expensive to you, your client goes through an affordability and credit assessment which some will fail, and your client ends up with a credit agreement.
When card instalment products are the better choice
For a smaller amount over a short period, and where speed at the counter matters more than cost, a pay-in-three or pay-in-four product is quick and familiar to clients.
The trade-offs: merchant fees are typically much higher than Direct Debit, the terms are short, and it is credit.
When deposits and bank transfers are the better choice
Almost never, beyond a single small deposit. It works until you have twenty clients on informal arrangements, and then it is a spreadsheet, a series of awkward messages, and money you never collected.
When we are the better choice
- The treatment is planned rather than urgent
- You want the monthly relationship, not just the sale
- You do not want your client credit checked
- You want the agreement, consent and payment record handled automatically
- You are happy to be paid across the plan rather than upfront
The one thing we will not pretend
We do not pay you the full amount upfront. That is the genuine difference between a plan and a finance product, and it is a large part of why we cost a fraction of what finance costs.
If being paid in full on day one is essential to your cash flow, a lender is the right tool and we will say so on the call. What we do instead is pay out on a regular schedule as collections come in, rather than making you wait until the plan ends. How payouts work
Can I use more than one
Yes, and many clinics should. Plans for planned work and maintenance, finance for urgent high-value work, cards for walk-ins. They are not mutually exclusive.