As a retailer that has integrated with Clearpay, you will need to make sure that all your marketing is in line with the rules on financial promotions and Advertising Standards Agency Guidance on Advertising BNPL (“ASA Guidance”).
To help you get comfortable with how to talk about Clearpay, we’ve put together a Merchant Guide to Financial Promotions and ASA Guidance for all retailers on what you need to do with your messaging to customers.
A “financial promotion” is any messaging that invites a customer to engage in certain financial activities, including inviting customers to use Clearpay to pay in 4 instalments. In practice, most mentions of Clearpay will be financial promotions. The rules on financial promotions apply to all retailers that are integrated with Clearpay. All financial promotions must be fair, clear and not misleading and approved by an “authorised person”. An authorised person is someone who is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority or Prudential Regulation Authority.
Communications about Clearpay as a BNPL service should also meet the requirements set out in the ASA Guidance.
The rules on financial promotions and ASA Guidance apply whenever you talk about Clearpay to customers. This includes on your website, in your emails and on social media (including through ads or influencers).
Before we go into the detail, there are a few things we need you to know:
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Use the assets and follow the guidelines available from our Retailer Resources page and follow the best practices set out in this Merchant Guide. If you don’t make any changes to the assets and follow the best practices in this Merchant Guide, your campaign is ready to go!
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If you want to create your own marketing, change any of our assets or change the way you talk about Clearpay, it will need to be reviewed and approved by an authorised person.
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We can help you with getting this approval if you send us your proposed marketing communication for review and approval before it’s published. We recommend that you still follow the best practices we’ve set out in these Merchant Guidelines to ensure speedy approval.
We aim to review any such proposed marketing within 5 working days.
Failing to observe the rules on financial promotions, in particular, is a criminal offence in the UK and may attract a fine and/or imprisonment for company directors. Customer complaints for not meeting the requirements of the ASA could lead to an investigation led by the ASA.
Best practices
Prohibited and non-prohibited messages
Here is an outline of the key words and phrases that you can or cannot use in your messaging:
Phrases NOT permitted |
Alternative permitted phrases |
| “No Fees” “No Cards”
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“No fees when you pay on time”
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| “No Cost”
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“Zero-interest. Late fees apply for missed payments.” Note: where the words “zero-interest” are used, the disclaimer “Late fees apply for missed payments” |
| “Instant Approval” |
“Instant Approval Decision” “Real Time Approval Decision.” |
Disclaimers
Clearpay disclaimers should always be included in all your messages, communications or wherever Clearpay is offered as a payment optionappears. These help you meet the requirements of the ASA Guidelines when you talk about Clearpay to your customers.
Generally, you should make it clear who Clearpay is and what we do throughout the customer journey. You could do this by having and referring to an information page about Clearpay. You should include a link to Clearpay’s T&Cs somewhere easy to find, as part of the customer journey, before a customer decides to use Clearpay. These disclaimers will help you with these requirements.
There is some flexibility in the length of the disclaimer you can use, dependent on the channel and available space on assets and within captions.
| Length of disclaimer | Disclaimer | Use examples |
Long Form |
“Clearpay lends you a fixed amount of credit to allow you to pay for your purchase over 4 instalments, due every two weeks. To be eligible for credit from Clearpay, you must be a permanent UK resident (excl Channel Islands), aged 18+. Further eligibility criteria and T&Cs apply. Clearpay Finance Ltd.
Make sure you can make your repayments on time by each due date to avoid late fees. Not paying on time will lead to a late fee of £6, and, if your order is more than £24, a further late fee of £6 if it is still overdue after 7 days. If you fail to pay on time, your Clearpay debt may be passed to a debt collection agency and this may affect your ability to use Clearpay in future.
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Always hyperlink “T&Cs” or include the URL to Clearpay’s T&Cs here: clearpay.co.uk/terms |
| Medium Form | Clearpay lends you a fixed amount of credit to allow you to pay for your purchase over 4 instalments. Late fees chargeable. T&Cs and eligibility criteria apply. Clearpay Finance Ltd” |
Always hyperlink “T&Cs” or include the URL to Clearpay’s T&Cs here: clearpay.co.uk/terms |
| Short Form (where it is not possible to use the medium form version) |
“T&Cs apply. 18s+. Subject to status and other eligibility criteria. UK residents only (excl Channel Islands). Clearpay Finance Limited. For complete terms, visit clearpay.co.uk/terms”
“T&Cs & eligibility criteria apply. Clearpay Finance Limited.” OR “T&Cs apply clearpay.co.uk/terms/" |
Always hyperlink “T&Cs” or include the URL to Clearpay’s T&Cs here: clearpay.co.uk/terms |
The Merchant Guide to Financial Promotions and ASA Guidance have been designed to provide direction on what you can and can’t do but should not be seen as a substitute for legal review of marketing material. Remember to send us your marketing proposals for review and approval if you want to use your own marketing material, change any of our assets or can’t follow our guidelines and best practices.
If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].
March 2021