How to use Buy Now, Pay Later without getting trapped

Buy now pay later. 
 
Sure, that's sounds tempting, but it's not without risks. 
 
Ideally, you'd buy now pay now and avoid it entirely. Or you'd wait until you have the money to buy it outright. But if you really need to use buy now pay later, Here are seven tips to keep you safe. 

Number one, think about the full cost. Buy now pay later can be tempting because we focus on the upfront payment, and not really think about the rest of them. What's the total cost of what you're buying?
 
Number two, try not to be tempted to take out more than one at a time. Have you got, you know, a few buy now pay laters going on? What's the total amount of all of them? Don't over commit yourself. Pay some of them off before you take on another one. Or even better, eliminate them entirely. 
 
Number three, limit it to large ticket items. Buy now pay later is best left for our central larger ticket items. Like when your fridge breaks unexpectedly, and you don't have time to save up for it. It's best not to use it for the smaller everyday items that we can plan for in our spending. 
  
Number four, set reminders for your repayments. Set reminders of when 
your payments are due, especially if you've got a few of them. Heck, maybe even set a few reminders. 
 
Number five, make sure you've got the funds available. Ensure you have enough 
money in your bank account when repayments are due so that you don't get charged the late fees. 
 
Number six, don't miss a payment. If you miss repayments, this can mean massive late fees and penalties, and things can get real expensive real quick. And paying late can also affect your credit rating, which matters when it comes 
time to getting approval for a mortgage or other credit in the future. 
 
And number seven, treat it like a debt because it is. Remember, buy now pay later is debt, and debt can be really hard to climb out of especially if money is already tight. Always think twice before taking on debt. 
 
So always think twice before taking on a buy now pay later because the more of them you have, the harder it is to pay them all off. 
 
So there are seven tips to safely doing buy now pay later. 
 
Think about the full costs, don't be tempted to take out more than one at a time,limit it to the big ticket items, set reminders for repayments, make sure you've got the funds available, don't miss your repayments, and treat it like a debt because it is.