My gymwear parcel from Aybl was lost in transit – so why has Klarna sent debt collectors to chase me for £150?

I ordered some gym wear from Aybl, spending about £150, and paid using Klarna.

The parcel was never delivered, with the courier, Evri taking responsibility for not delivering it, and reporting that it had been lost.

However, when I contacted Aybl, they said I had received them and that I still need to pay. Klarna charged me, which I recovered through my bank, but then they took money from my account again.

Klarna said I needed to resolve this with Aybl, but I wasn’t able to do so as they stopped responding.

It then reached the point where Klarna said I had passed the window for raising a case and they closed my case. I had tried to contact them about it but they merely referred me to their complaints procedure.

I have received several calls from a debt collection company, and I’m now concerned that there is interest accruing and my credit rating will be adversely affected, which could stop me from getting a career in the finance sector, as I am hoping to do.

This is really stressful and has been going on for months, please can you help? M.W, via email

Harvey Dorset, of This is Money, replies: Finding that your parcel has been lost in transit is incredibly frustrating.

It is good to hear Evri did the right thing and admitted it was at fault. 

Unfortunately, this message didn’t get through to either Klarna or Aybl, neither of whom took responsibility for the missing parcel.

Instead, you were charged by Klarna, while the rest of the debt mounted up on your missed payments and you were contacted by debt collectors.

You are right to worry about the effect this could have on your credit rating.

Klarna, and other buy now pay later services report late or missed payments to credit reference agencies, such as the UK’s three main players: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

These reports can stay on your credit file for six years, and could cause problems when you go to take out credit products further down the line.

Bad credit could also prevent you from moving to your dream career in financial services, with many banks or other financial institutions carrying out credit checks on prospective employees.

I am pleased to say that after speaking to the parties involved, Aybl agreed to refund the cost of your order in the form of a £150 voucher.

Aybl did not respond to a request for comment.  

Klarna, meanwhile, offered you compensation of £500 for the inconvenience caused – it no doubt made a serious mistake, but has gone above and beyond with that offer of compensation.

A spokesman for Klarna said: ‘We are sorry that M.W had to spend so much time on this. We made a mistake in handling the dispute which we take responsibility for. 

‘We’ve written off the invoice, withdrawn it from debt collection, removed all credit marks and to try to make amends, offered M.W compensation for the time and stress she spent on this. 

‘We’ve also updated our customer service routine to prevent a repeat of similar mistakes in the future.’