What Happens If You Have Missed a Zilch Payment?

If you’ve missed a Zilch payment and are concerned, don’t worry — you’re in the right place. Each month, over 12,000 people visit our site for advice on debt topics, just like this one. 

We understand your concerns about not being able to pay a debt and the possible effects of unpaid debt. Don’t worry; in this article, we’ll guide you on:

•  How the Zilch payment scheme works.
•  What you need to do if you can’t afford to pay Zilch.
•  Steps you can take if you don’t contact Zilch.
•  Options for lowering your repayments.
•  What happens if Zilch reports a missed payment.

We know the worry and stress that can come from missed payments. Our team has been in your shoes, and we’re here to help.

So, let’s work together to understand what happens if you have missed a Zilch payment and how to manage it.

What happens when you can’t afford to pay Zilch?

When you can’t keep up with your payments, Zilch puts your account on ‘hold’. If you can’t get your account back up to date within 14 days, you risk having your account cancelled.

It’s best to contact the Zilch support team as soon as you can if you’re struggling financially. The sooner you speak to their team, the quicker the matter could be resolved.

Zilch has a dedicated team and they could set up a new payment plan, one that’s more affordable.

That said, there are other things that the support team at Zilch may be willing to do. I’ve listed some here:

• Change a payment option for you
• Change the repayment dates you currently have

Will Zilch report a missed payment?

Yes. Zilch will report a missed payment to the Credit Reference Agencies. According to their website, the following process happens when you miss a payment to them:

• They send you an email to say payment is overdue
• Once you get the email, you have 14 days to put things right
• If you don’t pay within 14 days, your account could be closed

How does Zilch deal with late payments?

The Zilch team follows a set procedure when dealing with late payments which I’ve listed here:

• They attempt to take the missed payment from your registered account a second time after 24 hours
• They try to get in touch with you to discuss how you’re going to settle the missed payment

A report is sent to the Credit Reference Agencies if the Zilch team can’t get hold of you and the amount owing remains outstanding. It will negatively impact your credit score and make it hard or impossible to borrow money later on.

Can I Delay a Zilch Payment?

Provided you’re eligible, you can snooze a Zilch payment. However, it’s best to check whether you can delay a payment well before it’s due.

It’s also worth noting that you can only ‘snooze’ a payment for 4 to 7 days and you can only do it on the first 2 instalments without incurring a fee. If you delay payment on any 3rd or 4th payments, you’ll have to pay a fee which I’ve detailed below:

• Delaying 4th payment incurs £1.50 fee
• Delaying any further payments when more than one will incur a £1.50 fee

How do you check if you can snooze a Zilch payment?

You can check whether you can snooze a Zilch payment by going online and checking payment options on the purchases you made.

However, if you don’t check soon enough and the due date arrives, you may not be able to delay payment. In short, make sure you do this well in advance of the due date!

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Can I speak to someone at Zilch?

Yes. There are various ways to get in touch with someone at Zilch which I’ve listed in the table below:

What happens if you don’t contact Zilch?

If you don’t contact Zilch when you can’t make a scheduled payment, they could take the matter further.

Rather than not telling the support team that you’re experiencing financial difficulties, contact the team and let them know your situation.

The key to a successful outcome is to stay in touch with Zilch at all times!

You may want to get some independent debt advice from one of the UK charities if you’re not sure what to do. Charities provide free debt advice on how to deal with debt and get your finances back on track.

Does a missed Zilch payment affect your credit score?

Yes. When you miss a payment to Zilch, it will affect your credit score when you don’t get your account back in order within 14 days of missing a scheduled payment.

Once this happens, you’d have trouble getting a credit card, bank or another type of loan. It may even affect your ability to get a mortgage!

If you let things go too far, you could be faced with dealing with a debt collection agency!

Lastly, what happens if you have missed a Zilch payment (recap)

You should contact the Zilch support team as soon as possible when you’ve missed a scheduled payment. If you don’t get in touch with their dedicated team, the missed payment could be reported to the Credit Reference Agencies.

You should try to avoid this from happening because the consequences are far-reaching.

Instead, contact the support team at Zilch and tell them about your predicament. You may find they are willing to listen and help you resolve things so the outcome is more positive.

Not getting in touch with Zilch when you miss a payment or knowing you can’t make a payment will only amplify the problem. It will make it that much harder to resolve.

Do you need further debt advice?

If you’re struggling with your finances and finding it hard to keep on top of things, you might like to read my post on how to beat debt collectors.