Pre-ordering a next-gen Xbox was already a scramble for those buying outright last week, but many who opted for the payment plan got an unexpected surprise when they were informed their order could not be fulfilled – and it could possibly affect their credit score. After several days of confusion, customers have now been provided a guide to find out if they actually managed to secure a console, while credit applications are being reviewed to ensure credit scores were not unfairly impacted by the process.
Swedish financial technology company Klarna is handling the credit payment process for the Xbox Series X and S All Access Packages in the UK, a bundle that allows customers to purchase a next-gen console and two years of Game Pass Ultimate for either £28.99 per month or £20.99 per month respectively. While there’s no upfront cost or interest, the catch is that there are risks to buying on credit: missed payments can lead to added fees, legal action, or potentially damage your credit score. And the latter became an issue for customers when it came to pre-ordering an Xbox, although not through any fault of their own.
The problems began on Tuesday when customers who had pre-ordered an Xbox All Access package from Smyths Toys or GAME suddenly had their orders cancelled. In emails seen by Eurogamer, customers were initially told their orders were successful (in some cases by both Smyths and Klarna), but were then sent another email in which Klarna said it was “unable to approve [their] transaction” with no further information beyond this.
Well, @SmythsToysUK keeps chucking this error at me, but apparently I now somehow have a credit agreement with @Klarna. I have absolutely no idea if I’ve bought a console or not… pic.twitter.com/UjlkijwE76
— Andrew Evans (@snavEwerdnA) September 22, 2020
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Those who got in contact with Klarna to ask about the situation were told that, unsurprisingly, the issues were down to a stock shortage, and that their direct debit would be cancelled. But Klarna automatically carries out a hard credit check on all customers when an order is placed, and for those whose order was cancelled due to the stock shortage, this would show up as a decline on their credit report. While some customers were told by Klarna this would not affect their credit rating, others were told it could have an impact – potentially lowering their score and making it harder to apply for loans in future.