Payment Assist

What Payment Assist does

Payment Assist is a UK-based fintech that provides Buy Now Pay Later (BNL) financing for the automotive repair and servicing sector. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, the company operates as a subsidiary of Manx Financial Group with lending infrastructure provided through Conister Bank. Payment Assist offers 0% interest financing plans over 3, 4, 6, and 9 months for car repairs, servicing, MOTs, tyres, alloys, bodywork, and related automotive services, accessible through a network of more than 9,000 partner garages across the UK. It is FCA regulated under firm registration number 622544 and has cumulatively processed over £1 billion in customer advances to more than 1 million customers.

The platform comprises a consumer-facing self-serve portal for application, account management, and 24/7 payment administration, alongside IGNITION — a garage-facing platform providing real-time application status, reporting, and a unified checkout experience supporting BNPL, card, and bank payments. Payment Assist generates revenue from multiple streams: merchant transaction fees on BNPL volumes, interest income on longer-tenor retail finance plans (12+ months), business lending interest and fees (asset finance, garage cash advances, invoice finance), and merchant services revenue through a partnership with Worldpay. The company has recently expanded its product surface with interest-bearing retail finance, a dedicated business lending suite, and merchant services, while also extending into the Healthcare and Retail verticals.

Payment Assist's go-to-market combines a B2B2C channel partner model — leveraging its 9,000+ garage network for point-of-sale distribution — with product-led self-serve consumer onboarding via postcode-based garage lookup. Named partner brands include Halfords, AA, Stoneacre, Nissan, Bosch, Hendy, and Lithia, alongside a long tail of independent garages. Leadership comprises co-founders Colin Ellard (Director) and Neil Jeffery (Managing Director), with Ben Milleare serving as Chief Technology Officer.

Name

Payment Assist

Legal name

Payment Assist Ltd

Website

https://payment-assist.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Payment Assist is a UK-based fintech providing 0% interest Buy Now Pay Later financing for automotive repairs and servicing. Operating through 9,000+ partner garages and backed by Manx Financial Group, it serves individual motorists and automotive SMBs with BNPL, retail finance, and business lending products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Automotive Finance

NAICS

Sales Financing (522220), Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141), Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)

akta.pro primary industry

Vertical-Specific BNPL (e.g., Healthcare, Travel, Home Improvement) (FSAKACAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Merchant-Integrated BNPL (Checkout POS Financing) (FSAGAIAA), BNPL for High-Ticket / Longer-Term Installments (FSAKACAN), Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Platforms (BPAMAFAG)

Keywords

• Buy now pay later
• Automotive finance
• Consumer lending
• Car repair financing
• Point of sale lending

Headquarters

HQ city

Melton Mowbray

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. BNPL Transaction Fees: Payment Assist earns transaction fees from partner garages and automotive businesses when customers use their 0% interest financing. The company subsidizes the interest-free period for customers while generating revenue through merchant fees and volume-based pricing.
2. Interest-Bearing Extended Finance: For longer-term financing options (12 months and beyond), customers pay interest on their purchases. This generates additional revenue streams beyond the standard 0% BNPL offerings.
3. Business Lending: Asset finance, business loans, garage cash advances, and invoice finance services for automotive businesses, generating interest income and fees.
4. Merchant Services: Payment processing services through Worldpay partnership, offering card terminals and payment processing to automotive businesses with preferred rates for Payment Assist customers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Payment Assist provides Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) finance solutions for the automotive industry in the UK. The company enables consumers to spread the cost of car repairs, servicing, MOTs, tyres, and other automotive services over 3, 4, 6, or 9 months at 0% interest, delivered through a network of 9,000+ partner garages. It also offers interest-bearing retail finance for higher-value purchases, business lending (asset finance, loans, invoice finance) for automotive businesses, and merchant services via Worldpay.

Product overview

Payment Assist is a UK-based fintech company offering a unified financial services platform primarily focused on the automotive industry. The core product is Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) financing at 0% interest for car repairs and servicing, available in 3, 4, 6, and 9-month payment plans. The platform includes the Ignition dealer-facing portal for transaction management, Retail Finance for longer-term interest-bearing options, Business Lending for asset finance and loans, and Merchant Services powered by Worldpay for payment processing. All offerings are FCA regulated and delivered through a network of 9,000+ partner businesses across the UK.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) Short-term interest-free lending enabling UK consumers to pay for car repairs, servicing, MOTs, tyres, and other automotive services over 3, 4, 6, or 9 equal monthly instalments at 0% interest, with an initial deposit and the remainder spread across instalments.

Quantifiable outcome

• £1+ billion in customer advances processed
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• WorldpaystrategicTechnology or IntegrationPayment Assist has partnered with Worldpay, a global leader in payment processing, to help automotive businesses with card terminal services, payment processing, fraud protection, and flexible settlement options. Worldpay's solutions offer preferred rates for Payment Assist customers along with complimentary rewards and benefits through Worldpay Rewards program.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Divido: UK BNPL platform specialising in retail and automotive finance with white-label merchant integrations — directly comparable product/merchant model and UK regulatory footprint.
• Snap Finance: Vertical-specific BNPL/lender for higher-ticket retail and home services including auto repairs — comparable niche focus and similar "0% interest" / longer-term interest-bearing product mix for SMB merchants.
• Zilch: UK-headquartered BNPL provider offering pay-over-time at online and POS checkouts; competes with Payment Assist for the same UK BNPL consumer wallet and merchant acceptance slots, though without the automotive vertical focus.
• Bumper: UK BNPL fintech dedicated to automotive repairs and servicing — the closest comparable to Payment Assist, with the same garage-integrated, pay-over-time model and similar UK SMB merchant base.

Broad incumbents

• Klarna: Global BNPL leader offering Pay in 3/Pay in 4 at checkout across many verticals; comparable BNPL economics and consumer brand, but operates as a horizontal platform rather than a vertical specialist like Payment Assist.
• PayPal Pay in 3 / Pay Later: Incumbent checkout BNPL offerings from a global payments network; relevant as alternative BNPL rails merchants can deploy, and a potential direct competitor if PayPal deepens automotive vertical integrations.
• Clearpay (Afterpay): BNPL incumbent in the UK retail space owned by Block; offers pay-in-4 at merchant checkouts and competes with Payment Assist wherever garage partners or customers have access to alternative BNPL rails.

Others

• Worldpay: Global payment processor that is both Payment Assist's partner (merchant services arm) and an adjacent ecosystem player — relevant as it could in principle embed competing finance products at the same automotive SMB counter.

Emerging players

• iwoca: UK SME lender offering working capital and small business loans — comparable for Payment Assist's Business Lending arm targeting automotive SMBs, but as a broad SMB lender rather than an auto-vertical specialist.

Regional players

• CarFinance 247: UK auto-finance broker focused on car purchase financing rather than repairs; comparable consumer target and UK automotive credit DNA, though operating in vehicle acquisition rather than aftersales.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/payment_assist

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Payment Assist