Amazon has made official the possibility of making installment payments using financing offered by Cofidis. Here's how it works
A new purchase method is officially available on Amazon: payment in installments, through the issuance of an overdraft and a virtual revolving card issued by the French Cofidis. But, beware: this is a new payment method, different and additional to the installment method managed directly by Amazon.
In essence, then, Amazon has selected a financial company exactly as all the big chains of physical electronics stores have done in the past, and not only. The financial product is called "CrediLine" and consists of an overdraft from 100 to 1,500 euros disbursed by Cofidis on the basis of criteria chosen by you. Cofidis, in fact, may refuse to grant the credit line if it considers the buyer unreliable. This evaluation, however, will be done completely online and in real time and, therefore, it is very plausible that Cofidis decides through an algorithm based on data on the reliability of the buyer provided by Amazon.
Amazon CreditLine financing: how it works
With the normal installment payment, already existing for a few months on Amazon, it is possible to divide the amount to be paid in a maximum of 5 installments. Those who need to dilute the amount in several installments (5, 12 or 24 installments) can choose the Cofidis CreditLine financing, selecting it (if available) among the payment options. At this point, before completing the purchase, the user will be sent to the Cofidis website to finish the procedure by entering the number of installments and the amount and have, in real time, the outcome: financing accepted or rejected. In the positive case, the user will have to upload on the Cofidis site the photo of their identity documents.
What you can pay in installments on Amazon with CreditLine
Amazon specifies that this new method of payment in installments will not be available on all products: "Among the products that customers will be able to purchase with CreditLine are included most of the items sold and shipped by Amazon.it such as, for example, consumer electronics, home appliances, furniture and DIY products. You can also buy items sold by Sales Partners such as, for example, the excellence of the artisans of the Made in Italy store or products sold directly by Italian and foreign Small and Medium Enterprises," Amazon explains in a note.
Buy on Amazon with Cofidis CreditLine: the interests
Technically, the credit line accessed through Cofidis is a "Private Revolving Credit Line", which can only be used for purchases on Amazon. Like all revolving lines of credit, then, it is difficult to determine exactly the interest applied but Cofidis, on its official website, gives a couple of examples of purchases on Amazon with CreditLine and an APR (Annual Percentage Rate) of 12.84%.