Are You Getting a Loan for Doodah? There may be interest-free food payments available.

For a long time, buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services have been the preferred choice for deferring payments on expensive goods like appliances, furniture, and cellphones. They are now entering a new market: the food industry.

Although customers may find this more convenient, financial experts warn that these services can promote wasteful spending, putting a strain on people who might not be able to pay for their purchases.

To offer numerous payment alternatives at checkout, DoorDash has partnered with Klarna, a payment platform. According to a company announcement on Thursday, customers can opt to pay in full now, divide the cost into four installments, or postpone payments to fit their pay schedules.

Anand Subbarayan, DoorDash's head of money products, stated in the announcement that "flexible payment alternatives are critical to satisfy our customers' demands as we grow DoorDash's offerings—from groceries and cosmetics to electronics and presents."

Grubhub, a rival of DoorDash, has also included Klarna as a payment option.

Consumers in the US are increasingly using BNPL services like Klarna, Affirm, and Afterpay. According to reports, during the most recent holiday season, more consumers than ever before employed delayed payment methods, demonstrating the rising need for flexible financing solutions.

The Consumer Financial safety Bureau (CFPB) recently placed BNPL services in the same category as credit cards in an effort to improve consumer safety. Because of this classification, BNPL providers are required to look into complaints and pay for reimbursements for canceled reservations or returned goods.

However, there are still hazards associated with BNPL services even though there are no interest payments. According to Anish Nagpal, an associate professor of marketing at the University of Melbourne, these services take use of psychological concepts by isolating the satisfaction of obtaining a product—in this case, food—from the agony of payment. Spending may rise as a result of this split.

"The issue is that these services begin to negatively and widely affect those who cannot afford them," Nagpal stated. "They are constantly striving to keep up with payments and may become stuck in a debt cycle because they only want stuff now."

These worries are shared by Nitika Garg, a professor and consumer behavior researcher at the University of New South Wales. She cautions that BNPL choices encourage rapid satisfaction, which can be particularly harmful for customers who are already struggling financially.

"I expect these services to be used more when customers' financial savvy declines," she added in an email. "Especially when customers are suffering with increased living expenses or during economic downturns."

Requests for additional feedback from DoorDash and Klarna were not answered.

Klarna is expanding beyond food delivery in the meanwhile. The Swedish business has submitted a prospectus for an IPO with the goal of listing on the New York Stock Exchange in April. Walmart has also declared its intention to use Klarna's BNPL services. With 675,000 merchant partners in 26 countries, Klarna currently serves 93 million active customers globally.

The question still stands as BNPL services continue to spread into regular purchases: Will flexible payments be a lifeline for your finances or a consumer debt trap?