TrueLayer partners with Cazoo to power instant payments and refunds

TrueLayer, Europe’s leading open banking platform, today announced its industry-first collaboration with Cazoo (NYSE:CZOO), the UK’s leading online car retailer, which makes buying or selling a car as seamless as ordering any other product online, to offer instant payments and refunds for its customers.

Cazoo’s quick and haggle free car buying service gives sellers an offer within seconds which is guaranteed for 7 days. Customers can either opt to have their car picked up from their home in as little as 48 hours or drop the car off at their nearest Cazoo Customer Centre with payment made directly to the seller’s bank account on the same day, usually in under an hour.

Cazoo turned to market leader TrueLayer to overcome costly issues most commonly associated with traditional card payments. Increasingly, ecommerce retailers are experiencing high failure rates that occur due to card payment limits, potential fraud and chargebacks, and slow refund mechanisms that can sour the customer experience. For retailers with high order values, these issues can add up to a significant impact on the bottom line and further erode profit margins.

TrueLayer’s PayDirect platform has been integrated by Cazoo to offer instant payments, powered by open banking that removes costly card and interchange fees, and delivers an instant transaction confirmation. Customers experience a quicker, easier checkout, by securely connecting to their bank to confirm payment. PayDirect also supports Cazoo’s return policy, offering instant refunds to the purchaser should they change their mind, compared to up to 5 days for refunds for card-based payments.

To ensure selling a car matched the industry-leading experience it has created for buying a vehicle, Cazoo has also implemented instant seller payments, using TrueLayer’s open banking platform. This authenticates a seller by comparing the account holder name to their bank details in just three clicks, rather than the traditional method of uploading bank statements that can take days to be reviewed and validated. With the seller’s details pre-populated and verified, Cazoo can make instant payout via TrueLayer and eliminate the risk of failed transactions arising from invalid bank details.

Jonathan Howell, Chief Technology Officer at Cazoo said: “With refunds there is a high level of financial anxiety if you don’t get thousands back in your bank account right away. The ability to return that money in a quick, transparent and frictionless way creates a superior customer experience. Open banking, delivered by TrueLayer’s technology, provides us with that.”

Roger De’Ath, head of ecommerce at TrueLayer, added: “Cazoo appreciates that consumers are increasingly dissatisfied with the traditional ways of buying or selling a used car. They’re an industry innovator, determined to make the end to end process, including the checkout and payments, as hassle free as possible. With TrueLayer supporting instant bank payments for purchases and the ability to process instant refunds through PayDirect, it has created an incredibly powerful proposition. We’re proud to be working with such a forward-thinking business and look forward to collaborating with Cazoo to ensure the best possible experience for its customers.”