I can’t make my next payment. What are my options?
If your next payment is going to be hard to make, you have options, and you can use them yourself from your trip. You can skip the next payment for a $20 fee, switch to smaller weekly payments at no cost, or move the payment to a date that suits you better.
We know it's stressful when a payment is coming up and the money isn't there yet. It helps to act before the payment is due: once a payment is past due, some of these options aren't available until you've caught up.
Your options at a glance
Here's how the three options compare. Which ones you see depends on your plan.
| Option | What it costs today | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Skip Payment | A $20 fee | Your next payment becomes $0. The payments left go up slightly to cover it. |
| Change Schedule to weekly | Nothing | Your remaining balance is spread across smaller, more frequent payments. |
| Pick my own dates | A $25 fee | You choose the date of your next payment. |
In short: if each payment is too big, switching to weekly costs nothing. If you need the next payment to be $0, that's Skip Payment. If the date is the problem, you can pick your own.
Skip your next payment
Skip Payment makes your next payment $0. It's available on Defera Installments plans that show this option. Here's how it works:
- Open your trip. Go to Trips and tap the trip.
- Tap Skip Payment. It has its own button in the Payment Schedule section, separate from Make a Payment.
- Check your new amounts. The screen shows exactly what each remaining payment will be before you confirm anything.
- Confirm. Your next payment becomes $0, and the $20 fee is charged to your card on file today.
The payments that are left go up slightly to cover the skipped amount. For example, say you have $360 left to pay, in nine payments of $40. If you skip the next one, the $360 is spread over the eight payments that are left, so each becomes $45.
Your payment dates don't move, so your next charge lands on your following scheduled date. For example, if you pay every two weeks and skip the payment due on the 1st, your next charge is on the 15th. On a weekly plan, it's one week later.
A couple of things to know:
- The $20 fee can't be waived.
- Skip Payment isn't available while a payment is past due. Once you've caught up, it's available again.
Switch to smaller weekly payments
If the size of each payment is what's hard, switching from bi-weekly to weekly spreads your remaining balance into smaller, more frequent payments. There's no fee, and nothing is charged today.
- Open your trip. Go to Trips and tap the trip.
- Tap Change Schedule. It's in the Payment Schedule section.
- Compare, then confirm. You'll see your current and new dates and amounts side by side before anything changes.
On some older Defera Installments plans, Request Extension sits where Change Schedule usually is. It moves your final payment date later, for a $35 fee.
Move your payment to a better date
If the problem is timing, for example your payment lands a few days before payday, Change Schedule also offers Pick my own dates on plans that show it. You choose the date of your next payment.
- The cost: $25, charged to your card on file when you confirm.
- One fee covers the day: change your date in the morning and again in the afternoon, and you pay once. A change on another day is a new fee.
- The timing rule: each new date has to be at least 5 days before departure.
- Past due comes first: anything past due has to be paid before you can pick new dates.
For example, if your payment is due on the 3rd and you get paid on the 5th, you could move it to the 5th for $25. Picking your own payment dates has the details.
What if a payment fails anyway?
It happens, and your trip isn't cancelled on the spot. Here's what to expect:
- Your trip shows a past-due banner. The missed amount stays past due until it's paid, and we may try your card again.
- You can catch up any time. In Make a Payment, the Past due tab takes any amount from $5 toward your oldest missed payment.
- Your plan picks up again. Once nothing is past due, your payments return to their normal schedule.
A plan that stays past due for a long time can pause. If that happens, your trip shows a Restart Plan option to get it going again. Catching up on a past-due balance walks through it.
Need more time?
If none of these fit, for example you need more time to pay, chat with the Defera Concierge, our AI concierge. Tell it what's going on and when you expect to be able to pay. It can send a request to our team, who'll review it.
Your request shows as a card on your trip page. The answer posts there and comes to you by email, usually within 24 hours.