# Charities rank second worst for payment experience, says Access research

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2026/09/17/charities-rank-second-worst-for-payment-experience-says-access-research/
- Published: 2026-09-17T12:24:53+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**Charities and nonprofits have been ranked second worst of 16 UK sectors for payment
experience in new research from Access PaySuite, with donors giving them an average
score of 1.45 out of five.**

The finding comes from the payments company’s Payment Experience Report 2026, which
analysed Trustpilot reviews across 160 UK organisations in 16 sectors, isolating
those reviews that mentioned payments.

## A gap between the cause and the checkout

Charities and nonprofits recorded an average overall Trustpilot rating of **2.75
stars**, almost twice their payment score of **1.45**. That gap is what the research
focuses on: people who are broadly positive about a charity become markedly less
positive when they write about paying it or donating to it.

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Payment satisfaction has also fallen by around 4% since the previous year, making
charities and nonprofits the second worst performing sector year on year in the 
study. Entertainment providers and gyms also scored poorly. Legal firms scored best.

![Table showing rankings of customer satisfaction in payment experience by business
sector. Charities are second from lowest, banking is the lowest.](https://wfay6x.
infiniteuploads.cloud/2026/09/access-paysuite-payment-experience-report-2026@2x.
png)

Image: Payment Experience Report 2026, Access Paysuite

## Cancelling a direct debit is the recurring complaint

The reviews analysed often cited difficulty cancelling direct debits and recurring
donations, with reviewers saying they felt misled about what they had signed up 
to. This suggests that the process of regular giving, or perhaps the initial stages
of it, are weak in the case of those charities that are featured in the research.
And this is the income stream that many charities depend on for predictable, long
term support.

The research is published as the Government tightens the rules on misleading subscription
practices and on straightforward cancellation journeys, requirements that apply 
to charities as they do to any other organisation taking recurring payments.

**Jon Reynolds**, Head of Product at [Access PaySuite](https://fundraising.co.uk/tag/access-group/),
said:

> “Charities work hard to build trust with donors, but that goodwill can be undermined
> if the payment experience creates friction. Supporters expect the process to be
> quick, secure and easy to manage, so if recurring donations become difficult to
> amend or cancel, it can discourage future giving.”

## The research

The research is based on a small group – 160 organisations across 16 sectors means
roughly ten per sector. Trustpilot reviewers are self-selecting, and you can image
that few people would write a review to say that a direct debit had been set up 
without incident. The research was carried out in May 2026.

Nevertheless the research might inspire some charities to double check their payment
processes, particularly that for regular giving sign-up and supporter journey following
on from that. Fundraisers who make a monthly donation to the charity they work for
could test out cancelling that and analysing the steps it requires.

The full report is available from [Access PaySuite](https://www.accesspaysuite.com/blog/which-sectors-offer-the-best-payment-experiences-in-2026/).

 * **[Access Group acquires payment platform provider Rapidata Services](https://fundraising.co.uk/2018/11/23/the-access-group-acquires-payment-platform-provider-rapidata-services/)(
   23 November 2018)
 * **[Access Group in agreement to acquire fundraising platform Enthuse](https://fundraising.co.uk/2026/02/12/access-group-in-agreement-to-acquire-fundraising-platform-enthuse/)(
   12 February 2026)
 * **[A perfect storm in the charity digital payments market](https://fundraising.co.uk/2015/10/21/a-perfect-storm-in-the-charity-digital-payments-market/)(
   21 October 2015)**