Payment outages have grabbed headlines in the UK this year, with major names like Greggs, Sainsbury’s, McDonald’s, and Tesco facing unexpected disruptions. But these incidents aren’t one-offs. Payment problems are alarmingly common, leaving businesses vulnerable due to fragile technology stacks that often rely on a single processor.
The stakes are simply too high, and businesses must build resilience urgently. Without action, businesses risk being left behind in an era where every transaction counts. That’s why 89% of payment professionals plan to invest in robust, multi-processor infrastructures over the next year to safeguard their operations and deliver reliability when it matters most.
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Identifying the risks of payment outages
Ecommerce dominates the UK retail sector, with sales projected to reach £177.11 billion in 2024 – the highest since 2021. As we enter the peak sales season, merchants must be more prepared than ever to avoid a Blackout Friday when customers shop online.
For any merchant, a processor outage during this busy period can be detrimental. Picture sales plummeting as merchants are left helpless while customers fail to complete purchases, turning to competitors instead. The situation becomes even worse if the merchant relies on a single processor, leaving the team with no option but to wait until the processor comes back online. So, how can merchants prevent their checkout nightmares from becoming a reality during the upcoming high-traffic period?
The case for multiple payment processors
The first step in this journey is building redundancy into the payment infrastructure. Using multiple payment processors isn’t just a backup plan—it’s a game-changing strategy that unlocks real business value. Firstly, it provides operational resilience, allowing merchants to maintain transaction flow even if one processor encounters issues. Plus, you can optimise routing to ensure every transaction goes through the most efficient, cost-effective channel.
More importantly, this approach helps businesses gain unique insights into processor strengths across different regions, customer segments, and KPIs, enabling merchants to discover new ways to boost their revenue.
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By GlobalDataOf course, a resilient payment infrastructure also plays a big part in increasing customer satisfaction. When customers experience fewer payment failures and smoother transactions, their trust in the brand increases. This also means higher conversion rates for the merchant, encouraging spending 140% more than a negative payment experience. In a competitive marketplace, the ability to adapt is what sets merchants apart, driving growth and ensuring sustainability in the e-commerce landscape.
Cheat code to payment processing
However, managing multiple processors brings its own challenges. Each new integration comes with upfront development costs, new processes, and additional operational tasks. On top of that, it’s important to ensure rigorous testing and ongoing maintenance to keep things running smoothly. All of this consumes significant time and budget, often distracting developer attention away from the core business.
But there’s good news. Using a Unified Payments Insfrastructure is changing the game for payment leaders. Unified Payments Infrastructure is changing the game for payment leaders. It allows them the power and flexibility of multiple providers but without any of the development costs or increase in operational burden.
By acting as the control panel for their payments, they can start dynamic routing, testing, and monitoring across processors with minimal effort. That’s why, for forward-thinking merchants, investing in a flexible, scalable payment infrastructure isn’t just an option—it’s a must for transforming payments into a growth engine.
Ultimately, investing in a resilient payment system goes beyond preventing outages; it’s about creating a smooth experience that drives customer satisfaction and fosters long-term growth. As the ecommerce landscape evolves, merchants who proactively build payment resilience will be best positioned to thrive in a competitive environment.
Theo Spyrides is Head of Product at Primer
