Some advice regarding Direct Debits please.

jackie1974

Hi

Airtricity supplied me with electricity for the past two years, I was on the monthly budget plan and paid every payment on time, never once missed a payment. Two months ago I got a letter telling me my payments would be more than doubling. I tried over and over to get through to the company to discuss this but never got an answer. I decided to change supplier so wrote to Airtricity in their Dublin office and cancelled my direct debit in writing to my bank. My bank contacted me by phone and said the direct debit was cancelled but I never heard anything from Airtricity.

Two months on I check my bank account only to find that Airtricity have set up two new unauthorised Direct Debits, using different reference numbers,one for €105 on 5/5/11 and another for 314.33 on 13/6/11. I got on to my bank and they confirmed the unauthorised DD's and told me they couldn't do anything but stop them and that I would have to try to get a refund from Airtricity. Any advice would be much appreciated.

coylemj

There isn't a day goes by but I get another reason not to become an Airtricity customer.

Our man in Havana

Go back to your bank and make them refund you as the DD was unauthorised. They were negligent in paying them. It is their problem to refund you. Put the request in writing and request a final response letter. If they still don't refund go to the Ombudsman.

FreudianSlippers

Moved to Banking & Insurance & Pensions

NuMarvel

Remind your bank of the terms of the Direct Debit Guarantee, which is summaried on the Irish Payment Services Organisation's website as follows:

A Direct Debit Guarantee is provided by your bank in the following form:

If you authorise payment by direct debit, then

• Your direct debit originator will notify you in advance of the amounts to be debited to your account
  
• Your bank will accept and pay such debits, provided that your account has sufficient available funds

If it is established that an unauthorised direct debit was charged to your account, you are guaranteed an immediate refund by your bank of the amount so charged where you notify your bank without undue delay on becoming aware of the unauthorised direct debit, and in any event no later than 13 months after the date of debiting of such direct debit to your account

You are entitled to request a refund of any variable direct debit which exceeded the amount which you could reasonably have expected, subject to you so requesting your bank within a period of 8 weeks from the date of debiting such direct debit to your account; your bank is entitled to ask you to provide factual elements relating to your request for a refund

You can request your bank to refuse a direct debit payment on your account up to close of business the day before the direct debit is due to be paid from your account

You can cancel the Direct Debit Instruction by writing in good time to your bank

Our man in Havana

It is a pity none of the banks actually follow it.

jackie1974

Thanks for the replies, I wrote to my bank and airtricity and will wait to see what they are prepared to put into writing. I think its airtricity thats at fault because direct debit mandates dont need to be signed anymore so the banks seem to have little control over who can or cant access your account. Im also going to write to my bank requesting that no access is allowed unless I physically come in and sign a mandate. thanks again il update here when I get a reply.

Our man in Havana

You are being far too soft on them. The bank is still at fault here, in fact both sides are at fault. The bank must refund you.

oggy8

jackie1974 wrote: »

I think its airtricity thats at fault because direct debit mandates dont need to be signed anymore so the banks seem to have little control over who can or cant access your account.

The bank is 100% at fault here. I wouldn't be waiting around for any written reply. I'd contact your branch and ask to speak with the manager. I'd tell the manager that you want an automatic reinstatement of the monies that were deducted under the direct debit gaurantee, or else you will take this matter further with head office.

It's an issue for the bank ONLY as to how they propose to recoup the monies from airtricity. You done your part by notifying the bank and airtricity in writing that you were cancelling the DD!

charlemont

jackie1974 wrote: »

Hi

Airtricity supplied me with electricity for the past two years, I was on the monthly budget plan and paid every payment on time, never once missed a payment. Two months ago I got a letter telling me my payments would be more than doubling. I tried over and over to get through to the company to discuss this but never got an answer.

.

This bit is the same as the situation im in, Im raging over it, They almost tripled my DD, Im in credit with them and I asked for a bill payment card and never received it, Im shocked the bank cant cancel the DD.

jackie1974

charlemont wrote: »

This bit is the same as the situation im in, Im raging over it, They almost tripled my DD, Im in credit with them and I asked for a bill payment card and never received it, Im shocked the bank cant cancel the DD.

They can cancel the direct debit, they sent me a print out showing the cancelled direct debit and a print out of two new direct debits that Airtricity set up using my details they had on file. It's crazy they can do this.

When I contacted my branch they said there was little they could do to help but cancel the direct debits and send me on the print outs showing the unauthorised DD's, so I contacted A.I.B. head office and they told me go back to my branch manager and ask for a refund under the direct debit indemnity scheme. I looked up A.I.B. online help and printed off the DD gaurantee they have on their site and sent that with a letter reminding them of their obligations under the scheme, with the print outs they provided showing that they are aware my account was accessed without my authorisation. I am waiting on their response now and will update as soon as I know.

If you pay through the bank i'd advise you to cancel the DD with the bank and Airtricity and inform the bank in writing that you do not want any DDs allowed on your account unless you physically come into your branch and sign for them. That way you have more control over how you pay airtricity and how much you pay them.

Marcusm

jackie1974 wrote: »

If you pay through the bank i'd advise you to cancel the DD with the bank and Airtricity and inform the bank in writing that you do not want any DDs allowed on your account unless you physically come into your branch and sign for them. That way you have more control over how you pay airtricity and how much you pay them.

I agree with everything you said except the last piece. A direct debit originates with the supplier not the customer and thus does not involve you communicating with your own bank at all. Only standing orders operate that way.

Our man in Havana

Ah but you can instruct your bank to reject all DD's unless there is a signed mandate on hand.

Sheep Shagger

Speak to the manager of your branch for a refund (don't accept speaking to anyone below him/her), if you have no joy write a letter and send it registered to both the Central Bank (the renamed financial regulator) as well as the energy regulator).

BuffyBot

Sheep Shagger, if you are going to give advice on here, let it be correct. It's also jumping far ahead of the place where this thread started, and is verging on off topic.

(btw: The financial regulator can't do anything until a complainant has exhausted the banks own complaints procedure and had a letter of final response).

Our man in Havana

The OP really needs to put this in writing now as the bank will do nothing until it is forced to give a final response.

jackie1974

I did write to my bank manager requesting a refund but all I have recieved so far is a letter telling me i'm over my allowed overdraft and that i'm being charged accordingly, hmmm thank you very much bank for charging me for your error. :rolleyes: I will wait for them to give my a refund and then ask for a refund of the charges and to clean up my credit record.

bb12

had the same thing happen to me with the ESB. my bank told me they could do nothing to stop esb setting up new DD's once an original one had already been set up. When i asked whether there was anything at all I could do to stop them, i was told to change my current account number!

i learned a valuable lesson about DDs that day ie never ever set them up with a company!

Our man in Havana

jackie1974 wrote: »

I did write to my bank manager requesting a refund but all I have recieved so far is a letter telling me i'm over my allowed overdraft and that i'm being charged accordingly, hmmm thank you very much bank for charging me for your error. :rolleyes: I will wait for them to give my a refund and then ask for a refund of the charges and to clean up my credit record.

You need to write to head office and request a final response letter. Everything else is just playing into the banks hands.

jackie1974

Our man in Havana wrote: »

jackie1974 wrote: »

I did write to my bank manager requesting a refund but all I have recieved so far is a letter telling me i'm over my allowed overdraft and that i'm being charged accordingly, hmmm thank you very much bank for charging me for your error. :rolleyes: I will wait for them to give my a refund and then ask for a refund of the charges and to clean up my credit record.

You need to write to head office and request a final response letter. Everything else is just playing into the banks hands.

Ok I'll do that today, thanks a million for the advice, I appreciate it.

weldoninhio

jackie1974 wrote: »

Ok I'll do that today, thanks a million for the advice, I appreciate it.

If its AIB, pop into the branch and tell customer services that you want to fill out a "making good" form. This is the form that is used to recall direct debits that are taken without your consent. This is something that happens almost daily and i'd imagine that whoever you are dealing with is either extremely lazy, or "old school" i.e. have been in the bank since the year dot and thinks they know everything about banking and hasn't bothered to read the circulars. We've had making good forms in since 1 October of last year.

Before that it was a nightmare.