C.C cashback vs direct debit

beekeeper21

This is general question although I'm sure the answer depends on specifics. I'm about to change my gas and electric providers and am trying to weigh up the gains between paying by direct debit (usually given as the cheapest option) and paying bills by credit card to get the cashback. I have an amex and a morgan stanley. Both reasonable cashback providers.
If anyone has any thoughts I'd be pleased to hear them.
G

pin

paying by cc sets up a continous payment authority, which can be a problem, because you have to get the provider to cancel the authority.

paying by dd you are backed by the direct debit guarantee, i.e you have remit with your bank if something goes wrong.

bob_builder_2

Not all utility companies accept credit card payments. Cashback is typically around 1% and you can save a lot more than 1% by finding cheaper utility companies.

MarkyMarkD

Bob's quite right. But, once you've found the cheapest supplier, it's worth checking if they'll take credit card.

I love paying by credit card and pay everything I possibly can by it ... but I don't pay for utilities by credit card because it is rarely financially worthwhile.

beekeeper21

I take the point. In my experience however many companies take cc payment even if they say they don't. I habitually pay everything late (about 2 or 3 weeks after the red bill) and when I phone to make the payment they tend to agree to take cc (desperate as the are to have the money). What I'm trying to weigh up is the benefits between giving up the pleasure of paying quaterly bills as late as possible and then getting cashback or paying monthly by dd and accepting whatever discount the company give for this.
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bob_builder_2

beekeeper21 wrote:

I take the point. In my experience however many companies take cc payment even if they say they don't. I habitually pay everything late (about 2 or 3 weeks after the red bill) and when I phone to make the payment they tend to agree to take cc (desperate as the are to have the money). What I'm trying to weigh up is the benefits between giving up the pleasure of paying quaterly bills as late as possible and then getting cashback or paying monthly by dd and accepting whatever discount the company give for this.
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A lot of utility companies give an extra 5-10% discount for paying on time so you may also be missing out on that even if you do not switch to DD.