Can they do this ?

caoineadh.cu.chulainn

First of all , let me say that this is my first post on this forum , so if I have posted it in the wrong place , then please forgive me.
My question is this. I had a DD with BT which I foolishly forgot to meet when the time became due. I lost my job through the dreaded crunch , and what with family problems and what have you , I didn't meet the payment date. I have been on JSA for 6 months , and I was shocked to find that my bank , ( Abbey ) have deducted £104 from my fortnightly payment , to pay for the DD's. I only get £180 for me and my wife , so this has left me in a bad way !. Can they legaly do this?. The state says you are entitled to a certain amount to live on , so can these penny pinching morons do this. Any advice would be most welcome.

natweststaffmember

caoineadh.cu.chulainn wrote: »

First of all , let me say that this is my first post on this forum , so if I have posted it in the wrong place , then please forgive me.
My question is this. I had a DD with BT which I foolishly forgot to meet when the time became due. I lost my job through the dreaded crunch , and what with family problems and what have you , I didn't meet the payment date. I have been on JSA for 6 months , and I was shocked to find that my bank , ( Abbey ) have deducted £104 from my fortnightly payment , to pay for the DD's. I only get £180 for me and my wife , so this has left me in a bad way !. Can they legaly do this?. The state says you are entitled to a certain amount to live on , so can these penny pinching morons do this. Any advice would be most welcome.

A warm welcome to MSE. Can you clarify something, is the £104.00 because there was insufficient money in the account for the DD's?
Can they take money from your benefits? 100% yes they can. Once it hits the account it is treated as income.

Dave101t

thats the curse of direct debits, once you give them authority, if you owe it, they can take it!

caoineadh.cu.chulainn

natweststaffmember wrote: »

A warm welcome to MSE. Can you clarify something, is the £104.00 because there was insufficient money in the account for the DD's?
Can they take money from your benefits? 100% yes they can. Once it hits the account it is treated as income.

Yes , there was insufficient money to pay the DDs. But I read on this site that in cases such as mine , there is a thing called hardship exemption which basicaly say that people in financial difficulty can ask the banks to be a bit more thoughtful before they act. According to the FSA , a person is considered to be in financial difficulty when " His or her income is insufficient to cover reasonable living expenses and meet financial committments as they become due "
I have been in contact with Abbey , explained the situation , and quoted passages from MSE , ( without directly mentioning mse as my source), and as a result, they are going to give my case ' emergency consideration', and hopefully refund my money within a week or two. Hardly the immediate action that they could take according to the FSA , but at least it is a step in the right direction. I will let you know what happens !!!