Barclaycard moved payment date forward by 5 days

usignuolo

I pay my Barclaycard off each month on the due date which is always around 15th of each month, give or take a day or two. I know they have been accused recently of bringing forward the payment dates but am pretty good about checking mine. I have now been stung. Every month for the last year or more my payment date has been around the 15th of the month and I have paid it in full, online, around 24 hours beforehand.

This month I got stung. I got out my bill today to pay and found my payment date had been moved forward by 5 whole days to 10th of the month. Naturally I got on the phone to Barclaycard to ask why.

The lad on the phone was unable to say why they had moved the date forward, merely that they could and would if they chose to. On pressing him further, to find out how often this might happen, and between what dates, he said in my case they are entitled to demand payment on any date between 9th - 18th each month. It was basically my fault for not checking my statement as soon as it arrived.

I asked where this information is shown on my BC statement and was told it was not. I asked to be sent details in writing of this time period, and he said he could not as he had nothing in writing to send me. He said if I really wanted it in writing, I could try writing to Head Office, although he was unable to tell me who to address my request and did not know if I would get any response.

Basically of course it is just sharp practice. Is there any other credit card better run where this does not happen that anyone can recommend?

Ritchie74

Find the address of HO on company houses website and send a copy to both customer services and the CEO/MD!
Standard practice is to give notice to change in payment date. Not sure on legality of not doing tho I assume it must be legal if Barclays have done this.
Keep on at them and any charges should be wavered.
Out of interest how have you managed your account (wondering why they have changed payment date)

flutterbyuk25

The easiest way to avoid this for the future is to set up a minimum payment DD. Thats way you will never miss a payment (and incur fees) and you can always make overpayments anytime.

x

Ritchie74

flutterbyuk25 wrote: »

The easiest way to avoid this for the future is to set up a minimum payment DD. Thats way you will never miss a payment (and incur fees) and you can always make overpayments anytime.

x

Very true it's always better to do this then the onus is on the bank to take the payment. That said, it doesn't seem fair what Barclaycard have done and I would certainly take it up.

usignuolo

I always pay my BC account in full and I know they shift the dates when it falls due to exploit regular payers and get extra money from us. Their MD said a couple of years back they deliberately target regular payers as we do not generate enough income for them, but there was a big fuss in the Sunday Times Money column last autumn and it emerged they had been doing it a lot more since the recession.

They were forced back them to refund some of the late payment fees, but seem to have started up again. It was clear from the truculent young man I spoke to in Customer Services they have been told to tell angry customers that their terms allow them to move the payment date within a 10 day window. They do not have to give any reason or advance warning. It is caveat emptor

The CSA even told me it was basically my fault for not checking my statement the minute it arrived on the door mat. He seemed bemused that I might not always be at home (I do a certain amount of travelling).

I knew it might change by a day or two but never expected it come forward from 18th -15th -10th which is what it has done over the last six months. So far I have not missed a payment which is presumably why it was advanced by 5 days this time.

I am reluctant to set up a DD as I don't really like them, daft I know, but I like to see what I am paying for before I pay it. My husband got stung on a forged Barclaycard a couple of years ago (he still had his card when the number started being used - it had been cloned somewhere.)

What I am really interested to know is if there is a credit card where they do actually stick to the same payment date each month?

YorkshireBoy

usignuolo wrote: »

What I am really interested to know is if there is a credit card where they do actually stick to the same payment date each month?

I think over the last few years I've had a card from almost everyone but Barclaycard...and none of them have ever moved the payment due date, ie changed the number of interest free days, without first informing me in writing (in the form of a notice of variation to my T&C's)...ie, "your interest free period is reducing from 56 days to 50 days from xx/xx/xx".

At the end of the day though, most regularly move the date by up to 3 days due to number of days in month, Bank Holidays, etc, which is why it's important to actually read the statement when it comes...something you no doubt will do from now on. And if you do a "certain amount of travelling" (and haven't taken out 'insurance' in the form of a direct debit), then you're going to have to make sure you log in to your account on a more regular basis.

Ritchie74

usignuolo wrote: »

I always pay my BC account in full and I know they shift the dates when it falls due to exploit regular payers and get extra money from us. Their MD said a couple of years back they deliberately target regular payers as we do not generate enough income for them, but there was a big fuss in the Sunday Times Money column last autumn and it emerged they had been doing it a lot more since the recession.

They were forced back them to refund some of the late payment fees, but seem to have started up again. It was clear from the truculent young man I spoke to in Customer Services they have been told to tell angry customers that their terms allow them to move the payment date within a 10 day window. They do not have to give any reason or advance warning. It is caveat emptor

The CSA even told me it was basically my fault for not checking my statement the minute it arrived on the door mat. He seemed bemused that I might not always be at home (I do a certain amount of travelling).

I knew it might change by a day or two but never expected it come forward from 18th -15th -10th which is what it has done over the last six months. So far I have not missed a payment which is presumably why it was advanced by 5 days this time.

I am reluctant to set up a DD as I don't really like them, daft I know, but I like to see what I am paying for before I pay it. My husband got stung on a forged Barclaycard a couple of years ago (he still had his card when the number started being used - it had been cloned somewhere.)

What I am really interested to know is if there is a credit card where they do actually stick to the same payment date each month?

Not sure. Guess the best thing to do is go through some online apps and look at T&Cs. But careful you don't go through with the app. T&Cs are listed before application goes through.
Look for any comments that say something along the lines of 'we reserve the right to change to payment due date at any time...'.

It doesn't seem like they are following the principles of TCF (treating customers fairly) very well. I bet it was on your statement in small print too !

Good luck with moving on. Hope you do and close this one down as they seem very sneaky

usignuolo

Yorkshire Boy, BC are insistent that it is part of their Ts and Cs that they can move the payment date within a 10 day window and they don't need to give any explanation. As I said their Chief Exec has said it is policy - to get more money from regular payers like me who are otherwise not profitable for them. Apparently they do it to all regular payers who clear their balance every month.

YorkshireBoy

usignuolo wrote: »

Yorkshire Boy, BC are insistent that it is part of their Ts and Cs that they can move the payment date within a 10 day window and they don't need to give any explanation. As I said their Chief Exec has said it is policy - to get more money from regular payers like me who are otherwise not profitable for them. Apparently they do it to all regular payers who clear their balance every month.

If I remember correctly*, they simply reduced the number of interest free days for those who settled in full (by direct debit?)...as a one-off exercise, ie it's not something they do at will on an ad-hoc basis as you seem to be suggesting/insinuating.

In the absence of written confirmation to the contrary, ie sight of the T&C's, I refuse to believe what you say they're telling you is correct.


* See here...

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/credit-and-loans/article.html?in_article_id=406852&in_page_id=9

usignuolo

I am afraid you are wrong on this occasion Yorkshire Boy. Here is a story from BBC New on 4 Feb 2006

"Barclaycard customers who pay their bills in full each month may have their payment date suddenly brought forward, the bank has told the BBC.

MD Ian Barber said Barclaycard was "having to face up to the fact that clearly we are not making as much money out of customers that pay their bill in full as we are out of those that borrow", he said.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Money Box programme, Mr Barber said:" the company was "quite open about it... if you pay your bill in full every month you may get a few days less to pay... That is the fact of it and we are not going to shy away from that."

Money Box listener Justin from Cambridge contacted the programme after he received his latest bill. "When I looked at all my previous statements and my February statement, all the payments were required on the 9th of the month. The only one which is not is the December statement which requires payment by the 3 January."

Mr Barber said: "What typically would have happened here is that he would have for a period of time, probably three, four or five months, been regularly paying his bill in full. Once we recognise that someone is regularly paying their bill in full, we will shorten the time that they have got to pay a little, and that is what will have happened here."

and then

Sept 18th 2008
Times Money column

I am a creature of habit and know exactly when my Barclaycard statement is due and when payment is expected. I always pay in full every month. Last month I was caught out by the payment date - instead of being August 18, it was August 7. I realised too late and my payment arrived one day late. I was charged a late-payment fee of £12 and £7.77 interest.
I phoned Barclaycard and was informed that it is policy randomly to bring forward the payment date by ten days for customers who clear their balance in full.

Joanna Cheshunt.

Response: Barclaycard says that it gives all customers a minimum of 20 days to pay from the date the bill is generated. All your bills have been produced between the 18th and 21st each month, but your due dates have varied, from the minimum of 20 days to up to 32 days later. Your July bill was produced on the 18th and the due date of August 7 was exactly 20 days later.

Barclaycard says that the dates can change because of weekends, Bank Holidays and “operational expediency”, whatever that means. So it can change the date as much as it wants, as long as you have at least 20 days to pay.

This makes it difficult to keep up, which undeniably benefits Barclays. Despite being misleading, the due date is on the bill and it is your responsibility to check when payment is due. In future, assume nothing, think the worst and maybe you won't be caught out.

The Ts and Cs only say you have to pay by the date on the monthly statement, there is nothing about varying this date. Nor can I find anything about whether the payment date is varied on other credit cards, from looking up comparison websites. I gather Virgin does it too though.

In my case, the payment date was switched this month to just fall within the 20 days minimum period.

It seems Barclaycard does not make enough profit from merchants' fees and relies upon consumer debt to boost its balance sheet. If we become more prudent, it shifts the goalpost to trap us into inadvertantly becoming indebted to it to increase its income. In fact I have read that credit card companies don't actually want customers who pay off their account each month as they are just not proftable for them.

All this contributes to the UK's mountain of borrowed money but clearly while Barclaycard's business model depends on forcing us into indebtedness it is going to keep on going with it.

YorkshireBoy

Have you ever been notified formally, ie by official notice of variation, that this policy was being implemented by Barclaycard?

If yes, then I'm afraid it's your own fault for not being on the ball. After all, the two most important pieces of information on your statement are 'how much' and 'when'.

If no, then make a formal complaint threatening to close your account if they're not forthcoming with some goodwill.

As I said above though, I've never had this happen to me and I've used a lot of cards over the last 4 years or so...but I've never had a Barclaycard. So the answer to your question 'who should I go with?' is...anyone else!

Often the best policy is to move on and vote with your feet. It's certainly what I'd do in your position.