Recurring Payments Warning! discussion

eskbanker

OceanSound wrote: »

May be so in the past. Now card providers have started cracking down on this unscrupulous practice.

New rules by Mastercard starting in a few months means businesses will need the consent of the customer before any payment is taken:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/01/17/end-subscription-traps-mastercard-plans-end-free-trial-warnings/

The rule change will require merchants to gain cardholder approval at the conclusion of the trial before they start billing. To help cardholders with that decision, merchants will be required to send the cardholder – either by email or text – the transaction amount, payment date, merchant name along with explicit instructions on how to cancel a trial.

Mastercard are being disingenuous to describe this change as requiring merchants to gain cardholder approval, so it's not consent in the generally accepted usage of the word!

Under the new regime, merchants have to notify cardholders that they're about to take payment and also again when they've done so, but the onus remains on the customer, as now, to actively cancel with the merchant, i.e. it remains an opt-out mechanism to cancel rather than opting in to continue, so the default situation is that payments will start if the cardholder takes no action. In other words, it's no closer to genuine consent in the future than it is now.

Having said that, better information should help cardholders make better decisions so it is a positive development that should be welcomed....

NinaW2012

Does anyone know the rules for recurrent payments where the company cannot/will not be contacted? Phone number has a french code, but does not seem to exist (and no answer, just a solid tone when dialled). Website's IP address location is in the middle of a reservoir near Wichita. Postal address is a virtual office London address (which has a list of 67 companies currently known to be squatting/using the business address illegally - company i'm looking for is not listed there. yet,). Email address search only links to a Guardian article on recurrent payments from 2012... (can't find the company on it, guessing it's in the comments somewhere, but not found it yet.)
Luckily the bank is stopping all future payments, but it is looking for evidence that the customer has tried to contact the company involved.
Becoming more and more obvious that the company never intended to be contacted!

masonic

NinaW2012 wrote: »

Postal address is a virtual office London address (which has a list of 67 companies currently known to be squatting/using the business address illegally - company i'm looking for is not listed there. yet,).

Virtual office addresses are not necessarily illegal. Many companies use them legitimately. Unless you are saying you have evidence each of those companies is using that address without permission from the provider, then you are jumping to conclusions.

Luckily the bank is stopping all future payments, but it is looking for evidence that the customer has tried to contact the company involved.

Sufficient evidence would be a copy of a letter written to the business at their registered address requesting that the payments stop, and proof of postage.

PSCH

I was relieved by Complete Savings of 15 pounds a month for over 4 years. No idea how or when I signed up but only just noticed. Their mails don't arrive as invoices but as a spam-like ads. This was a debit card not a credit card and it's so long ago I've renewed my card but they still have my new details. I'm waiting to hear how they got my details in the first place but not hopeful of a reply. Never used the service but their "customer service" doesn't extend to pointing that out after a year, or years in my case. What a disgrace they are.   

colsten

PSCH said:

I was relieved by Complete Savings of 15 pounds a month for over 4 years. No idea how or when I signed up but only just noticed. Their mails don't arrive as invoices but as a spam-like ads. This was a debit card not a credit card and it's so long ago I've renewed my card but they still have my new details. I'm waiting to hear how they got my details in the first place but not hopeful of a reply. Never used the service but their "customer service" doesn't extend to pointing that out after a year, or years in my case. What a disgrace they are.   

Have you now checked your bank statements / transaction lists for other payments that have left your account in the last four years without you noticing? What are your plans for the frequency you will check your account ging forward?

born_again

PSCH said:

I was relieved by Complete Savings of 15 pounds a month for over 4 years. No idea how or when I signed up but only just noticed. Their mails don't arrive as invoices but as a spam-like ads. This was a debit card not a credit card and it's so long ago I've renewed my card but they still have my new details. I'm waiting to hear how they got my details in the first place but not hopeful of a reply. Never used the service but their "customer service" doesn't extend to pointing that out after a year, or years in my case. What a disgrace they are.   

Don't bother with email.
Ring them on  

0800 389 6960
That's a freephone number....
They will tell you who it was. Often Argos, ebay, Debenhams etc. You get offered a free 30 trial and money back.
If you ask nicely (DON'T KICK OFF) they will refund you. Usually 3 straightaway and then require a email or letter for the rest.

They are a great company at dealing with this..... Shame people just do not read what they sign up for. As it is so clear....

abvasey26

When it comes to CPA, does the company have the authority to ask the bank for the new card details, if they have been changed?

born_again

abvasey26 said:

When it comes to CPA, does the company have the authority to ask the bank for the new card details, if they have been changed?

They do not ask the bank. They get them via Visa/Mastercard systems.
For visa google Visa account updater.
So do not think that reporting a card as lost as a way to stop payments.

Zarsash

Good afternoon all

Has anyone ever heard of this company who set up a fraudulent CPA on my account (cardholder not present fraud)-RCI Shop Maroochydore or RCI Shop Wondunna? The bank are unhelpful and I have no information other than this.  Thanks in advance

eskbanker

Zarsash said:

Has anyone ever heard of this company who set up a fraudulent CPA on my account (cardholder not present fraud)-RCI Shop Maroochydore or RCI Shop Wondunna? The bank are unhelpful and I have no information other than this.

If you're confident that you didn't authorise a transaction that's already happened then you report it to your bank as an unauthorised transaction and they're obliged to refund it unless they can demonstrate that you were negligent or complicit:

https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/unauthorised-payments-account

Likewise, on request they must cancel the CPA to prevent future transactions, as highlighted in the MSE article that this thread is all about....