Creation Finance set up a DD dont know who they are !

wobblymummy

Hi there

Been on my online banking tonight to check the DDS for month end payday and noticed a DD had been set up for a company called Premium Finance. Phoned my bank who were relatively useless and said they were not able to tell me how this company had set up a DD on our account.

We have never used this company and dont owe any money on sofas etc which is apparently their main business. We have a few debts which are in a DMP.

Am wholly disgusted that they have access to our bank account and want to know how they got it. We bought a sofa from SCS 6 years ago and paid it off in full about two years ago with no problems so I dont think it can be anything to do with that.

Anyone else heard of these people ? I was given an 0871 number to call and a name but dont really see why I should pay to phone up and ask why they have my bank details !

Fuming !

unholyangel

Creation finance or premium finance?

unholyangel

Did you have any store cards or loans or anything thats not in the DMP?
creation finance 0870 178 0148
028 9026 0900 thats an alternative number for them from saynoto0870

on a further note, have you moved house at all? Maybe they've wrote to you? Have any of the companies you have financial services with been bought over by someone else?

wobblymummy

On the direct debit it said Premium Finance and gave a reference number, then when I phoned my bank they said it was also Creation Con Finance (the irony!) and had a reference number a telephone number and a contact name.

Our DMP has been in place for 2 years now and we have not obtained any other credit in the meantime, when we started on the DMP we opened a new bank account at the same time so our creditors would not have the new bank details (I have never sent cheques either just postal orders) we have not bought anything on finance except in 2004 when we bought our sofa through SCS but this was paid off without any late or missed payments before we even started the DMP. We have no other debts/loans other than what is on the DMP and have never had a storecard.

I guess it could be a genuine error just a mistyped number but its pretty frightening to think they they could have just taken money from our account and potentially left us with no money to live on, all of this without our knowledge.

The only thing I can think of is that we recently used a new home insurer we got off Confused.com and set up a DD with them, but it wasnt anyone called Premium Finance/Creation Finance

DVardysShadow

wobblymummy wrote: »

The only thing I can think of is that we recently used a new home insurer we got off Confused.com and set up a DD with them, but it wasnt anyone called Premium Finance/Creation Finance

Does the home insurance DD appear on your statement, distinct from the one you are puzzled about?

fluffnutter

This needs pursuing - and your bank should be doing more to help. Direct debits are not set up by companies, they're set up by individuals (although companies can do the admin on your behalf) and you shouldn't have a DD on your account without having signed the paperwork. The Direct Debit Guarantee stipulates that it is your bank or building society's responsibility to refund you money if any has been taken in error. I'd cancel the DD, ask the bank for a refund and see what happens.

wobblymummy

Fortunately nothing was taken, I am very careful with our banking and check it everyday although admittedly I dont check the list of DD all the time, thank goodness I did though.

The bank were incredibly unhelpful. The woman on the phone said "we dont know who you set up your direct debits with" I said yes but dont you have to have a signed agreement. She even looked at my other DD and said we dont know who that is, I said yes but I signed a DD form for that it havent I. I couldnt believe the attitude, I was so shocked.

I have only just set up the DD for the home insurance, I paid the first instalment by debit card then the remainder is over the year so in theory it could be them but the name is nothing like the company I insured with.

david39

It is possible for approved companies to set up DDs to individual bank accounts without a signature from the account user - it is called Paperless DD. This enables them to be able to set up a DD, in agreement with a customer, over the phone

Only approved companies can do this and the misuse of the privelige can result in the service becoming unavailable to them. It does require them to advise the customer beforehand and get their agreement to doing it.

My advice to you would be to immediately put a stop on the DD. The payee will then be automatically informed through the banking system that this has been done and, if they feel that you should not have stopped the DD, the payee will contact you to ask why you have stopped it. Their true identity will then be revealed.

If the DD has been set up with your correct name and bank details, it suggests that the payee must be a company to whom you have already given those details. On the assumption that you do not bandy the information about willy-nilly, it must reduce the candidates to only a few possibles.

wobblymummy

I have found out that it was from the insurance policy from my home, the insurer passed on our details to another company to adminster the finance who are involved with Creation Finance (google the name eek!) they didnt tell us any of this of course. Guess who wont be renewing with them next year! Not strictly the banks fault but pretty appalling customer service when I called up to ask. Glad its sorted but just showed me how much my bank were unwilling to help me out

unholyangel

wobblymummy wrote: »

I have found out that it was from the insurance policy from my home, the insurer passed on our details to another company to adminster the finance who are involved with Creation Finance (google the name eek!) they didnt tell us any of this of course. Guess who wont be renewing with them next year! Not strictly the banks fault but pretty appalling customer service when I called up to ask. Glad its sorted but just showed me how much my bank were unwilling to help me out

Change banks?

You usually find for insurance policies that the same finance companies take payments on behalf of dozens of insurers. Like BISL for instance