Paying SAGA Platinum credit card by direct debit

dbt_2

A heads up if you pay in full your SAGA Platinum Credit Card by direct debit.

If you don't use your card for a year, then next time you do, you will be sent a bill and assume the balance has been paid in full. The next bill will show the balance paid off, then 'payment reversal' and a £10 late payment fee and interest added.

According to customer services this is because after 1 year the direct debit payments become 'dormant' and must be set up from scratch again.

I was unaware of this, and only use this card when abroad (which I don't need to do every year). They have cancelled our direct debit mandate and will be sending us the paperwork to set it up again, and in the meantime I must go into a bank to pay.

YorkshireBoy

It's got nothing at all to do with Saga, or any other DD originator. It's your bank that's cancelled the DDI, for your own protection.

All banks operate the 'dormancy' feature of DDs, and usually it's after 13 months or 400 days. However, as has been reported on here before, some will cancel after only 6 months.

jalexa

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

All banks operate the 'dormancy' feature of DDs, and usually it's after 13 months

Indeed. When a Direct Debit arrangement gets (manually) cancelled, the Originator gets notified by BACS. Any idea if something similar happens with the 13 month dormancy rule?

I know from experience that when I have changed banks (and manually) cancelled credit card Direct Debit arrangements, I have received correspondence (triggered by by the BACS message) from the card company pointing out I will need to make other payment arrangements.

While "dormancy" is true, I'm not 100% convinced that the Saga card bank has paid any attention to its BACS messages. They would still hold the mandate and be entitled to re-present the setup.

I might consider that "negligent" and grounds for a spot of "fun" with the complaints procedure.

dbt_2

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

It's got nothing at all to do with Saga, or any other DD originator. It's your bank that's cancelled the DDI, for your own protection.

All banks operate the 'dormancy' feature of DDs, and usually it's after 13 months or 400 days. However, as has been reported on here before, some will cancel after only 6 months.

Thank you. I wasn't aware of this and all our other direct debit payments are monthly or quarterly so this circumstance wouldn't arise. Under these circumstances we might keep the card just for the occasional trip abroad and go into a bank to pay the balance afterwards (easier than having to keep setting up a direct debit).

dbt_2

jalexa wrote: »

I might consider that "negligent" and grounds for a spot of "fun" with the complaints procedure.

To be fair to SAGA's agents here, the person I spoke to in Customer Services said that the charges would be refunded in this case.

YorkshireBoy

jalexa wrote: »

When a Direct Debit arrangement gets (manually) cancelled, the Originator gets notified by BACS. Any idea if something similar happens with the 13 month dormancy rule?

I believe it does, yes. It would make sense to lump it in with 'reason code 0' (Instruction cancelled - Refer to Payer)...

http://datacash.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/datacash.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=471

jalexa

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

I believe it does, yes. It would make sense to lump it in with 'reason code 0' (Instruction cancelled - Refer to Payer)...

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Very interesting link. In fact I think it also provides the answer to another recent thread, whether an unrecognised direct debit could just be reinstated after being cancelled.

The answer appears to be "only after the Originator liaises with the Payer". Which couldn't happen if the unrecognised arrangement was the result of mis-keying account data.