Warning! BT increase charges for non direct debit payers

BexTech

With a Direct Debit you can cancel them, either by clicking a button with online banking, popping into your bank and asking them to cancel the DD or phoning the bank.

With CCCA (CPA) you have none of this protection, you can't ask your bank or card company to cancel the recurring payments, you have to ask the company taking the money to cancel, you are at their mercy whether they stop or not, even if you were to cancel your credit card account, any recurring payments made on that card you will still be billed for if the company fails to action your request to stop.

wantmemoney

http://www2.bt.com/static/i/microsite/help_and_tips/payments/faq/about_payments.html#faq11

What is a Payment Processing Fee? From 1 May 2007, BT Payment Services Ltd, a separate BT Group company, is introducing a payment processing fee for customers who do not pay their telephone bills by Direct Debit or Monthly Payment Plan as all other methods of payment cost BT more to process.

So what "process" has BT calculated is costing them £1.50 a month for every non direct debit bill payer?
It clearly cannot be the cost of actually processing the cheque.

http://money.guardian.co.uk/phones/story/0,,2066107,00.html
A spokesperson for the company said the fee was being introduced because it costs the company more to accept non-direct debit payments.
"This is not just because of the cost of taking the payments, but because customers are more likely to forget to pay or not pay, leaving us with bad debt of around £100m a year."

But Ofcom already allows BT to charge a "bad debt surcharge" on every phone call charged to cover any bad debt from unpaid bills.

Botch

wantmemoney wrote: »

So what "process" has BT calculated is costing them £1.50 a month for every non direct debit bill payer?
It clearly cannot be the cost of actually processing the cheque.

But Ofcom already allows BT to charge a "bad debt surcharge" on every phone call charged to cover any bad debt from unpaid bills.

I too refused to pay the payment fee and e-mailed Ben Verwaayen to ask for a breakdown of the fee ( cutting out the indians ) and you will no doubt be thrilled with the following quote from the reply.
" When we calculated the Payment Processing Fee we took into account the total costs associated with non-automated payment methods, which includes NOT JUST THE COLLECTION COSTS, BUT ALSO THE FOLLOW UP COSTS IF CUSTOMERS PAY LATE OR FORGET TO PAY. The fee is therefore based upon the average cost to us for processing non-automated payments"

I am still waiting for an answer to my reply as to what the late payment charge is for if all the costs are included in the Payment fee!

BritBrat

I am still waiting for an answer to my reply as to what the late payment charge is for if all the costs are included in the Payment fee!

Good point.

The answer is they want to have their cake and to eat it to.


Note:
I am trying to find the person who changed my signature.

RickS_3

I have deduced a bill processing fee of £4.50 from the total on my phone bill. If BT can do it, then so can we. Just like I didn't agree to their charge in advance of being charged, neither have they.

Bah!

Heinz

RickS wrote: »

I have deduced a bill processing fee of £4.50 from the total on my phone bill. If BT can do it, then so can we. Just like I didn't agree to their charge in advance of being charged, neither have they.

I assume you mean 'deducted' the £4.50.

Your choice. You'll now get a £7.50 fee for late payment. Why not just switch to Direct Debit and avoid the £4.50 Payment Processing Fee and the (possible) £7.50 Late Payment charge?

BritBrat

Your choice. You'll now get a £7.50 fee for late payment. Why not just switch to Direct Debit and avoid the £4.50 Payment Processing Fee and the (possible) £7.50 Late Payment charge?

Then pay some other way, like the way you normally do so long as it's not cash and you do it before the direct debit is called for.

Saving £4.50 a quarter, that is what I do.

Gareth56

satan666wayne wrote: »

Virgin media charge £5 per month for non DD

Firstly are 'Payment handling fees' legal?

and secondly

Are you allowed to request Virgin for information as to how they justify the £5 fee and if they refuse to provide such information are they in breach of some law or something? However if it's discovered that they are overcharging their customers can customers claim the excess back as banking customers have done? For if you pay your Virgin bill electronically how then can Virgin charge a payment handling fee because presumably your money has gone directly into their bank account.

Ta
G56

The_Economist

Has anything been done yet to find out if these are legal charges.
How come i have to pay a £4.50 extra when they charge me 1 month in advance for some services?

SaynotoBT

:mad:
I moved both my private and business numbers to monthly payments back in May to avoid this iniquitous charge - and made it clear to BT that I didn't want to pay processing fees. Both accounts were changed at the same time and covered the whole of each bill. BT didn't advise me that if the monthly debit was to a credit card rather thatn a bank I would be charged this fee. They don't charge it on the business line, but they do on the private line. BT refuse to refund the £4.50 charges they have made so far. How many other people have been ripped off in this way? £4.50 isn't so much for one person, but multiply it by all customers and it adds up to a lot - just like the bank charge ripoffs. The debit is now changed to my bank instead, so no more charges.