The Great Late Payment Charge Scam

olly300

jack_pott wrote: »

BT bills take 8 days, and only allow 11 days before they charge you £7.50!
So, allowing for up to two weekend days, I get one day to pay before the bill goes up by 19%.

I suggest you complain to BT. I did and then was sent a notice of their terms and conditions which state somewhere that you have 28 days in which to pay a bill before they can charge you the late payment charge.

I then received another bill in the same form but as I moved I didn't complain again. I was going to complain to the regulator this time as well as the wording and format of their bills would frighten vulnerable people but I moved. When they start doing it again I will make a proper complaint.

I won't pay BT by DD as I recently moved and told BT to disconnect my line. Instead BT left the line connected and I didn't find out until someone else moved in and I got a bill which included a late payment charge. I threatened them with the regulator and the bill was cancelled. If I had paid by DD I would have had to get my bank to refund the money, write to BT wait a long time while being threatened with debt collectors and then forward my complaint to OFCOM before it is resolved. This happened to me with Three over a different issue, and explains why BT are probably posting my bills as soon as they are printed.

[Deleted User]

I've only overrun their time limit twice as far as I can see, and haven't been charged anything (yet). Which is probably why I've only just noticed that BT's bills have been taking four times as long to arrive.

Freddie_Snowbits

Tip 1 Pay Monthly
Tip 2 Pay by Direct Debit
Tip 3 Register at BT Website
TIP 4 Get BT Internet as they give you free calls in evening and weekends to landlines. (Options 2 and 3)
Tip 5 Block those 0898 numbers full stop

When I started work it said do not ring before 1 on the phone!