Direct debit's that don't cost money

eskbanker

ruudy wrote: »

With regards to paypal. Will it not have to be 'active' in to count as a direct debit in some cases?

Not sure exactly what you mean by 'in some cases' but to qualify for interest on a 123 then two DDs need to be active (in the sense of being current, i.e. live mandates showing in online banking).

Santander don't have any requirement for such DDs to be used every month, unlike most other banks' DD rules, so given its lack of regular scheduled payments PayPal is a good answer for a 123 DD, less so for other banks requiring DDs to pay monthly.

And, as ever, always remember that unused DDs may lapse after 13 months under the dormancy rules of the scheme, so if using PayPal as a qualifying DD for a 123, ensure that it's used from time to time!