Virgin media doing charges

dranzer01

So virgin media do a £5 charge if you are not signed up to direct debit... Now, how is this legal?

Surely it is the consumers prerogative if they want to sign up to direct debit or not...

This definitely feels like a sly clause!

visidigi

Perfectly fair. They do not forbid you from paying in other ways for free - therefore charging for the most cost-intensive, risky method seems perfectly reasonable.

It would only be sly if they didn't tell you, which they do, so its not.

JJ_Egan

The usual is a discount for direct debit or a refusal to sign you up without DD payment .

molerat

TalkTalk are the strange ones. Charge you extra for not having a DD but let you pay by credit card on receipt of bill and give you a 10% discount.

dranzer01

But surely its up to me if i want to pay by card at the end of every month?

I understand direct debit is 'smooth/streamlined' way of receiving their monthly payments from us, but to say 'we are charging you £5 because you are NOT on direct debit is absolutely ridiculous...

neilmcl

dranzer01 wrote: »

But surely its up to me if i want to pay by card at the end of every month?

And it's entirely up to Virgin Media on how they decide their payment terms. Just as it's up to you to decide whether to go with VM or another provider in the first place.

You accepted their terms so you have no complaint.

marleyboy

dranzer01 wrote: »

So virgin media do a £5 charge if you are not signed up to direct debit... Now, how is this legal?

Surely it is the consumers prerogative if they want to sign up to direct debit or not...

This definitely feels like a sly clause!

Perfectly legal and it is your prerogative if you want to sign up with DD or not.

Its not just limited to VM, you will find most energy companies do likewise.

Valli

Looking at it another way a DD is a cost-effective way for a company to collect payment - other methods cost them more, both in bank charges and man hours - so they pass the additional cost on to those customers who choose not to pay by DD.

unholyangel

dranzer01 wrote: »

But surely its up to me if i want to pay by card at the end of every month?

I understand direct debit is 'smooth/streamlined' way of receiving their monthly payments from us, but to say 'we are charging you £5 because you are NOT on direct debit is absolutely ridiculous...

Would it be better if they worded it in a manner such as "card payments cost us more to process, so rather than have all customers pay for this, we only charge those who actually pay by card"

You used to be able to get around this charge (not sure if its still possible) by setting up a direct debit, cancelling it with your bank when payment was due and then also calling up to make the payment simultaneously setting up a new DD for next month.

However paying by DD does have its benefits. For one, usually you get slightly longer to pay it (also with the added bonus that you won't forget to pay it or wont have to run around paying things before going away for a few weeks if those bills are due while you're away).

akkers

Most utility companies are doing this these days. It was British Gas that started this trend way back. Of course this penalises the poorer families that do not have bank accounts.
I have been at loggerheads with them since for starting these charges. Every time they ring me to ask me take their gas/electric I tell them where to go. I remind them that it was them that started this trend which penalises poor people.

marliepanda

Poor people are allowed bank accounts I hear...