Direct Debit payment gone missing. Who is liable?

Isolt

I pay my rent by Direct Debit and it's collected by an intermediary called Go Cardless who send it through to the landlord. All has been fine with that for about a year. Then out of the blue I got an automated email from Go Cardless saying the most recent monthly payment "failed". But the payment had debited my current account just fine.

My bank confirmed that the payment was definitely taken from my current account and has not bounced back. It's over a month now and the payment has never been returned. Go Cardless continue to claim that the payment didn't go through.

I've provided bank statements showing that the payment left my account. My bank said they've never heard of a Direct Debit payment just vanishing into thin air before. My bank also said that without having sight of Go Cardless's bank statement they are not necessarily convinced that Go Cardless didn't receive my payment through.

What happens now? Who is liable? How would this affect my tenancy? Since the Direct Debit issue I have just been paying my rent by standing order.

agrinnall

Sounds to me like a c0ck up by Go Cardless, whoever they are. But in the circumstances I would invoke the DD Guarantee with your bank to get the money back and let the bank sort out getting it back from Go Cardless or wherever it's gone. Carry on paying by SO, and if the rent period that the lost DD was supposed to pay for has not yet been paid use the money to clear that debt.

Isolt

agrinnall wrote: »

Sounds to me like a c0ck up by Go Cardless, whoever they are. But in the circumstances I would invoke the DD Guarantee with your bank to get the money back and let the bank sort out getting it back from Go Cardless or wherever it's gone. Carry on paying by SO, and if the rent period that the lost DD was supposed to pay for has not yet been paid use the money to clear that debt.

It's not covered by the Direct Debit Indemnity. If the company had claimed the wrong amount or claimed an amount they weren't due, the bank could just get the money back and return it to me. But since as far as the bank is concerned, the money has gone where it was supposed to and in the correct amount, they can't get it back!

I hope one cannot be evicted over something like this.

surreysaver

Of course its covered by the Direct Debit guarantee! Its a Direct Debit. Just ring the bank and claim the money back. Doesn't matter who's liable or who's fault it is, the bank is responsible for returning your money to you. Once the bank claims the money back from GoCardless, I'm sure they'll find where the money's gone.

Isolt

surreysaver wrote: »

Of course its covered by the Direct Debit guarantee! Its a Direct Debit. Just ring the bank and claim the money back. Doesn't matter who's liable or who's fault it is, the bank is responsible for returning your money to you. Once the bank claims the money back from GoCardless, I'm sure they'll find where the money's gone.

I already did that. The bank can't claim the money back. They can only reimburse Direct Debit payments under specific circumstances. The DD Guarantee says "If an error is made in the payment of your Direct Debit, by the organisation or your bank or building society, you are entitled to a full and immediate refund of the amount paid from your bank or building society."

My bank says error has been made and the money was paid to the recipient just as it had been every other month.

Geoff1963

How about this :
Obtain the details of the payment, and get Go Cardless to instruct the bank to take it back.

Go Cardless shouldn't object : because they are asking the bank to take from them, something they say they didn't receive, so have nothing to lose.
The bank shouldn't object, because they now have authority from the recipient ; saying "Thank you for making the payment to us, but we asked for it by mistake, so please take it back". That invokes the, "If an error is made . . . by the organisation . . . " clause.

Isolt

Geoff1963 wrote: »

How about this :
Obtain the details of the payment, and get Go Cardless to instruct the bank to take it back.

Go Cardless shouldn't object : because they are asking the bank to take from them, something they say they didn't receive, so have nothing to lose.
The bank shouldn't object, because they now have authority from the recipient ; saying "Thank you for making the payment to us, but we asked for it by mistake, so please take it back". That invokes the, "If an error is made . . . by the organisation . . . " clause.

Hopefully I can eventually get this to happen. I've called Go Cardless and so far not managed to speak to anyone there directly, I'm just dealing with the landlord and the landlord's accounts department are supposedly dealing with Go Cardless. It's far from satisfactory. All I can do at present is carry on paying my rent.

surreysaver

Stop paying by direct debit and pay by standing order instead. And pay directly to the landlord rather than any intermediary companies.

GingerFurball_2

surreysaver wrote: »

Of course its covered by the Direct Debit guarantee! Its a Direct Debit. Just ring the bank and claim the money back. Doesn't matter who's liable or who's fault it is, the bank is responsible for returning your money to you. Once the bank claims the money back from GoCardless, I'm sure they'll find where the money's gone.

I suggest you actually read the Direct Debit guarantee.

xylophone

Your landlord (or his company)/agent is GoC's client.

You can prove that the payment was debited to your bank account as it had been in previous months.

Advise your landlord or his company/agent accordingly and let him sort it out with GoC.

Robisere

Too late now I know, and I hope you get this settled OP, but for many years I have not paid rent by DD, only SO: this cannot be changed, increased or cancelled except by your agreement and your own actions, either in your bank branch, by phone (should be with security questions) or online if you use internet banking.

I found this out many years ago, when my Social landlord in another area attempted to increase our rent by 300% +. I am not exaggerating, that is what a new Housing Association tried to do when taking over housing in my old village. I took them to an independent Tribunal and won, which was a win for all other tenants. The tribunal judge was a retired barrister, who adjourned the process for 3 weeks, returned after viewing the (delapidated) housing and instead ordered a reduction in rent. Then advised me never to pay rent by DD, only by SO.