Cancelling direct debit

missp1982

Hello, hoping for some advice.

I cancelled a direct debit on the 24th November, there was a payment due out on the 27th so it said that payment would come out and then after that it would be cancelled.

I have today received an email from Harlands, who must act for the gym, saying that I need to reinstate my DD as I only cancelled it on the 5th Dec and therefore I haven’t given 30 days notice.

I called them and they said if I didn’t reinstate it then the payment would bounce and I’d be liable for a £25 admin fee?

I’m trying to get the bank to confirm I instructed the cancellation in November, but what will happen if I can’t?

Will it cause a bounced payment and will it affect my credit record?

Don80

Hi

It sounds like the £25 would be the gym charging you, not the bank. I would ask if you can cancel and then clear the balance using your debit card instead.

Banks usually advise you to contact the originator (in this case the gym) when you cancel a direct debit for this reason.

It's unlikely that the gym would show on your credit records, so it's probably more of an annoyance than something to be worried about on your credit file. You can check via MSE, Clearscore, etc.

clivep

missp1982 wrote: »

Hello, hoping for some advice.

I cancelled a direct debit on the 24th November, there was a payment due out on the 27th so it said that payment would come out and then after that it would be cancelled.

I have today received an email from Harlands, who must act for the gym, saying that I need to reinstate my DD as I only cancelled it on the 5th Dec and therefore I haven’t given 30 days notice.

I called them and they said if I didn’t reinstate it then the payment would bounce and I’d be liable for a £25 admin fee?

I’m trying to get the bank to confirm I instructed the cancellation in November, but what will happen if I can’t?

Will it cause a bounced payment and will it affect my credit record?

It sounds as if you just cancelled the direct debit with your bank rather than cancelling your membership with the gym.

The direct debit is just the payment method for your membership. Cancelling it would not normally automatically cancel the gym membership itself. You would need to contact the originator to cancel the membership.

The bank will have advised the originator that the direct debit was cancelled. This may well have happened on 5th December hence the email from Harlands. If this is the first they have heard of your intention to end membership then this is indeed when the 30 days notice will start so you will probably need to pay for another month. Whether this is by direct debit or another method is up to you.

Contacting your bank is irrelevant as it doesn't matter when the direct debit was cancelled by you. The only relevant date is the day you told the gym/Harlands you wanted to cancel your membership and then how much you still owe depends on the terms and conditions of your gym membership.

Katiehound

My local leisure centre has a 30 day notice to cancel a DD- that is pointed out when you start the membership (unless you buy an annual membership upfront)

colsten

When you have cancelled the Direct Debit with your bank, the gym have no automatic way to charge you. They might write to you to request a sum of money in line with the T&Cs. What do these say about cancellation?

I doubt anything will show on your credit file as you don't have a credit agreement with the gym.

Kim_13

Your credit file would only be affected if the gym or someone acting on behalf of them was eventually granted a CCJ in respect of your account. For small amounts they may not bother, but you do owe them for a 30 day notice period. They may add interest to this if not paid. You'd need to check the T and C's for details. Other charges could be added if enforcement action was eventually taken.

With regards to the direct debit, banks cannot reinstate them once cancelled. You'd need to pay the gym via another method or set up another direct debit to stop them trying to collect via the cancelled mandate and charging the admin fee (assuming this fee is mentioned in the terms you signed.)

You may have told the bank that you wanted to cancel the membership in November but they can't be expected to pass messages to the gym - nor would the gym discuss your membership with a third party. If you only told the gym yesterday that you wanted to cancel then that is when the 30 days starts from.

Anthorn

Agree in part with the foregoing.

First of all you cannot reinstate the DD. The payee has to do it so they will have issue a new mandate electronically to your bank or send you a form to fill out and send back to them.

Every time I've cancelled a DD at several different banks the decision has been final and cannot be reversed.

It seems like a lot of unnecessary faffing to me: You cancelled your membership and when the membership expires they send you a final bill and you pay it. Simple.

Roxanne_94

Hi

I have received letters from Harland stating I owe gym fees and know CRS even though I cancelled accordingly and they state they have no knowledge on this and continued 3 months of money out my account so I cancelled DD! Any advice on what to do? Do I pay the £151???

Extremely stressed that this will affect my credit rating!!!

Thanks!

Armorica

You need to explain what happened better.

Did you cancel your Direct Debit via your bank, or via the gym?

Cancelling a Direct Debit just cancels the payment. It doesn't cancel the contract with the gym - and it doesn't cancel the fact you owe them monthly membership fees.