End of Vehicle Lease Charge - Tried to Deduct Funds without Notification

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I reached the end of the vehicle lease period and handed the vehicle back. The contracted mileage was 52,500 and the vehicle was returned with below 40,000 miles.
On one side of the vehicle there were 2 small impressions, less than 10mm and nothing that I would call outside of general wear and tear.
I received an email to state that I was accountable for the repair charge and that I was to arrange payment, 10 days later the leasing company tried by direct debit to pull the amount from my account, I hadn't agreed to any payment and hadn't been notified that any payment was scheduled. The payment bounced as there wasn't enough funds to cover it. 

Yes I agreed to the direct debit for the regular payments but cant find any notes in the direct debit agreement that would permit them to just take payment for damage repair. 

The direct debit is a huge issue and I'm very disappointed that such action was taken but have they actually done anything wrong here or do I have a serious complaint to platform? Also any guidance on the damage recovery would be appreciated. 

Car_54

So far as the DD is concerned, you need to check the exact terms of your agreement. 

For the damage, if the company is a member of BVRLA (which most are) then their advice is "If you are leasing a vehicle you should request a copy of the BVRLA Fair Wear & Tear Standard from your leasing company directly."

Ectophile

You don't actually have to agree to a payment.  But under the terms of the Direct Debit system, a company is supposed to tell you in advance how much they are going to take, before they take it.

For many services, that's a regular monthly payment for the same amount, so they don't have to tell you every time.  But if it's something extra, they have to tell you first.

Grey_Critic

How much did they want?

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For clarity the monthly regular monthly payments were just over £300 per month and the damage claim is just over £600.
On the cost of damage email they instructed me to make payment but then arranged a payment themselves without notifying me of the action first.

Ectophile

If they didn't tell you they were going to take the money, then you are entitled to go to your bank and ask for it back again.  That's covered by the Direct Debit Guarantee.