Thinking of cancelling all direct debits

Postik

Okay, I'm exaggerating, I'm not going to cancel them all, but I am seriously thinking of cancelling as many as possible.

Since moving house I haven't setup a new direct debit for council tax, and I'm not going to.  I intend to pay the bill either in full or via two payments spaced 5 months apart.

Currently I pay car tax via monthly direct debit - but soon I'm going to go back to paying in full for the year.

I am seriously thinking of cancelling my direct debit for gas and electric and to hell with their "discount" but I'm not that brave yet.

I'm fed up of giving everyone access to my bank account and the constant "drip drip drip" of money coming out - I'd sooner pay what I owe whether that's up-front or after receiving a bill, and then forget about it.

Anyone else feel the same?

Brie

It's lovely to be in control of things and I quite understand why you might want to change the way you are doing things.  But...

Having DDs set up means you don't need to think about the payments (well not in the same way).  If you get busy, become ill, go on holiday the payments are still made and no one gets cranky at you.  So that's all good.

Some DDs save you money (like getting a discounted utility tariff) and some cost you more (like paying for things like car insurance etc monthly).  And some it doesn't matter (like TV license).

Some organisations will hassle you endlessly if you don't want to use DDs.  Not sure what the council will think if you pay twice at what they will consider random times.  

You could of course switch to standing orders for a number of things.  That way you don't have to think about it all too much, there may be less crankiness and if questioned you can point out that you are acting with integrity.  

phillw

Postik said:

I'm fed up of giving everyone access to my bank account and the constant "drip drip drip" of money coming out - I'd sooner pay what I owe whether that's up-front or after receiving a bill, and then forget about it.

Anyone else feel the same?

No, I don't feel like that at all. If it's the same price to spread across the year as to pay up front, I will pay across the year as it improves cash flow.

For example car insurance charge you to pay monthly, so I pay on 0% credit card and then pay minimum payment for X months.

While I pay council tax over 12 months, as I get a direct debit that I can use to make some cash from natwest/rbs/barclays.

However If there are services you don't really need, that you are paying for by direct debit, then cancel those services.

Also, you can usually move all your direct debits so that they come out on the first of the month (or as close to it) so that every month you only have two or three days each month when you need to make sure you have money in your account.

Bridlington1

Also some bank accounts will give you cashback on bills you pay by DD, such as Santander edge. Moreover many bank switching offers require DDs to be transferred over as part of the switch. 

grumbler

Postik said:

Anyone else feel the same?

Not me, but I think rationally, not emotionally.

AmityNeon

Nope. Direct debits are the always one of the cheapest payment methods, Santander pays cashback on household bills, and various reward current accounts have minimum direct debit requirements.

Rob5342

I'd rather have a fixed amount coming out each month that I can forget about than have to think about the bills all year long and put that much aside each month to cover the bill when it comes along. I find it much easier to manage that way, and I don't have to worry about paying them either.

mebu60

DDs help spread the load and all my monthly ones are set up for the 1st, about a week after pension income.
In October 2021 I was getting really ill, so bad that I actually had a f2f appointment with a GP. It was 5 months before I was home again, 3 months in hospital and a further 2 recovering at a friend's house. Meanwhile my DDs ticked along in the background. 

Nifty_Purse

To be honest I don't feel that way.
When it comes to the unavoidable bills of life i.e. running a home, owning a car, it's a lot less hassle to have DD than to have to keep thinking have I paid that bill. 
To me that fulfills "forgetting about it".

I pay car tax yearly via DD so it doesn't have to be a monthly DD payment.

enthusiasticsaver

I don't have an issue with direct debits.  They help cashflow over the year and as long as it does not cost me more to pay that way I find that easier than coping with random bills arriving at different times. Do you pay mobile phone bills and broadband subscriptions by bill rather than direct debits too? 

We have Starling bank and I have set up a bills space and all direct debits apart from credit card bills are paid from there.  We move money across as soon as we are paid and then I know all bills are accounted for and Starling sends us a message the day before to say when they are due. Then we can forget about the bills. We also pay our credit cards in full by direct debit just in case we are away or forget to pay.  Car insurance and tax is not paid by direct debit though as I compare deals every year to make sure we are not paying over the odds so we do not do automatic renewal. That is only once a year though. 

Direct debits do not give everyone access to your account only the ones you set up obviously.  I think I would rather have a steady drip out of the account rather than erratic lump sums needing to be paid sometimes all in the same month.  

Jami74

Postik said:

I'm fed up of giving everyone access to my bank account and the constant "drip drip drip" of money coming out - I'd sooner pay what I owe whether that's up-front or after receiving a bill, and then forget about it.

What about having a separate account just for direct debits. Work out how much the direct debits come to in a month and then set up a standing order from your main current account to the direct debit account for that amount each a month. It'll seem to your main current account one payment each month instead of a constant drip.