Anyone know why companies don't accept a bank account as a method of payment?

Gobsh

Anyone know why companies don't accept a bank account as a method of payment? 

I have trouble with first direct debit cards and constant verifications and then I get my cards blocked and spend two hours on the phone unblocking them.

I have reliable PayPal account, Google pay and several Bank accounts

Now locked out of my 25 year old Amazon account because I couldn't verify the first direct cards... Again.

Edit:

Just to clarify. Direct Bank account payment method as in Sort Code, Bank Account used by PayPal and eBay as opposed to a debit or credit CARD with expiry date and CVC "associated" with an account

wmb194

Gobsh said:

Anyone know why companies don't accept a bank account as a method of payment? 

I have trouble with first direct debit cards and constant verifications and then I get my cards blocked and spend two hours on the phone unblocking them.

I have reliable PayPal account, Google pay and several Bank accounts

Now locked out of my 25 year old Amazon account because I couldn't verify the first direct cards... Again.

You mean will companies accept FD's debit cards? They do, but you say you have a technical issue with FD's verification system so, *shrug.* Use another account/card.

DullGreyGuy

What companies? What sort of transactions? What method of moving money from the account (DD, BACS/Faster Pay, SO or..)?

Can you imagine the complexity of doing your weekly shop then asking the Tesco sales assistant for the company bank details to do a BACS transfer and then the sales assistant having to log into the banking and waiting to see the transaction appear? 

TadleyBaggie

The title of this post and the details don't seem to match, obviously companies do accept bank accounts, otherwise how would they be paid?

The problem seems to be First Direct, what is it that causes them to block your card?

Gobsh

Just added some clarity to my original post

grumbler

Gobsh said:

Just added some clarity to my original post

So, the question is in fact "Why companies don't accept a Direct Debit as a method of payment?"

Sarahspangles

Merchant services act as intermediaries between E-commerce sites and banks/building societies.  They offer both parties a secure, encrypted and fast way of transferring funds. 

You can ‘push’ funds from your bank account in some circumstances but the only situation where you normally provide details to allow an organisation to ‘pull’ funds is payment by Direct Debit, where you have an ongoing arrangement with a service provider and the backup of the Direct Debit guarantee if they overcharge you.

Two factor authentication is occasionally a pain but it was brought in for a reason!

Band7

Some companies are starting to offer QR codes which will initiate a Faster Payment. I think I have also seen "Pay by bank transfer" on a website - can't remember which one now. Natwest uses a system called PayIt to e.g. let you pay your credit card, and AFAIK, they are actively selling PayIt to merchants. Many companies can be paid by Faster Payment for one offs or SOs, and you can pay all regular bills by DD.  With the exception of DDs, none of these payment methods offers you any consumer protection.

I would always pay by card, preferable credit card, myself unless I know the payee and am certain I have their correct bank details, as I want the consumer protection that comes with cards.

Rob5342

If you mean paying by bank transfer then lots of companies do. I paid for our boiler, carpet and kitchen by bank transfer to the respective companies. I'd imagine the reason that companies like Amazon don't is down to the sheer number of transactions and the diffiiculty in keeping track of them all and relating them to orders. Even if they asked people to put the order number as reference then lots of people would forget and get it wrong, and they'd have all that to sort out.

If you mean direct debit then lots of companies do as long as you have a credit facility with them. Without a credit facility then they'd have to wait for the funds to clear, up to 10 days if it's a new direct debit. Most people wouldn;t want that hassle and would use a debit card instead.

wmb194

You could also write a cheque...

hpuse

Gobsh said:

Anyone know why companies don't accept a bank account as a method of payment? 

I have trouble with first direct debit cards and constant verifications and then I get my cards blocked and spend two hours on the phone unblocking them.

I have reliable PayPal account, Google pay and several Bank accounts

Now locked out of my 25 year old Amazon account because I couldn't verify the first direct cards... Again.

Edit:

Just to clarify. Direct Bank account payment method as in Sort Code, Bank Account used by PayPal and eBay as opposed to a debit or credit CARD with expiry date and CVC "associated" with an account

Most companies do accept Bank account as payment method.

All you need to do is open a business bank account, become a supplier, supply (or receive goods) and just ask for an invoice (or send an invoice) with bank details.

Bingo, payment done(or completed) via bank transfer.