Direct Debit not cancelled

kida

Hi,
I was informed a few months ago that a direct debit had been cancelled, it turns out it hadn't and It has been paid for the last 3 months. ( I only get quarterly statements)
What can I do about it?
I can't use the small claims court as it is technically a business contract (I was a contractor at the time).

Any advice would be great? I don't want to let them away with it.

Cheers

silverside

who told you it had been cancelled? do you have that in writing? (probably not)

if you write a strong letter to the company which took the money what do you think they'll do?

kida

Thankfully, I do have it in writing(in an email).

My emails and phone calls are not being returned.

Sleipnir

write a letter. Email is too easy to ignore.
Simply, they have mistakenly taken money and are therefore required to give it back.
While it is your responsibility to cancel the direct debit with your bank, it doesn't mean the company can take what they want if that doesn't happen!

dudara

Don't be afraid to go to a solicitor and get them to write a letter for you. It's relatively cheap and people don't like a solicitors letter appearing on their doorstep. My father regularly uses this technique to chade up bad debt and it's pretty successful.

BuffyBot

Bring the email to your bank, they should be able to cancel it their end, especially since you have confirmation that it should have been cancelled.

Genghis

I don't see the need for a solicitors letter just yet. Has anyone actually refused to refund the payments - i.e. either your bank, or the company that is taking the money. Can you call in to them. Once you get talking to somebody I bet it will be sorted instantly.

I know from experience that Direct Debits tend to lapse rather than cancel when their period is up. I recently changed accounts and part of the process was to transfer direct debits. Several of the direc debits 'open' were for payments I was making for insurance (99-2000), mobile phone (2000-2001), loans (99 to 2001), etc. All of these contracts / loans were paid off and so none of these companies were entitled to take money from my account - but they could have if they wished.

I take it the company that has been taking the money are not due it by you?

kida

Finally made contact - they said they would refund the payments. Got the impression that was only said to get me off the phone and have asked for it in writing.

I take it the company that has been taking the money are not due it by you?

That correct - all dealing with the finished last year and the email from them confirms this. I will wait 2 weeks and may consult a soicitor if nothing was done by them.

Genghis

Also, kida, go to your bank (I mean walk in the door, and go up to the counter) and tell them that you want to review the direct debit mandates open on your account.

When they do this, look for old direct debit mandates and tell them to delete them from your account. You will find companies with whom you have no current relations with permission to take 'any amount' from your account at their request. They will probably claim that it is unneccessary for you to delete these and that you 'might want to leave them there in case you do business with that company again in the future'; tell them you've had a bad experience and you want to be sure it can't happen again.

When you are done ask them to re-print the list of open direct debits for you. The ones you've revoked should obviously no longer appear.

Any company who then attempts to help themselves to your account will get a 'no authorisation' notification from your bank, which usually triggers a postal demand being sent to you, which you can then dispute / pay as appropriate.

exCrumlinBoyo

If I cancelled a DD and it was still coming out of my account for months after I would be running a muck with the bank & the company steeling my money. I would on the phone to the bank asking to speak to the bank manager and I would be onto the company who has my money requesting that it be put back in my account with Interested it would of earned while in my account and a written letter of apology and if it did not happen within 2 - 3 days I would be taking the matter further.

These fookers piss me off when they do that s h i t and I will not let them away with it.

A couple of questions to the original poster.

1. Do you not check your bank account balance regularly. How did it take you 3 months to figure this out ? Do you have more money than you can keep track off ?

2. Any DD that comes from my back account for a particular duration automatically stops when the period is complete. I always double check with the institute with whom I'm paying to make sure that no future payments will come from my account and get it in writing that its finished. What documentation do you have that your payments are finished ?


Man kick their arse and cause them trouble. They know exactly how long and how much they are to take for you. It chancers like them that p i s s me off.

Genghis

Originally posted by exCrumlinBoyo
2. Any DD that comes from my back account for a particular duration automatically stops when the period is complete. I always double check with the institute with whom I'm paying to make sure that no future payments will come from my account and get it in writing that its finished. What documentation do you have that your payments are finished ?

Here's an exercise for you ExCrumlinBoyo. Even though you have written confirmation that particular companies will no longer directly debit your account, I bet that the facility to do so is still in place at your bank. In other words, if tomorrow the insurance company you left in 2001 decides to resume taking money from your bank, they could do so without any hassle from your bank. The facility to 'take variable amounts at variable times' still exists. And just beacuse they say they won't doesn't mean that they can't.

exCrumlinBoyo

Originally posted by Genghis
Here's an exercise for you ExCrumlinBoyo. Even though you have written confirmation that particular companies will no longer directly debit your account, I bet that the facility to do so is still in place at your bank. In other words, if tomorrow the insurance company you left in 2001 decides to resume taking money from your bank, they could do so without any hassle from your bank. The facility to 'take variable amounts at variable times' still exists. And just beacuse they say they won't doesn't mean that they can't.

That's true, but when the amount is paid or your finished paying to a company it should stop regardless if its possible to continue. So what's your point ?

Genghis

My point is that if you want to be completely sure of a direct debit not recurring then you must cancel it at your bank as well. Your advice, though extensive, was incomplete and relied to a large extent on you trusting an institution to do what they say, to not mess up, etc. I personally have experience of paying off a loan, receiving written confirmation of such, and then having the lending bank take another months withdrawal. It becomes a bit of a pain having to chase them up etc to get it back.