Increasing Direct Debit Amount Without Prior Notice

rb25

Hi.

I've been paying for Sky TV for the last 5 years or so. During that time it has gone from 56 to 58 to 59 and now to 61.

This payment is in the form of a direct debit from my bank account.

The only payment I have authorised is the initial payment of 56 euro when I set up the direct debit. Since then I have never received prior notice to any increase in the direct debit amount. They just seem to be allowed to increase it to whatever they wish automatically.

Could somebody give me some information on the legal situation here around direct debits?

Are they within their rights to increase the amount to whatever they want without prior consent?

If so, does this apply to all direct debits or are there different types?

Ludo

That is kinda the point of direct debits. They can vary every month. It is handy for bills that vary such as gas, electricity, etc, etc.
You authorised this when you signed up for the direct debit. And sky do always notify of these price changes..at least I have always been notified anyway.
Standing orders are for a set amount every payment and can only be altered by the person paying the money.

jamesbondings

i have been informed each time by letter, have you moved home at all or not receiving post for any reason?

rb25

I didn't know this. I chose to pay by direct debit a contract amount. They changed the contract amount without notifying me.

I didn't realise that DD implies it can be increased without prior consent.

Thanks for replying.

rb25

jamesbondings wrote: »

i have been informed each time by letter, have you moved home at all or not receiving post for any reason?

No. Still the same address as when I signed up for it.

ManMade

OP I think you're thinking of a standing order.

rb25

ManMade wrote: »

OP I think you're thinking of a standing order.

Yes. It's time to cut off the parasites. Cancelling it tomorrow. They don't allow cancelling it online it seems.

Cedrus

A Direct Debit authorises a vendor to debit your account directly, they send their bill to your bank not to you.

dudara

Moved to Banking & Insurance & Pensions

dudara

coylemj

rb25 wrote: »

I've been paying for Sky TV for the last 5 years or so. During that time it has gone from 56 to 58 to 59 and now to 61.

OP, are you maybe over-reacting a bit here?

€56 to €61 is an 8.9% increase which over 5 years represents an annual increase of 1.73% (compounded), I'd hardly call that excessive.

As mentioned by other posters, a DD allows the utility to submit variable amounts, otherwise they'd need you to sign a new mandate every time the amount changed.

chris85

rb25 wrote: »

Yes. It's time to cut off the parasites. Cancelling it tomorrow. They don't allow cancelling it online it seems.

I would be more inclined to ring Sky and ask about the increase. They are entitled to change the DD amount based on the services they have provided. The root cause of this is that the price of the TV package has gone up and you should ask them why rather than just cancelling a DD.

Legislator

The fundamentals of direct debit allows Originators debit varying amounts from a bank account based on a instruction provided by the payer / debtor.

Advance notice of the amount and the date of debiting are an absolute must.
In this instance Sky must advise the customer if the amount is changing and in effect these are unauthorised transactions.

Legislator

Legislator wrote: »

The fundamentals of direct debit allows Originators debit varying amounts from a bank account based on a instruction provided by the payer / debtor.

Advance notice of the amount and the date of debiting are an absolute must.
In this instance Sky must advise the customer if the amount is changing and in effect these are unauthorised transactions.

But they do. They always provide notice in writing for any price increases. So it is authorised.

Legislator

Karsini wrote: »

But they do. They always provide notice in writing for any price increases. So it is authorised.

In this case they didnt provide advance notice of the new amount,so they are unauthorised.

Legislator

Legislator wrote: »

In this case they didnt provide advance notice of the new amount,so they are unauthorised.

They notified me.

Legislator

Karsini wrote: »

They notified me.

They didnt notify RB2, whose post I was responding to.

F1ngers

rb25 wrote: »

Yes. It's time to cut off the parasites. Cancelling it tomorrow. They don't allow cancelling it online it seems.

I wouldn't go cancelling the DD straight away - you have to give sky 30 days notice to terminate your contract, then you will not have to worry about them taking your €61.

Antho1966

Legislator is right.

You have to be notified in advance of any increase in dd.

If not you may not have suffiecent funds in your account to meet same.

This is usually done through correspondence, letter etc and is usually in written form.

Companies that change dds month by month e.g. utility co's send your invoice at least 3-4 weeks beforehand.

This gives you loads of time to ensure you are able to meet dd.

If you receive an esb bill before Christmas and it is underestimated, your next bill may be meter read and you may have problems dealing with this ( cold weather etc ) you have time to deal with co and may reduce this payment and make this underpayment in next dd.

Legislator

F1ngers wrote: »

I wouldn't go cancelling the DD straight away - you have to give sky 30 days notice to terminate your contract, then you will not have to worry about them taking your €61.

You may have to give 30 days notice to termintae your contarct but you can cancel your DD at any time.

Antho1966

Legislator

Again correct.

Dds can be can be cancelled at any time.

I do not know op's full facts but if dd is cancelled, Sky or any co. worth their salt will be in contact straight away to see what the problem is and in these times no one likes to lose a customer.

I have heard of deals being done like 1/2 price for six months etc

I cancelled a dd last week due to ongoing dispute and now they are threatening me with debt collectors etc.

I will not be naming said co. but amateurs?????

rb25

Thanks for all the advice.

I didn't cancel it yet. But I was never notified of any increase. I was getting their Sky TV booklet every month but that also stopped arriving.

I haven't had a letter or any form of correspondence from them about an increase in the DD.

galwayjohn89

rb25 wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice.

I didn't cancel it yet. But I was never notified of any increase. I was getting their Sky TV booklet every month but that also stopped arriving.

I haven't had a letter or any form of correspondence from them about an increase in the DD.

Give them a ring and check they have the right address still. We got letters about the increase so they did send them out.