Direct Debits

[#1]

Can anyone answer why plusnet as a company do not follow the direct debit guarantee. On your website you say and I quote:
The Direct Debit Guarantee
• This guarantee is offered by all Banks and Building Societies that take part in the Direct Debit scheme. The efficiency and security of the Scheme is monitored and protected by your own bank or Building Society.
• If the amounts to be paid or the payment dates change we will notify you 3 working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed.
• If an error is made by us or your Bank or Building Society, you are guaranteed a full and immediate refund from your branch of the amount paid.
• You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by writing to your Bank or Building Society.
Now I have contacted BACS who have advised that the minimum any company can notify of changes is 10 working days and this is the timescale all other companies adhere to. Is there a reason why Plusnet do not?

[#2]

According to BACS:

Quote

How to claim under the Direct Debit Guarantee In the event that an error is made by the organisation or your bank or building society, you are entitled to a full and immediate refund from your bank of the amount paid. Simply contact your bank or building society. They are responsible for refunding the money - even if the original error was made by the organisation collecting the payment. But remember, if you receive a refund you are not entitled to, you must pay it back when the organisation asks you to.

[#3]

Taken from the BACS website:
[quote="http://www.bacs.co.uk/Bacs/Consumers/DirectDebit/HelpCentre/Pages/DirectDebitGuarantee.aspx"]If there are any change to the amount, date or frequency of your Direct Debit the organisation will notify you (normally 10 working days) in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. If you request the organisation to collect a payment, confirmation of the amount and date will be given to you at the time of the request
In otherwords by accepting Plusnets Terms & Conditions you have agreed to a minimum 3 day notification period. The downside of this is that it isnormally  too late in the DD processing system to make any changes to the DD being claimed.

[#4]

My understanding (I'm not a lawyer) is that BACS recommend 10 days rather than it actually being a set minimum.

[#5]

Quote from: Chris

My understanding (I'm not a lawyer) is that BACS recommend 10 days rather than it actually being a set minimum.

The email I got from BACS says:

Good evening,
Thank you for your email with regards to your question the minimum period is 10 working days plus postal time for any changes made, dates funds etc.
Kind regards.
Name Removed
BACS Service Desk Analyst
VocaLink
+44 (0) 870 165 0018
Email: servicedesk@bacsservices.co.uk
I will advise bacs of plusnets policy to clarify further.

[#6]

I would also add that the response you received is different to what BACS features on their website which is what I quoted in my earlier post.

[#7]

Yes I seen that on their website. I do think they should make it clearer.

[#8]

I'll feed this back and make sure we are showing the most appropriate information with regards to this.