Two direct debits taken in a month

[#1]

I am about to have  two direct debits taken this month.  I have been told that a mistake has been made and that I will have the overcharged amount taken off my bill next month.  I have been told that they cannot stop the wrong direct debit being taken as it is already in the system.  If they can take it then why are Plusnet not able to credit it to me straight away?  Why do I have to wait another month?

[#2]

Welcome to the Forum
are they for the same amount?  are you a new customer as one may be the set up fee and one the regular amount
Go to your bank and get it back on the DD Guarantee, but tell PN you have done it
If PN do repay it their archaic system has to wait till they are told the bank has got it then they issue a repay command which adds up to at least 10 days

[#3]

Hi Dorisjohn,
If you'd like us to, we can refund this once it has been taken.
We can either do that, or credit the same amount off your next bill.  Let us know which way you would prefer this to be done and we'll get it sorted for you.

[#4]

Hi Jameseh. 
Please can you arrange for a refund of £16.99 as soon as it has been taken.
Many thanks for your help.

[#5]

As I said above it will take 10 days for you to get it, hope your bank balance can stand it

[#6]

Thanks pierre-pierre.  Still better than another month.

[#7]

Peter - We're doing DD refunds in 3-5 working days.
Dorisjohn - I've updated your ticket and it'll be actioned by our customer services team on Tuesday (when I believe the payment will have reached us).  We'll then issue the refund for you.
I'm sorry that this happened in the first place.

[#8]

You are not the only one!
I just got my Bank Statement today, and dicovered that I had been charged twice this month on two different Invoices one day apart.
Invoice 21960433 and Invoice 21954728
I raised a ticket at Lunchtime but nothing has happened.
No replies means nobody wants to know.
I need the refund.
Why can they not just reply to say we are now looking into this and will stop any further requests for money until it is sorted.
With what they have taken, it means I would not be due to pay again until after the 5th October.
That should be enough time for it to be sorted!
I will go to my Bank on Monday and invoke the Direct Debit Guarantee in the hope that I make sure that Plusnet can not take any more money until this matter is solved.

[#9]

just thinking about JamesH reply, DorisJohn reported it on Friday, James said that account would pick it up on Tuesday and action the refund which may take 5 working days, this takes it up to 30th which is a bank Holiday, so the money will not be in the bank until 31, to me that is 12 banking days

[#10]

Someone finally replied to my question at 12.57 today! It is being investigated.
I am going to get a refund, of one of the Invoices - but you are right Pierre-pierre.
Even though the duplicate payment was taken on the 12th August, and already in Plusnet coffers, I am told my refund will take 5 to 7 days, which will mean no funds until after the Bank Holiday weekend!
What a 'scam' this could be.
Despite the interest rates, if you double up on enough customers direct debits, you could raise an awful lot of Capital by sitting on it for at least a fortnight on each one.
Lots of people wouldl not notice the double billing, and if they do, it could be some time after the money has been taken.
Any statistics on how often these double bills occur?
Perhaps it is just this month, but could well affect a substantial number of other customers.

[#11]

It's worth looking at https://portal.plus.net/my.html?action=view_transactions&s=0 on a day just after the end of your account period - at least you will get advance warning that your bank account is being raided.

[#12]

If the DD is wrong or not authorised, your bank has to refund the money immediately.
If people got better at using the correct mechanisms we might find PN get told to sharpen up or get kicked of the DD network.
Keep lending PN your money whilst they figure out what they are doing if you want, but where is the incentive to get professional?

[#13]

Notably, Plusnet can sometimes stop/correct a direct debit payment before it goes through – but that requires 1. that you spot the error quickly, and 2. that you kick up enough of a stink to compel Plusnet to try hard to sort the problem out, I guess.

[#14]

I'd encourage everybody who is billed incorrectly to immediately request a DD chargeback.
There is no mechanism for partial credit, so effectively PN are forced to re-raise the invoice correctly.
They will cut off your broadband of course, and whether they'll do it automatically or manually appears to be a confused topic amongst Plusnetters, but hey - that might provide enough energy for folks to overcome the inertia.

[#15]

Hi Halterlady and Dorisjohn:
We've identified what's caused this now and are working on a fix to prevent it happening again.  I've published the issue to our portal if you want to track it's progress.    http://www.plus.net/support/service/problems/problem.php?intProblemId=63222
We'll be making sure that any customers affected by it are told and refunded.