Quote:
Originally Posted by murraypaul
It depends on the consumer protection laws in your country.
In the UK, the rules for direct debits (automated withdrawal from main account) are very consumer-friendly.
It either has to be for a fixed amount every month, or the company has to inform you of the amount they plan to withdraw a certain number of days before the withdrawal. You can cancel the plan at any time, and if you dispute any payment your bank will credit you with the disputed amount immediately, then investigate the matter.
We do anything that can be done by direct debit that way, and have never had an incorrect withdrawal. Most companies/utilities offer a discount for direct debit.
Conversely in the UK it is a bad idea to sign up for any recurring payments on a credit card, as they are very hard to cancel if the company claims a payment.
Here, single payments: prefer credit card, recurring payments: prefer direct debit.
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Same here. I pay virtually everything by Direct Debit - it’s by far the easiest way to pay bills.
I only have two bills that vary every month: my credit card and my mobile phone. The credit card company sends me a statement by email a few days before the payment is withdrawn, and the phone company sends me a text message.
The only bill I have to pay manually is my annual tax bill (I run my own business and hence, unlike most people, have to pay tax myself rather than my employer doing it for me!)