I wonder...
If it will also cover exorbitant charges for exceeding a previously-undisclosed FUP limit?
Telecoms companies must be clearer about additional charges they levy and must help customers to understand them better, telecoms regulator Ofcom has said. From April Ofcom will take action against any that do not comply with newly-clarified rules, it said. Telecoms contracts must comply with the Unfair Terms in Consumer …
"Actually, you can skip the 'quartered', never really saw the point in it."
It helps with storage.
"Direct debit is not right for everyone, so why do i pay so much for wanting to simply get a bill and pay it."
I'm not saying the fee is reasonable, but I always understood it as being the extra man power required to process one off payments every month and the increased risk of missed/late payments over an automated DD. They basically want to encourage you to use DD as much as possible.
The Register's editorial seems clear on the principle involved "Telecoms contracts must comply with the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations".
But the URL linked OFCOM leaflet for consumers is devoid of any detail that's helpful.
Take a simple point, about BT that OFCOM refused to address.
Payment by Direct Debit to BT using BT's bankers, costs BT more in charges that payment by Direct Credit to BT using their bankers. There's no secret about this, banks publish their charges, and for BT's bank the charges for Direct Credit are about one third the charges for Direct Debit. The BT costs of producing a bill, and processing the payment internally after receipt of payment from their bank, are the same for Direct Credit and Direct Debit.
But although payment by Direct Credit costs BT about one third the cost of bank payment charges by Direct Debit, BT chose to start to surcharge their customers by £4.50 for paying by Direct Credit.
Obviously this is in breach of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations, so BT think that they have circumvented the Regulations by creating a fiction: that payment by Direct Credit is to a separate company, despite the fact that the payment continues to be made to the same BT bank account that was used before this separate company was created, in order that a £4.50 charge could be "justified".
I actually pay earlier using Direct Credit than the payment date specified under Direct Debit T&C, in order to make sure payment clears before the due date. Anyone paying late under Direct Credit can incur a late payment fee, that I don't object to provided BT have sent a timely bill. So when I pay by Direct Credit BT incurs lower charges, gets paid earlier, and can if necessary recoup late payment costs; but still insists on a £4.50 additional fee. It's a rip-off, in breach of the Regulations.
OFCOM said to me that BT's action was justified and in line with similar telco's. They denied the £4.50 charge for payment by Direct Credit was in breach of the Regulations.
Can anyone supply a copy of the actual OFCOM "newly-clarified rules" for telcos, please?
Why do people always whinge about BT and their non direct debit payment processing fee?
All the other telecommunication companies charge a payment fee. Virgin charge £5 a month for not paying by direct debit. BT charge £1.50 a month.
Vodafone charge me for wanting a paper bill!!
Stop whinging about BT and whinge about them ALL!!
and quite right too. It sucks.
My bank account is my bloody bank account, and I don't usually have enough floating around in it to let greedy companies help themselves when they will, no matter how much more convenient it may be for -them-. They should just work out the total cost of collecting the cash and stick the appropriate amount onto every bill, rather than advertising a price they won't honour if customers prefer a bit of control over their own meagre stash. Like they used to. And I ain't just talking telcos.
Uh, if this weren't about BT but some other company that has a non-DD fee (and the ~1.5% for CC transactions doesn't count, you wanker, because the CC companies charge ~2% per transaction to the merchant) then we would be complaining about DD from them.
Or should we only complain about something if we complain about EVERYONE who does it? If so, then don't complain about terrorist attacks from Muslims until you're complaining about terrorist attacks from Asians, Caucasians, Christians and all the other people who undertake terrorist attacks. This should help clear up the debates, yes?
Tit.
As the broadband market gets tougher they try to have as many hidden costs as possible whilst supplying you with the least amount of service possible whilst making it look like they are supplying the most service.
The answer is simply, pay decent money for your broadband from a niche company.