bt telephone bills

[bah89]

On checking back-dated BT telephone bills, I have noticed that since July 2007 I have been charged �4.50 by BT for them to process payment of my bill.
So I'm paying them to pay my bill??? how does this work exactly - does anyone know? and is this legal?
Barbara

[buildersmate]

It's because you are not on Direct Debit. This was somehow subtly added a year ago into the T&Cs.
Must have been subtle as I don't often miss this things. I got caught too in the first quarter.
Think of it as a price rise, with an identical discount for being on DD. I'm sure that is the BT position.

[Ethel]

Pay by DD and save �4.50 a month,

It is legal - it has been discussed on programmes such as Watchdog. A lot of utility companies surcharge this way.

[puddicat]

old news they want everyone on direct debit!, i pay online paperless billing but will still get billed this should be outlawed and customers reimbursed!!!

[JCL53]

It may be legal but as far as I am concerned it's legalised theft
We pay on line as the previous poster states, paperless billing .
I really don't see why we should be dictated to by big companies as to how we pay our bills (as long as we pay them ).
What about people who don't have a bank account ?
We've argued the toss with BT over this but you get nowhere.

[buildersmate]

Same story JCL. I was also on paperless billing so assumed the �4.50 charge didn't apply. But I wasn't on DD. Failure to read the small print.

[JCL53]

They argued to us that it was extra charge was for administration and so on with the amount of work caused to administer cheques and so forth.Yes ,some do still pay by cheque ! And that is their privilege to do so in my book without having to cough up extra.
I cannot see how BT can encounter any administration problems with on line payments either because it's all done automatically by electronic transfer .
My elderly neighbour for example pays by cheque so they are getting another eighteen quid a year out of him .He doesn't want direct debits on a small fixed income .I would leave BT if I didn't need their land line for making international calls on my 1363 number .
I don't know what has happened to freedom of choice
There is a petition you can sign

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/BTCHARGES/i ndex.html

[Ethel]

You have got freedom of choice - pay by DD or pay the extra �4.50

A lot of shops no longer accept cheques.

I like DD - if anything happens and I can't be at home, I'm in hospital for example, I don't have to worry about paying my bills.

[puddicat]

Ok ethel what happened too freedom of choice, only direct debit peeps get away with no penaltys, alot of elderly dont do direct debit they pay when a bill comes in and why should we be penalised,because bt say otherwise!!!!

[gina32]

wizaed i was going to say the same, and thats per month. ethel, what happens if you dont have the sort of bank account that accepts dd. its a con and not fair.

[pastafreak]

I investigated paying by DD with BT a year or so ago.....I would actually have ended up paying MORE on monthly DD than I was on quarterly over the course of a year !!

[ChuckFickens]

HUH.... Ethel, I rarely disagree with you and you offer great advice, but.....

You have got freedom of choice - pay by DD or pay the extra �4.50

so it's do this or pay a fine, thats not freedom of choice

the freedom you do have is to pay somebody else for your phone line.

and JCL53 look into voip if your making a lot of international calls

[gina32]

bt make enough profit as it is without getting even more out of people