Ex Pipxers Beware

[Rik]

I agree with you on that, In. They use the emotional blackmail on us, but neglect to mention (or share) the huge savings they make.

[Si]

Although I caught something on Radio4 this morning with half an ear that sounded like BT offering free evening and weekend calls if you move to electronic billing? Although as I was wrestling with a 16-month-old and a flannel at the time I may be mistaken...

My energy supplier knocks a fiver off a year for going paperless - so I suppose that's a reasonable amount given the processing and postage costs for 4 second-class letters a year.

[Malc]

I'm with Powergen, and like with IDNet there is the option to download and print off an invoice if you need it.

Also they offer a discount if you do this.

[Rik]

BT, I think, now give £1.50/quarter for paperless billing, though they didn't initially, iirc.

[Si]

Yes, you're right, I found the detail on their site - new rate for DD & paper-free from March. Although it's actually £1.50 a month, which is quite reasonable....

[Ann]

Calls with BT are already free evenings and weekends aren't they?  Or 5p for connection and an hour is then free or something.  I think that's it anyway.  I'm only on the plain ol' line rental deal.

[Inactive]

I never know with BT Ann, they change their pricing structure as often as I change my pants.


( That's about once a quarter ).

[Rik]

Is that US-style pants, or UK-style, In? I'm just working out how far away to stand.

[Malc]

Which pants, under or outer

[Simon]

BT, I think, now give £1.50/quarter for paperless billing, though they didn't initially, iirc.

I thought, initially, BT were charging extra not to have paperless billing.  Or was that just not to have a direct debit?  Dunno, haven't been with them for years.

[Lance]

They were charging more for not having a direct debit.

[Simon]

How can a company fine you for not allowing them to debit your bank account as and when they like? 

[Lance]

Something to do with it costing them more to process non DD payments, they claimed!

[Sebby]

It's because it's less work for them if you pay by DD, so they give a discount for paying by this method. The discount must be less than the amount they save by not having to do the work.

[Si]

As a Credit Control manager (NOT for BT I hasten to add!) I can confirm that customers who pay by DD are a fair bit cheaper to administer. Theoretically you don't have the additional chasing letters/calls required for late payers, plus you can improve monthly cash-flow as everyone on DD will, by definition, pay bang on time. As money comes in via the BACS system it also simplifies allocating the cash to accounts, as opposed to cheque payments, and from a supplier point of view is generally a good thing.

Of course as soon as a DD bounces then it's all blown out of the water as you're behind the game and need to spend extra resource recovering the unpaid amount and trying to secure future ones.

Don't forget the direct debit guarantee is quite powerful for the customer - if you tell your bank a payment has been taken that is incorrect in any way the bank must refund you immediately and then take it up with the supplier to recover the money.

Right, I'll stop now - I'm boring myself! 

[Lance]

Thanks for that Simon!

[Rik]

DD rules Rule.

[Inactive]

They do...they do.. 

[Malc]

I'll second that