© 2024 Banking & Payments Federation Ireland. All rights reserved.
Payments
Direct Debits & Standing Orders
What is the difference between Direct Debits and Standing Orders?
A Direct Debit is an instruction from your business to a third party authorising them to collect payments from your account as a payment falls due. The amount taken from your account by Direct Debit may vary from payment to payment or it may be for a fixed amount. A Direct Debit is usually used for payment arrangements that your business may have with your insurance company, phone company provider, broadband provider, utility provider, the Revenue Commissioners, fuel card, toll bridge etc
A Standing Order is an instruction you give to your bank to pay a fixed amount at regular intervals to a third party e.g., if you have a loan repayment or rent, this may be agreed at a set amount for a set period of time.
Can I change over all my Direct Debits in “one go” through my bank?
If you choose not to avail of the switching process, you will need to contact each company that you have a Direct Debit arrangement with and provide them with your new account details.
If you choose to avail of the switching service, your existing provider will notify the companies you have a direct debit arrangement with (except for non-Republic of Ireland Direct Debit originators). However, you should still contact each company to make sure your new account details are updated on their system.
Can I get a list of the Direct Debits and Standing Orders on my account from my bank?
Yes – your existing provider will give you a list of all the Direct Debits and Standing Orders on your account. You may be able to access it through your providers online banking services. You should check this list to ensure that the details are correct.
To ensure that any payments on your account continue to be paid after your close your existing account, you will need to contact each company that you have a Direct Debit payment arrangement with. You should contact any company you have a Direct Debit arrangement with by logging on to their website or by contacting the company by phone or email. These details should be available on any correspondence you receive from these companies or online.
Is there anything else I need to think about?
It is important that you ensure any DDs, SOs and recurring card payments that you may have with your existing provider are updated with your new provider and any companies that you pay in these ways. This is to ensure that your bills, including any loans, credit cards, overdrafts etc. that you may have, continue to be paid and that there are no missed payments reported to the Central Credit Register (CCR) and therefore, no impact on your credit rating.
More information can be found on the CCR website here.
Payments into my Business Account
Do I need to give all those paying money into my account my new details? How do I do this?
Yes – anyone who makes a payment into your account should be notified of your new account details.
BE CAREFUL –
Companies will likely ask you for your new BIC and IBAN, but you should not be asked for your PIN number or password, and if you are, you should never provide it.
Payments out of my Business Account
At a time when large numbers of businesses will be changing moving their accounts, businesses should be particularly aware of ‘Invoice re-direction fraud’ which occurs when a business receives a fraudulent email claiming to be from an existing supplier/creditor. The fraudster advises that the bank details for the payment of future invoices should be changed or requests that a payment should be made into a certain account. These approaches can be made over the telephone, by letter, and by email.
BE CAREFUL –
You should verify all requests purporting to be from your creditors, especially if they are asking you to change their bank details for future invoices. You should do this by phoning a known contact – do not use the contact details on the letter/email requesting the change.
