February 08, 2012 05:30 AM Eastern Time
LONDON--()--The first fundamental change to the way Direct Debits can be set up and managed in 40 years has been launched today. The new service from Cashplus® provides consumers with cheaper, transparent and easier to manage alternatives to traditional banking. Cashplus® could save customers more than £400million a year as it doesn’t charge penalties if Direct Debit payments would send the account into overdraft.
Cashplus’ new Direct Debit service has a number of unique benefits, including:
- Low balance alerts – If it looks like a Direct Debit is going to bounce, Cashplus® will alert you by SMS and email before the payment is due
- Instant loans for just 50p a day – If you don’t have the money, Cashplus® offer a loan up to £1,000 to guarantee your bill is paid on time
- No penalty fees (Debit Protect) – If a Direct Debit can’t go through Cashplus® won’t hurt your pockets further by imposing a penalty
Already trialled with over 100,000 existing customers, Cashplus® is likely to appeal to a wide range of people. It is particularly attractive to those without bank accounts who, until now, have not been able to access the discounts that many companies offer to customers paying by Direct Debit.
To mark the launch, between 8th February and 31st March, Cashplus® customers who set up and pay a Direct Debit via their Cashplus® account will be entered into a prize draw, the lucky winner having their rent or mortgage paid for a year (up to £10,000).
Richard Wagner, Cashplus® CEO said; “A common reason for people getting into debt is that a Direct Debit bounces, sometimes simply because another payment hasn’t gone through. The bank then imposes a penalty, as high as £24, which puts the customer further into the red and into a spiral of debt as more payments then can’t be met, just at a time when money is tightest.
“We have built this product by talking to customers and trying to address the complaints they have about banks and financial institutions. We believe this new service is truly unique. One of our key drivers has been to make all our costs completely transparent, so although the account is not ‘free’ the actual cost, taking account of typical penalties paid by bank customers, is small.”
To out more and enter the prizedraw go to: www.facebook.com/cashplus.
