topic Re: £50 Roaming deposit in Contracts & Billing

£50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 12:59:23 GMT

Hi Guys!
Joined today - checking My EE I noticed the first bill was £64 - £14 tariff and £50 roaming deposit.

I rang up and the lovely person I spoke to says they have removed the roaming charge after asking me if it was something I needed - I assume this turns off roaming on the account?

She did say the bill amount won't change but they will only try to collect £14 on the 28th when the DD is due - should I take her on her word or make sure there are funds to cover the £64 just in case!
I am assuming if the full amount is taken in error they will refund?

Thanks in advance.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

XRaySpeX — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 13:28:29 GMT

It'll be safer to cover the £64 as once a bill is issued the DD is auto set in motion for the bill amount.

The £50 roaming deposit will be refunded in your next month's bill.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 13:30:27 GMT

Thanks for the reply - I was thinking the same, better safe than sorry - don't want to get the new contract off to a bad start!!

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

XRaySpeX — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 14:26:24 GMT

Thanks! You're welcome 🙂 ! Glad I could be of assistance & hope it soon gets sorted.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Thu, 28 Jul 2022 10:25:08 GMT

Just for reference for anyone else in this position - the DD was taken today and they took the £14 not £64.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

Kimberley1988 — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 13:40:53 GMT

I’m a brand new customer and had the same thing come up on my first bill! Hoping they don’t take the £50, as they have said it’s been removed…

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 17:53:19 GMT

As long as you've contacted them in plenty of time before the DD is due it should be fine - if your DD is due within 3 days I would make sure the £50 is in the account then get them to refund it. Direct Debits work in a similar way to BACS payments they take 3 days to process and if you're within the the 3 days before it's due they won't be able to change the amount - if not you should be fine if my experience is anything to go by.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

Kimberley1988 — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 18:45:06 GMT

Thanks for the reply. They have set the direct debit to come out on the 24th September, I had them remove the £50 over the phone yesterday (17th) so fingers crossed I’m in time then 🙂

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 18:50:51 GMT

The DD will be put in motion on the 22nd so you should be fine - it will be taken on the 26th as the 24th is a Saturday. I bank with Starling, they give you a days notice of Direct Debits coming out so if you have an account with a similar feature keep an eye open

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

XRaySpeX — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 18:54:40 GMT

@Kimberley1988 : When is your billing date? That is when the DD is set in motion, usually a week before your payment date.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

Kimberley1988 — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 18:55:03 GMT

Ok will keep an eye thanks. It’s bad really that they just add it on without asking!

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

djbdane — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 19:03:15 GMT

A direct debit is essentially a BACS payment in reverse (they both use the same system) - they follow the 3 day process a BACS payment does - they are processed on day 1, sent to the other bank on day 2, and the money is transferred on day 3. Which is why some banks can tell you a direct debit is coming out the next day and for what amount. So the balance on the account on the day the process starts is what the direct debit will be for - as my experience shows - the exception to this would be if EE put the direct debits in when the bill is generated, and then set the processing date to fit in with the DD due date (the 3 days cycle) but this isn't the case as my experience shows - the £50 was removed after the bill was generated and they only took £14 which was correct.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

XRaySpeX — Sun, 18 Sep 2022 19:46:56 GMT

That 3 day process, if it exists at all, may very well start when the DD arrives at the paying bank but it ignores:

EE's own internal processing & admin. time from the date the bill is posted until actually presenting the DD to the paying bank.
EE setting the processing date, as you say, to fit in with the DD due date as agreed & notified to its custs.

It also contradicts the DD Guarantee which includes:

If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your Direct Debit the organisation will notify you (normally 10 working days) in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed.

EE makes it their business to always inform users by dint of their bill of a DD being taken regardless of whether or not there are changes to the amount, date or frequency of the DD.

My BB DD, which never has any changes to to the amount, date or frequency, is always taken about 2 weeks after I get the bill, e.g. Bill 28/07/22 > DD taken 11/08/22 = 14 days. I understand for mobile bills it will be about 7 calendar days.

Anyway a DD is not BACS. Even with BACS there needn't be any old-fashioned 3-day presentation process. Most banks now manage to action an eBanking BACS payment immediately or within the hour.

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

Lauxavi08 — Sun, 20 Nov 2022 16:31:00 GMT

I suppose to get this money back after my sixth payment and still nothing

Re: £50 Roaming deposit

Katie_B — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 07:50:43 GMT

Good morning @Lauxavi08.

Thanks for coming to the community.

I am sorry to hear you have not yet received a refund for your Roaming deposit.

Do you require Roaming to be active at the moment?

If not, you could give our customer care team a call on 150 who will be able to remove the service for you and request a refund of your deposit.

Katie 🙂