Can they charge me for a late payment?

My bank have been playin silly buggers and not updating my aco**** so leaving me to believe i have money in my bank when i dont. Therefore leaving me with no money for my car insurance.

I have tried to call Swinton but when i got back from the bank they were closed, and they shut at 1pm today and i couldnt call (as im managing a pub until the owner gets back, and was working from 11-2 until the staff calls in)

Basically, they will try get the money again on monday, and the money isnt in the bank (as the bank decided t charge me) so il once again be charged from the bank..

I was wondering if there is a charge il get from my car insurance company? as i have tried to cancel the direct debit since i found out but cant get in touch with them, theyre not open tomoro.

All these charges for late payment, be they £2 or £200, are reclaimable as unlawful, unless they can prove that it actually cost that much to process your late payment. You can reclaim the charges the bank has levied for upaid bills back from the bank itself; anything that Swinton charge you is exactly the same. Have a read of the bank charges FAQs to get a better idea of the legislation behind it, then start another thread in the relevant banking forum to get an idea of how your bank likes to play ball. Keep this one updated if Swinton does charge you.

Demon, you are correct in saying that you can claim the returned D/D fees from the bank, however I am not so sure for the car insurance company.

I don't believe that they have charges for re-submitting the D/D, if they do then you could try and get them back. However, your main concern is that this is now the 2nd returned D/D and you may have your car insurance cancelled from the date of the last payment (month prior to this). This means that you could find yourself un-insured.

The car insurance company could then charge you a cancellation fee which I don't believe is refundable as they need to contact the Motor Insurance Bureau and back date the cancellation (the ones the police and c/c cameras have access to) and there is work involved with this which in turn justifies their cancellation charges.

Your best bet is to phone them up first thing on Monday morning (might be open Sunday) and explain the situation. Unfortunately, the onus is on the insurer to have funds in the bank, and the insurance company are simply following your D/D instructions. Try and get to the bank if possible and ensure that money is in the account.

The good news though is that you can claim the bank charges back. Unfortunately there is some work involved and you won't see that money for another couple of months though.

Good luck.

I made no reference to getting back returned DDs from Swinton. I specifically referred to late payment charges if made by Swinton.

Ah ok, demon. I doubt that an insurance company will apply late payment charges though. Tends to be 2 strikes and its cancelled.

Thank you for that helpful information.