Students be "smart", paying by Direct Debit can save money!

Research from Bacs reveals discounts available for paying by Direct Debit plus meet Becky Smart at www.thesmartwaytopay.co.uk/student-life

Latest research from Bacs suggests that student households could save up to £158* per year and individuals more than £100** a year, just by choosing to pay regular household and personal bills by Direct Debit.

The savings span a whole heap of bills including mobile phone, gym and magazine subscriptions, gas, electricity, broadband and landline telephone. They also highlight just one of the benefits of paying by Direct Debit - that it can actually help save money!

In addition, a brand new student character, Becky Smart, has been created to illustrate how Direct Debit can help improve financial management. She empathises with students who have just got their A level results because like them she has left home and is getting used to taking control of her own finances. Over the next year, Becky will be trying out her independence in a room in halls of residence and is set to go through the financial trials and tribulations of being a student.

To find out what she is up to throughout the year and for handy hints and tips on student finances visit www.thesmartwaytopay.co.uk/student-life

Direct Debit can also make the cost of university more manageable. Students or parents can spread the cost of regular payments such as tuition, accommodation and monthly living expenses by paying in instalments. All that's needed is five minutes to set the transaction up and an additional five minutes each month to check that you are happy with the collection date and money due to be deducted.

For further information regarding Direct Debit please visit www.thesmartwaytopay.co.uk

Handy student hints and tips to save money from Becky Smart: Talk to friends online or via email to save money on your phone bill Do a weekly food shop instead of buying snack foods or eating out Buy your books second hand or study in the library Look at online forums where past students often give great money saving advice and tell you what scams to avoid! Annual magazine subscriptions ultimately save money and it's always great to get post! Look into annual payments such as gym, society and club membership fees and see if you can spread the cost by Direct Debit. You may even get a discount!

* Student household savings

Student household bill savings	Saving (£)
Combined gas and electricity (npower)	80.00
Broadband/Digital TV (Virgin Media)	60.00
Landline telephone (BT)	18.00
Total	£158

References to Direct Debit discounts can be found on the following sites:

npower duel fuel:
Taken from http://www.npower.com/stoppress/
Our discount has just been increased to £80 when you take both suels from npower. Take your electricity and gas from npower, paying by monthly Direct Debit throughout the year and you'll receive our recently improved £80 annual discount.

Broadband/digital:
Taken from http://allyours.virginmedia.com/html/existingcustomers/billingfaq.html

What are my options for paying my bill?
Direct Debit - the cheapest and easiest way to pay for your Virgin Media services is Direct Debit. You'll save money as other methods of payment are subject to a separate payment handling charge of £5 per month by Virgin Media Payments Limited. You will still receive your monthly bill five working days in advance of the payment being requested from your bank. This means that you can check your monthly statements prior to your payment going out. Our Direct Debit Guarantee promises you a full refund if Virgin Media Payments Ltd makes a mistake.

Landline telephone:
Taken from www2.bt.com/static/i/microsite/help_and_tips/payments/faq/about_payments.htm/#faq11

What is a payment processing fee?
from 1 May 2007, BT Payment Services Ltd, a separate BT Group company, is introducing a payment processing fee for customers who do not pay their telephone bills by Direct Debit or Monthly Payment Plan as all other methods of payment cost BT more to process. Customers not on a Direct Debit or Monthly Payment Plan by the time of their next bill will be charged a discrete payment processing fee of £1.50 (for monthly billed customers) or £4.50 (for quarterly billed customers). You can avoid the new payment processing fee if you sign up to Direct Debit or Monthly Payment Payment Plan. Visit www.bt.com/payments. Please note: these changes don't apply to customers on a special scheme such as in Contact Plus, the Light Use Scheme and Pay & Call.


** Individual household savings

Individual regular bill savings	Saving (£)
Mobile phone	36.00
University gym subscription	60.00
IPC magazine subsciption to Now Magazine	14.08
National Trust membership	4.87
Total	£114.97

References to Direct Debit discounts can be found on the following sites:

Mobile phone:
Based on T-Mobile £3 monthly charge for not using Direct Debit = £36
http://www.t-mobile.co.uk/personal/pages.do/our-services/internet-on-the-move/what-it-costs

University gym subscription:
Example used is a discount for students using Hull County Council facilities further information can be found at: http://www.hullcc.gov.uk/portal/page?_pageid=221,89152&_schema=PORTAL. Students should enquire at their universities regarding payment for gym fees by Direct Debit.

IPC magazine subscription:
IPC Media offer a discount of £3.52 for paying for a subscription to Now Magazine by Direct Debit over three months. Therefore annually a household can save up to £14.08. Please log on to http://www.magazinesubscriptionsipc.com/ipcshop.trolley.asp

National Trust membership:
Student membership paid annually by Direct Debit is £14.65 compared to £19.50 by other payments methods. Please visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk

For more information about Bacs and our services visit Bacs key facts.

Contact Bacs press office.

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