3 payment attempts

[pbainbridge]

I have made 3 attempts to pay my bill on 3 days. Each time payment is declined but has been taken from my bank account. My phone services were suspended but after chatting with someone this morning I now have my services reinstated but I’m refusing to pay my bill till the money is returned ! My question is how long will it take for the money to bounce back as I have £240 floating around somewhere & I really can’t afford to have it floating around. You try and pay your bill and they make it so difficult 

[AnnS]

Hi @pbainbridge

If there has been an error at the bank and the same amount has been debited from your account three times, you need to take this up with your bank.

Vodafone will most probably only claim the one payment with the other two payments being unclaimed by the merchant and returned to your available balance within a few days.

A further reason for contacting your bank will be with your card, there may well be a restriction on the card and this is something the bank will need to clear.

[pbainbridge]

I used 2 different cards, 2 different banks and each time I had the same message that the payment couldn’t be processed. I tried 1 payment on the 29/09, 1 payment on the 02/10 and then another this morning as I wanted to get my outstanding balance sorted. It’s not the banks problem it’s Vodafone  

[Anonymous]

Yes it's Vodafone's flaky IT systems, but speak to your bank anyway - you may find the money has been ringfenced but hasn't actually gone anywhere. If not, then you'll have proof positive they've taken it. Beware that refusing to pay won't cause any action other than a payment default - you can't embarrass/shame a computer. 

Of course paying by direct debit can avoid this kind of problem. To be fair, It can also introduce other problems you don't currently have. 

[hrym]

Hang on for the forum team, who'll be able to get to the bottom of this.  Failed payments can indeed often be banks being suspicious of payment to mobile phone companies but, if the money has gone (and isn't simply ring-fenced), it's not that.

If it's at the Vodafone end, it could be that the payment system isn't connecting to your account correctly for some reason and there should be a system log that'll show that.

[John]

@pbainbridge We'd like to take a look into your account in more depth - we'll be able to check on what's happening with your payment.
I've sent you a private message with details on how to get in touch.