Direct Debit for SMEs

Direct Debit presents the simplest and most secure solution for your business to get you paid on time, every time. Instead of chasing monies owed, you can dedicate more time to running your business.

Chances are, as a small to medium sized business, you’ve applied to your bank for a Service User Number (SUN) but were turned down, or strung along for months only to be disappointed. We can provide you with a fast, simple alternative to applying for and managing your Direct Debits yourself, and the good news is you could be set up with us in six days.

Streamlining your Direct Debit collections

Direct Debit is the safest and most convenient method for your clients or customers to pay you. At every stage, both your and their data is protected behind firewalls and stored in dual-located servers, while your transactions become automated and the customer is protected by the Direct Debit Guarantee in the event of any problem.

We make setting up with us completely straightforward, although beware fairytale stories you may have heard regarding how quickly it can be done. Some competitors will tell you they can set up your account in 24 hours, but for it to be handled in the correct way we advise our customers to allow a period of 6-21 days from your initial payment.

As a leader in the Direct Debit industry, we take our due diligence seriously when we introduce new clients to our services. If the sign-up is not handled properly, then the result can be clients who do not fully understand their Direct Debit arrangements, or for whom Direct Debit was not the best solution.

Providing you with the most suitable and efficient Direct Debit service for your business, and following up with reliable and helpful customer support is our top priority.

You will find that our secure online portal is secure with excellent functionality that enables you to simply enter details for the customer, the amount to be debited, and when. This could be weekly, monthly, a one-off payment, or an initial larger payment followed by lesser instalments.

If you have your own SUN, then Direct Debit payments will be sent straight to your bank account. If your payments are processed with a SUN that we have obtained, then funds will have to arrive in our bank account before they can be paid on to you.

We have always strived to make turnaround time for your payments as brief as possible, and in the past have led the way in cutting the time between your cash arriving in our account and us being able to transfer it to you. Five years ago, it was 5 days, then we managed to reduce it to 3 days and then more recently to just 2 days. Each time, other Direct Debit companies have followed suit, but only after we had taken the first steps.

As soon as our Direct Debit system is operative, you will have access 24/7 and automatically receive reports of all transactions, including any failures and of course any cancellations, enabling you to follow up straight away. A customer who feels a problem is being dealt with as soon as possible could be a customer retained, or at the very least a valuable source of feedback.

Fair and flexible pricing

No two businesses are the same, and so neither are their Direct Debit needs. As we work with you on a personal level to provide a bespoke service to suit your systems and your level of payments, we will only be able to give you an accurate price for the costs once we have had a chance to talk it over and understand your requirements.

Arranging a Direct Debit facility is not something that can be done purely online, and we actively encourage all our clients and potential customers to talk to us on the phone. We’ve found that it helps to build closer relationships, and makes our customer service that much more effective.

Many customer support teams today hide behind online support forms or chat-bots. We are bucking this trend, and you can be assured that whenever you have an issue with your Direct Debits, a member of our team will always be on the other end of the phone.

Managed Direct Debits are where we assume responsibility for the transactions on your behalf, but you and the customer are still in control.

You might have been unable to obtain a Service User Number (SUN) yourself, or have found that the process to get one through your bank is exhaustive and could take far too long. Through our Managed Direct Debit service, we are able to offer you an efficient and convenient solution that can get you ready in days rather than months.

Enabling your customers to pay quickly and easily

With Managed Direct Debit, London & Zurich are provided the SUN through our own sponsor bank, and we use only this specific SUN for all your transactions. Your account is branded so that your company name will appear and your customers will be easily able to reference their payments. With some Direct Debit companies, that might mean their name will appear on your customers’ bank statements, causing a little confusion and a disconnect between their purchase and your brand.

In effect, we assume the role of the bank, and provide the sponsorship for your company, by virtue of our own sponsorship. Funds must first arrive in our bank account before we can turn the payment around to you, but you can usually expect the cash to arrive two days after the transfer. We have also taken steps to reduce the time between purchase and bank account credit.

Managed Direct Debit can be particularly useful for smaller businesses who are changing their billing and collection methods for regular, repeat payments, and non-profit organisations such as charities.

We keep you running in a crisis

In the unfortunate event of your infrastructure experiencing damage or a failure, our system enables your business to continue unaffected. If you experience a fire or power cut, or a compromise to your premises or network, our off-site and fully backed-up systems will carry on collecting your Direct Debit payments and maintaining your cash flow, keeping you afloat and avoiding issues with customers, suppliers and staff.

We have the agility, the backing and the buying power to provide you with a prestige platform for processing your Direct Debit collections, backed up by an unrivalled personal approach to customer service. Talk to us, and we could get you set up to receive Direct Debits in 6 days.

Do you have your own SUN and want learn more about our Bureau Direct Debit practice? Click here.