Direct Debit UK

The updates related to the stage of an UK direct debit mandate can take the following values: N (new), D (deleted), or M (modified).

For example if a request for payment through an active mandate is denied (a number of times), this is registered in the system and the status of the mandate becomes Deleted. You can also make manual updates - for example when importing a D type direct debit Notification file, you change the status to Deleted, for the specified mandate.

Updates are made and logged for every record through FintechOS standard versioning mechanism. For more details consult the sections below.

In your portal, the Direct Debit Mandates section offers you an overview of the direct debit mandates (UK and SEPA) registered in your system - with the newest activated mandate at the top.

This list also gives you the possibility to search and sort the mandates for easier processing. For example if you want to view all the mandates in Active status - that is mandates from which premiums are paid, you can use the Search by Status option and sort all your mandates accordingly.

Follow the steps below to view the UK direct debit mandates registered into your system:

1. In your FintechOS Portal, navigate down the main menu of the Billing and Collection solution.

2. From the dropdown list, click Direct Debit Mandates to open the Direct Debit Mandates list.

On the Direct Debit Mandates page:

• To inspect a record from the grid, double-click it. The form allows you to see the direct debit mandate related details and its history, in a second tab. See details in the next section, below.

• Mandates cannot be deleted manually.

The UK Direct Debit Mandate Form allows you to inspect, or cancel a mandate. The form is organized as follows:

Direct Debit Mandates Tab

Inside this first section, the following fields are automatically populated with details extracted from the direct debit activation file, coming from the bank and the related policy. These fields are not editable.

Field	Description
Account Holder	The name of the payer.
Bank Sort Code	The bank sort code.
Account Number	The account number used for direct debit payments.
Begin date	The beginning date of the mandate. It is automatically completed with the current date - the date when the direct debit Instructions File (containing the instructions for the current mandate, also) is generated in the system.
Reference	The reference for the payments - policy number.

History Tab

Inside this section, you can see the history of the direct debit record. The system makes updates on a direct debit record through the standard versioning mechanism and logs them in this section, helping you to keep track of every change. These fields are not editable.

Cancel a Direct Debit Mandate

1. Clicking the Cancel mandate button allows you to transition the mandate record into a final state.

NOTE  
Cancellation is irreversible.

2. Once cancelled, the History tab opens and you can check the logging of this final adjustment you made on the mandate.

Below is an example of the History tab of a cancelled UK mandate:

3. Click Save and close.

A direct debit job runs daily in the system, verifying all the policies with direct debit payment type and their payment schedules, for all the insurance products that are in Active status. Where the case, for all the qualifying installments, this job generates invoices and automatically sends to the bank a request for payment in form of a direct debit instruction file containing the invoice details.

The Direct Debit Payment Instruction Files section hosts all your files containing the instructions for direct debit payments generated by the system. You can search inside this repository by File or Date of Generation. You can inspect a record by double-clicking it. If you want to inspect the details inside any Direct Debit Payment Instruction File, you must download the file.

ADDACS Report Description

Once a Direct Debit Instruction (Mandate) has been set up, it might change.

When it does, the Paying Bank reports the change to BACS (Bankers Automated Clearing Service). BACS generates an ADDACS (Automated Direct Debit Amendment and Cancellation Service) report about the changes that were made and sends it to the insurer.

The following are the Reasons which can be received in the ADDACS file, and the corresponding behavior of the Billing and Collection solution:

Code	Mention
0	Instruction cancelled refer to Payer. If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
1	Instruction cancelled by Payer. If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
2	Payer deceased. If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
3	Account transferred to a new Bank or Building Society If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
B	Account closed. If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
C	Account/ Instruction transferred to a different branch of Bank/ Building Society. If this reason is received, then the mandate status is changed to Cancelled.
D	Advance notice disputed. If this reason is received, then no action is taken.
E	Instruction amended. If this reason is received, then update the mandate.
R	Instruction re-instated. If this reason is received, then reactivate the mandate.

NOTE  
An ADDACS report (file) is produced whenever a change is made to the details of an existing Direct Debit Instruction (Mandate).

It is critically important that the correct action is taken in response to an ADDACS report as this will enable the insurer to continue to receive payments. These updates should be acted upon within 3 days of receipt. It is in the best interest of insurers to act quickly on receipt of an ADDACS report, otherwise, it can be risky making incorrect collections and facing indemnity claims, loss of revenue, and damage to organization’s reputation as offering poor customer service.

ADDACS files are emitted by the BACS (Bankers Automated Clearing Service) payment network, the most popular method for sending and receiving business payments in the UK.

The ADDACS Files section contains all the ADDACS files ever imported in the system. The mandates can be accessed from the ADDACS Mandates Grid even if their effective date is in the future. You can search inside this repository by File or Import Date. You can inspect a record by double-clicking it.

Follow the steps below in order to manually import an ADDACS report. See right below:

Import File Instructions

Below is an example of an Import Form:

1. While in the same section, click Insert, at the top right corner of your screen.

2. When the Import Form opens, select your file and then click Import Data.

3. (Optional) Check the second tab of the record, for further details. When you upload an ADDACS file, the system automatically parses the data and displays the findings in the second tab of the ADDACS record. See also the next paragraph that explains how the record is organized.

4. Click Save and close.

Inside any ADDACS report record, the details about the notified mandates are organized as follows:

• The ADDACS File tab - This first tab includes the actual File with the notification (or notifications) for the mandates existing in your system. The Import Date field is completed automatically.

  Below is an example of the first tab for an ADDACS record:

  

• The Direct Debit Mandates tab - This second tab includes a View Mandate button which allows you to visualize the actual mandate record that was updated. When an ADDACS record cancels more than one mandate, the record points to all those mandates that have the reference specified in the ADDACS file. Accordingly, this form displays all the mandates, in the grid, with view buttons next to every one.

  Below is an example of the second tab for an ADDACS record, which informs about different status changes for multiple mandates:

  

ARUDD Report Description

Once a Direct Debit Instruction (Mandate) has been set up, it might fail to deliver payments.

When it does, the Paying Bank reports the change to BACS (Bankers Automated Clearing Service). BACS generates an ARUDD (Automated Return of Unpaid Direct Debits) report about the unpaid premiums and sends it to the insurer.

An ARUDD report (file) is triggered after you have submitted a payments collection file in an attempt to collect from your Payers. It becomes available to insurers one day after Direct Debits are due to be collected. This report contains information about any of the payments that could not be collected.

NOTE  

An ARUDD report (file) is produced whenever a payment failed, for any of your existing Direct Debit Instructions (Mandates).

ARUDD files are emitted by the BACS (Bankers Automated Clearing Service) payment network, the most popular method for sending and receiving business payments in the UK.

The ARUDD Unconfirmed Payments section contains details about all the unconfirmed direct debit payments, registered in the system.

You can search inside this repository by File or Import Date. You can inspect a record by double-clicking it. When the case, you can also manually import a ARUDD file. See right below:

Import File Instructions

Below is an example of an Import Form:

1. While in the same section, click Insert, at the top right corner of your screen.

2. When the Import Form opens, select your file and then click Import Data.

3. (Optional) Check the tabs of the record, for further details. See also the next paragraph that explains how the record is organized.

4. Click Save and close.

Inside any ARUDD File record, the details about the unconfirmed payments are organized as follows:

The first tab - includes the actual File with the unconfirmed payment for a specific mandate and the auto-populated Import Date field.

The second tab - includes a grid containing every denied payment extracted from the imported file. For the case when there are many records listed, you also can search inside this grid by different keywords - such as Reference, Payment amount, Currency, Payer name, and Sort code.

For the new direct debit mandate calls, received through the Generate UK Mandate API, there is a daily job - DIDEUK_Instructions, that is scheduled to generate mandate activation instructions for the BACS system, compliant with the BACS standardized .txt file format. This section holds all the files containing the instructions for the activation of direct debit mandates generated by Billing and Collection solution. This is where you go to check how many new mandates were activated.

You can search inside this repository by File name or Date of Generation. You can inspect a record by double-clicking it.

If you want to inspect the details inside a particular mandate activation request, you must download the file.