DebiCheck will protect you from unauthorised debit orders come 1 May

System will help you have more control over who takes money from your bank and when.

Image: iStock

DebiCheck will protect you from debit order scams by giving you control over debit orders offered for payment against your bank account and not a moment too soon as debit order abuse has become a major issue.

Many consumers use it already, but according to a SA Reserve Bank (Sarb) directive no new, extended or renegotiated Authenticated Early Debit Order (AEDO) or Non-Authenticated Early Debit Order (NAEDO) collection agreements may be concluded on the debit order system from Saturday 1 May.

Why DebiCheck?

While debit orders are a convenient way to pay accounts, some companies have been processing invalid debit orders without consent, while some consumers have avoided paying their valid debit orders by questioning and reversing them.

ALSO READ: Customers reversing debit orders complicates fight on R99 debit order scam

As a result, Sarb asked the Payments Association of South Africa (Pasa), with members including local banks, to find a solution, so DebiCheck was born. DebiCheck is a new type of debit order that you confirm only once electronically with your bank or service provider.

DebiCheck offers a new way to control how certain debit order collections are made from your bank account and give you a heads-up when debit orders are processed. On the other hand, businesses can rest assured that you have acknowledged and are aware of debit orders, while it also allows your bank to capture debit order information and check it before the debit order is processed.

This means that your bank will know the details of your agreement and not allow your DebiCheck to be processed outside the terms that you have confirmed.

ALSO READ: Debit order scam hits bank customers hard

According to Sarb, the DebiCheck payment system was implemented on 1 August 2018. Due to the complex nature of the system, a lengthy ramp-up period was required to ensure all stakeholders in the collections ecosystem had implemented and tested their internal processes and interfaces.