Record numbers of UK Councils champion Direct Debit

News from BACS - the company behind Direct Debit - indicates UK councils are paying heed to an Audit Commission report which revealed local authorities could save millions of pounds by encouraging the increased uptake of Direct Debit.

[ClickPress, Wed Sep 20 2006] News from BACS - the company behind Direct Debit - indicates UK councils are paying heed to an Audit Commission report which revealed local authorities could save millions of pounds by encouraging the increased uptake of Direct Debit.

According to BACS, a record number of local authorities have entered its annual Local Authority Direct Debit Challenge Awards - a scheme designed to reward councils actively promoting Direct Debit as the quickest, easiest and safest method for local residents to pay council tax bills.

Entry numbers for BACS’ award scheme have leapt 32 per cent in the last year. The increase reflects a significant surge in the proactive promotion of Direct Debit by local council teams plus indicates overall growth in Direct Debit usage in the public sector.

Michael Chambers, Managing Director of BACS, said: “Each year, the number of people using Direct Debit to pay Council Tax bills continues to rise. For the fourth consecutive year, its popularity as a reliable automated payment method has grown with usage increasing ten per cent from 54% in 2001 to 64% in 2005. We are delighted that local authorities in the UK continue to realise the benefits of Direct Debit and are promoting it to full effect with local residents and council tax payers.”
Winners of the 2006 LA Challenge Awards will be announced at a dedicated awards ceremony at the Institute of Revenues, Rating & Valuation (IRRV) Annual Conference and Exhibition in Brighton on 12th October 2006.

BACS will also play a leading role in Fringe Meetings taking place at the IRRV conference, with a session on the issues and challenges surrounding financial inclusion, and the role local authorities have to play in this area. On Wednesday 11 October, Michael Chambers will be joined by Mark Lyonette, Chief Executive Officer at the Association of British Credit Unions Limited (ABCUL), for a joint presentation on the impact of social banking and the steps local authorities can take to address the difficulties faced by financially excluded members of their communities.

Local authorities interested in attending the Financial Inclusion Fringe Meeting should contact Evonne Edwards on T: 020 7438 1042 or by email at: evonne@irrv.org.uk
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About BACS Payment Schemes Ltd (BACS):
BACS Payment Schemes Limited (BACS) - is a not-for-profit, membership-based, industry body.
BACS is responsible for the processing of 5 billion payments a year with over 75 million on a peak day. In order to cope with this demand the system is constantly reviewed and updated. As of 1 January 2006 BACSTEL-IP was introduced as a totally new delivery channel to give more control, increased security, easier processing management and a far faster service all round to over 100,000 corporates accessing BACS services.
BACS has been at the heart of the payments industry for over 40 years providing the two principle electronic payment services; Direct Debit and BACS Direct Credit. These have increased convenience and provided ‘peace of mind’ for tens of millions of consumers through the delivery of safe and efficient payments.
BACS is wholly owned by the UK and Europe’s leading banks and building societies. For further information please visit www.bacs.co.uk .
More about Direct Debit:
A Direct Debit is an instruction from a customer to their bank or building society authorising an organisation to collect varying amounts from their account. This can be used to ensure regular, safe and efficient payments of anything from household bills to charitable donations. 2.7 billion Direct Debit payments are processed by BACS a year and 73% of adults are positively disposed to using this payment method. For further information on how to set up a Direct Debit to help you keep your accounts in order please contact your bank or building society.
More about BACS Direct Credit:
Direct Credit is mainly used for paying wages and salaries - in fact over 70 per cent of the UK workforce is paid via Direct Credit. In total, BACS Direct Credit is used for paying over four million wages every week and nearly 25 million salaries a month

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