DontPay.UK

[itwasntmetho]

dontpay.uk/
I can't find a thread on it, but has anyone seen this? I know it's doing the rounds on SM and I'm usually the last to every SM pushed thing.
I was whatsapped it today, I'm concerned what would be the likely consequences to the individual would be if they cancelled in protest?
I have heard people saying in conversation they would have to cancel direct debits if they were going up so far they would miss rent/ mortgage payments which tbh sounds realistic for many.

I wonder if the companies could enforce pre payment metres on mass like that, I know that is an option in normal circs if you just decide not to pay.

Would it trash your credit rating? My Clearscore doesn't show my these utilities.
I like the idea of joining an action, but I'm maybe naive about how much power it really has and the consequences.

My understanding of the campaign wasn't that they were encouraging people to not pay (which will trash your credit rating), it was to encourage people to stop paying via direct debit.

I think it's to withhold payment, I mean obviously a sensible person will put the money aside for after the action and know it won't be written off.

The site you've linked to only says 'cancel our direct debits'. It uses weird wording like 'cancel our bills' which I don't think helps, but I'm sure its just moving away from estimated DD billing. It would be horrendously irresponsible to encourage mass non-payment, something I couldn't agree with.

Don't they cut you off if you don't pay?

The logic is if everyone doesn't pay then they don't have the resources to cut everyone off and the government will have to step in and "do something"

I was told in the comments section of a Facebook post I'm "part of the problem" when I said I have prepayment meters and don't have the option not paying and still being able to have gas and electric.

Once my credit runs out that's it, they can do their protest and expect to still have gas an electric to be warm and fed and if it works then that's great, but those on prepayment meters don't have the same choice and shouldn't be given told they're part of the problem. The people cancelling direct debits as part of the process are assuming they won't be cut off, and know it won't happen instantly either, unlike people on pre payment meters for who it will be instant.

It did specifically say on the site that the action wasn't suitable for people with pre payment meters. I wonder if people get overzealous about these things.
FWIW I think it's unlikely you are causing this problem!
I'll be watching the campaign closely, I'm uncertain about joining in.

They can't cut you off, as a last resort they can fit a pre payment meter against your will.
I think it's a temporary action, they have to give you 28 days before demanding as an overdue balance, then they have to then give you time to come to an arrangement, they would then have to get a warrant from a court to enforce fitting of a prepayment meter.
I think that it's about that massive volume of people withholding their money for that length of time (if they could get a million households to join in) and then of course with that volume of people they would need to take that action for, where would they start/ how much would that cost them.
I'm interested to watch it play out.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/04/winter-refusing-pay-energy-bills-pledge-campaign

Interesting article.

They are talking about not paying their utility bills though. Cancelling the direct debits is just part of that
It's simple: we are demanding a reduction of energy bills to an affordable level. Our leverage is that we will gather a million people to pledge not to pay if the government goes ahead with another massive hike on October 1st.

Mass non-payment is not a new idea, it happened in the UK in the late 80s and 90s, when more than 17 million people refused to pay the Poll Tax – helping bring down the government and reversing its harshest measures.

Even if a fraction of those of us who are paying by direct debit stop our payments, it will be enough to put energy companies in serious trouble, and they know this. We want to bring them to the table and force them to end this crisis. Here’s how we think we can get there:

(No mention of how the poll tax was tweaked and rebranded as council tax which is higher than what poll tax could ever have been)

Yes, in it the person says
That’s why I’ve joined the Don’t Pay campaign. On 1 October, when the next price cap comes into effect, I will be phoning EDF and telling them that, out of solidarity with millions of others, I will not be paying any more until they reduce their prices.

Isn't the real pressure on the government?

They have the power to do something about the price cap .
Nothing concentrates a minister's mind more than a mass movement gaining momentum

It's a pledge to not pay. Not an actual non paying thing.thats what the man said on the news yesterday

Well, come 1st October the plan is to cancel direct debits and stop paying utility bills. So it’s a pledge to not pay until October 1st only.

Rather like it’s a pledge to strike until strike day comes and then it’s an actual strike.

Unless you’re bluffing.

I have written a good article on Don't Pay UK here

medium.com/me/stats/post/b99bbad893cd

Yes. I think they can't cut you off water supply, but gas, electricity yes.

The dontpayUK would technically work from a business (energy supplier) point of view. Products are only worth what consumers are willing to pay for them. Look at the Petrol and Diesel prices, In multiple towns across the country the community worked together and each week choose one local garage to stop buying from, what happened.. The costs start to fall. No business will charge less for a product which sells for more. You dont drop prices whilst people are willing to pay that price.
So DontpayUK would cause a huge effect to the energy companies - the amount of admin it would cause alone would be bad.
BUT
From the consumer point of view (us muppets who roll over and say "I'll pay it, it'll get easier"), dontpayUK WILL damage your credit score.. You WILL have to pay the bill at some point in your life, there is no escaping that. So you should really ask for you personally is it worth it? Dont pay, eventually it'll go a debt collector who (for example) accepts a payment of £50 a week, well that' better than the £85 we are looking paying (Small household predicted cost). However, you will then be paying the debt off whilst still paying for energy. So in the mean time right now, you have more money.. later on that will bite you.
So lets look at you dont pay, but have good will power and put the money you with hold to one side. Now this COULD work and you COULD avoid the bad credit rating too. You can miss 3 payments before something registers a default. So you could with hold the money for 3 months and hope the energy companies sweat enough in the those 3 months to drop prices. However this would only really happen if the other half of the UK are just not paying and waiting for a debt letter later on in life..
One thing you really need to think about is your future and your credit,
You want a mortgage - credit check,
you need to rent somewhere new - credit check,
your car failed its MOT massively and you cant afford a new one... Finance (Lets face it 99.9% of car finance companies now give anyone (even those on low end benefits) £9,999 with no deposit finance for a car, even with bad credit) But due to your credit score you are now paying 35% interest.
Your washing machine breaks, havent got £400 to buy a new one? You'd finance it - Credit check
Mobile phone contract - Credit check
Sky, Virgin etc - Credit check
Insurance (Pet, Home, Car) - Credit check.

My point regarding all the above is, don't join a bandwagon, Look at it from all angles (Business, Consumer, Society etc - fully understand the full circle of events) and do what is right for you! Stand for what you believe in, be loyal to yourself, but please don't do things just because the people who live 5 doors down are, do things because you feel its right for you. Only you can weigh up the pro's and con's for your household.

I am not fore or against the DontPayUk. I support anyone who does things that feel are best for themselves.

I hope this helps people

The purpose of the campaign is to focus pressure on the government ( what government! They are asleep at the wheel ) to stop the planned raising of the price cap in October .

A large number of people acting in unison to cancel their direct debits is designed to send a strong message to the government / power companies.

As for people never paying - that is a different issue .
As you say, concerted consumer action works .
Cancelling your direct debit does not affect any other aspect of your financial life.

www.britishgas.co.uk/help-and-support/bills-and-payments/cancelling-your-direct-debit