QLD Can a credit company clean out my bank account to recoup a payment?

[Gary]

I have an agreed credit limit amount with a loan company with a 3 letter title. Due to illness my bank account has at times had insufficient funds. If this happens the company continuously hits my account taking whatever is there. They do this till they get their full amount. If there's $2 $3 $5 $7 they take it and they hit the account daily removing any funds untill the mnthly figure is reached. This can be embarrassing if I'm paying for milk or few groceries or meds and I think there is sufficient funds and their isn't.
Is this legal? To clean out an account leaving someone destitute?

 

[Tim W]

Check the T&Cs of your loan.
You may actually have consented to it.

 

[Gary]

Thanks for your response Tim. No there is nothing in the T&C that states a missed direct debit will result in our agent hitting your account on a daily basis and extracting all funds untill the monthly amount is recouped

 

[Tim W]

Hard to say for sure without looking at the actual document (no, don't post it here).
But if you have authorised a direct debit,
then they are very likely within their rights (that is, within the loan terms)
to keep attempting the transaction(s) until they have received
the amount you have agreed to pay.

Maybe contact this body and ask your questions there.

 

[Scruff]

"Is this legal? To clean out an account leaving someone destitute?"
Probably - but I don't think that's the real question that should be asked here.

Normally if there's insufficient funds in a bank account to cover a direct debit, the transaction will either fail or overdraw the account, depending on the bank and the T&C's for the account (eg: you have an overdraw limit).

I've never experienced a "partial" direct debit in my life - in fact, I've never even heard of that happening before. So if I were you, I'd be asking your bank "why aren't these direct debits failing?"

 

[Tim W]

...the real question that should be asked here....

...might actually be why you are not managing/administering this debt better.

Speak to your bank (the bank first, not the lender)
about what options might exist to help you organise your money
(sub accounts? automated transfers rather than direct debits?)
to reduce the chances of getting caught short in future.