direct debit

Meaning

A direct debit is an arrangement made with a bank that allows a third party (like a utility company) to transfer money directly from a person's account on agreed dates. It is typically used for paying recurring bills where the amount might vary each month. The tone is neutral and practical.

Examples

• I set up a direct debit to pay my electricity bill automatically every month.

  I set up a direct debit to pay my electricity bill automatically every month.

• You can cancel the direct debit at any time through your online banking app.

  You can cancel the direct debit at any time through your online banking app.

• The gym membership fee is collected by direct debit on the first of each month.

  The gym membership fee is collected by direct debit on the first of each month.

• Is it cheaper to pay my insurance by direct debit or annual bank transfer?

  Is it cheaper to pay my insurance by direct debit or annual bank transfer?

• We had to pay a fine because our direct debit bounced due to insufficient funds.

  We had to pay a fine because our direct debit bounced due to insufficient funds.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I pay my rent by direct debiting.

  ✓ I pay my rent by direct debit.

  Use the noun phrase direct debit rather than the gerund form direct debiting to describe the payment method.

• ✗ The company made a direct debit from my card.

  ✓ The company took a direct debit from my bank account.

  Direct debits are set up on bank accounts (using account and routing numbers), not credit or debit cards.

Related Expressions

Practice

• To avoid missing payments, I decided to set up a ___ for my phone bill.

  💡 An instruction to your bank to let a company take money from your account.

  Show answer

  direct debit

• If you pay by ___, you often get a small discount on your utility bills.

  💡 An automatic recurring payment system.

  Show answer

  direct debit