How can I pay my bills if I am in hospital?
It is also possible to give someone else the right to access the money in your bank account. You would need to sign a ‘third party mandate’ and give this to your bank. This would allow a friend or relative to withdraw money from your account and therefore be able to pay certain bills for you.
You can give someone else the right to access the money in your bank or building society account.
There are some payments you make each month that are seen as more important than others. These are called priority payments, and include rent, mortgage, rates, gas, electricity, TV licence, Magistrate Court’s fines and hire purchase agreements. They are priorities because if you don’t pay them, you could lose something important. For example, if you don’t pay your rent you could lose your home and if you don’t pay your electricity your supply could be disconnected.
Payments to credit cards, unsecured loans, catalogues, overdrafts and store cards are non-priorities. If you can’t afford to pay them your credit rating will be affected but you can’t normally have anything directly taken away from you.
It’s generally possible to pay for most goods or services by direct debit or standing order
It is generally possible to pay for most goods or services by direct debit or standing order. This is where money is taken directly from your bank account and sent straight to the organisation you need to pay, usually around the same time every week or month. If you go into hospital, as long as you have the money in your account, then you should carry on paying.
If you can’t afford your non-essential bills, you or a relative should write to the companies and explain why, and then cancel any non-essential payments that are due to go out of your of your bank account.
