Membership Subscriptions Refunds Policy

Transcription

1 Royal College of Nursing Membership subscriptions refunds policy version 1.3 Membership Subscriptions Refunds Policy Version 1.2 Document control summary Title Membership Subscriptions Refunds Policy Status LIVE Version No. 1.3 Date of this version 9 th February 2012 Author(s) Simon Hiscocks Approved by ET 22 nd September 2009 Circulated to Next review date January of 11

2 Version Control Summary Version Date Summary 1.0 August 2009 Major revision and first formalisation of existing policy that has been in use at RCND 1.1 August 2009 Executive Team confirms decision not to levy administration fee 22/9/09. Immediate implementation 1.1 January 2010 Reviewed: No changes required. Review in one year. 1.2 January 2011 Clarification at regarding refund calculation when a membership is cancelled 1.3 February 2012 Various tidying of documentation to reflect membership/document changes 2

3 1. Introduction 1.1. The RCN processes hundreds of thousands of membership financial transactions annually. As well as reporting in detail on subscription income, it is also proper and appropriate to monitor and report on financial transactions where refunds are made against paid membership subscription payments This policy details the circumstances under which refunds can and cannot be made, the authorisation process and monitoring of refund payments The value and number of refunds is routinely monitored and reported on a monthly basis Monthly audits of refund process are carried out on a selection of random records. 2. Valid circumstances for refunds 2.1. Refunds against paid membership subscriptions will be made only in the following circumstances: 2.2. Where an RCN processing error has resulted in the RCN overcharging the member for their subscription. Example A member may have been incorrectly transferred from student membership to nurse first year discount membership either because there is an incorrect training completion date recorded or because of a data processing error such as a member having been placed in an incorrect (higher cost payment plan), or an annual Direct Debit rather than monthly Direct Debit being recorded, where these can be verified as errors against the information provided on an application form Where a processing or system error has resulted in, or allowed a duplicate membership record to be set up and charged. The refund will be for all payments that can be identified relating to the duplicate payment, irrespective of how long that duplicate record has existed for. Note A member has a personal responsibility to check their bank statements. RCN systems should nevertheless prevent the creation of a duplicate record. The current membership system does have good de-duplication, but some older records pre-date the current system. Banks also advised that as a service user we cannot rely on customers checking their accounts. It is difficult to argue against a full refund in these situations, irrespective of timescale Where a member has contacted or attempted to contact the RCN to cancel or amend a membership payment but where the RCN has been unable to process that request in time to prevent further or higher payment being taken and providing that the cancellation or amendment request was submitted prior to the payment collection date Telephone calls via RCN Direct s 0345 telephone service that result in a payment amendment will ordinarily be processed immediately Written requests (including ) to Member Services are dealt with under a 2 day customer service standard. 3

4 Note It should be noted that even if a member contacts the RCN before the collection date, due to lead times required for Direct Debit collections in accordance with the Direct Debit guarantee, it may still not be possible to prevent collection of payment. The DD collection is usually the first working day of the month, but the file is usually submitted to BACS by 28 th (+/-) of the month. Once the file has been generated, we cannot stop the request for payment Where a member is transferring to a membership payment plan with a lower annual cost having already paid in advance in a plan attracting a higher cost. However, in these circumstances a member should first be offered the option to have their account credited with the balance of the higher payment before a refund is offered. Example An annual cash payer transferring from Full to Retired part way through their membership year Where a member wishes to transfer to monthly Direct Debit payments having already paid annually in advance. In these circumstances a member should first be offered the option to have their account credited with the balance of the higher payment before a refund is offered Where a processing or transaction error attributed to the RCN has resulted in the member incurring bank charges. As well as any initial refund, the full bank charge will be refunded where the charges incurred are clearly due to an RCN error The RCN will request proof of bank charges being incurred by an RCN request for payment from the member before the refund is actioned. A bank statement that merely displays the charge will not suffice, and a letter from the bank confirming that the charges were a direct result of the RCN debit will be requested. If it is confirmed that the RCN debit was responsible then a full refund will be given, including any charge levied by the member s bank for the issuing of the confirmation letter Where an annual cash payer cancels their membership Paragraph 3.4 of the Rules of the RCN state: Any person member has the right to have their name deleted from membership at any time, by notifying the General Secretary. However, they will not be entitled to any rebate of their subscription The Rules pre-date the implementation of Direct Debit, and specifically monthly Direct Debit becoming the predominant method of payment for membership over 93% of members now pay for their membership subscription via monthly Direct Debit A monthly Direct Debit payer can cancel their Direct Debit at any point during their membership year with no financial penalty or obligation to pay the remaining amount of their membership year. The refund will be calculated from the first day of the following month An annual cash payer would therefore be disadvantaged by not allowing them a prorata refund on their annual payment should they cancel part way through their membership year. 4

5 Refunds may therefore be made to annual cash payers cancelling their membership based on a pro-rata basis at the monthly Direct Debit rate for the relevant category of membership for the remaining part of their paid up membership year. 3. Non valid circumstances for refunds 3.1. Refunds will not be made to members who contact the RCN indicating that they could have been in another (lower rate) membership category and who are requesting a retrospective refund payment. Example A Full member contacts the RCN to say they have just realised that they could have been in a lower cost payment plan such as Voluntary Break It is the responsibility of the member to advise the RCN of any changes to their circumstances including those that could impact their payment plan.. Information on membership categories is available from RCN Direct on , on the RCN web site at or by contacting any RCN office or officer If there is any doubt about a query on a subscription refund it should be escalated to a Team Leader in the first instance. 4. Administration Fee 4.1. No administration fee will be levied on any valid refund. 5. Authorisation and processing of refunds 5.1. In order to maintain effective monitoring and control, the authorisation of refunds will managed as follows: All membership staff have the authority to discuss membership payments, including potential refunds with members in accordance with the directions in this policy, and where appropriate, prepare the necessary paperwork (see appendices 1-4) in readiness for authorisation of a refund All refunds must be authorised by a Membership Team Leader, team Co-ordinator or more senior manager, depending on the amount to be refunded Refunds greater than 250 must be authorised by the Membership Manager, Deputy Membership Manager, or Director of RCN Direct. Note This figure is based on roughly one year s full membership plus an annual subscription to Nursing Standard, as many refunds processed cover journals subscriptions as well as membership subscriptions Temporary staff are not allowed to authorise refunds, but can request the action of a refund. They are able to process correspondence relating to a refund they have requested to be authorised No member of staff will be allowed to authorise a refund that they have worked up themselves. 5

6 5.3. Refunds relating to Direct Debit payments will normally be refunded via BACS The refund can only be made to the account originally debited The refund file is transmitted to BACS on Wednesday of each week All paperwork associate with refunds will be kept for 7 years in line with the RCN s Document Retention Policy Any member wishing to complain in relation to a potential refund should be advised of the formal complaints process. 6. Monitoring of Refunds 6.1. A monthly report will be generated that indicates the: The number of refunds by type (BACS, Cheque, Credit Card) The value of refunds by type (BACS, Cheque, Credit Card) Information on refunds will form part of a continual quality monitoring process The RCN Direct Performance Monitoring Team will undertake a monthly audit of refund process with a target of 100% compliance. 6

7 Appendix 1 Standard Letter Declining Refund «MemTitle» «MemInitials» «MemSurname» «MemSuffix» «MailAddressLine1» «MailAddressLine2» «MailAddressLine3» «MailAddressTown» «MailAddressCounty» «MailAddressPostcode» Date: «TodaysDate» Reference: REFDECL Membership Number:«MemNo» Dear «MemSalutation» I write with reference to your recent request for a refund of your RCN membership subscription payment. Unfortunately, your request has been declined and a refund will not be processed. The reason for declining the refund will be given here If you have any other query, or require further information please either visit the RCN s web site at or contact RCN Directs on , available Monday - Fri 8.30am to 8.30pm for Membership Services (excluding Public Holidays). This is a local rate number. You can now use MyRCN to view and update your personal details and mailing preferences online at You can also save money by claiming tax relief on your RCN subscription, full details are at Yours sincerely «UserName» RCN Direct 7

8 Appendix 2 Standard Letter Confirming Refund Dear «MemSalutation» «MemTitle» «MemInitials» «MemSurname» «MemSuffix» «MailAddressLine1» «MailAddressLine2» «MailAddressLine3» «MailAddressTown» «MailAddressCounty» «MailAddressPostcode» Date: «TodaysDate» Reference: REFCONF Membership Number:«MemNo» I am pleased to confirm that a refund for **.** has been authorised in respect of your Royal College of Nursing membership subscription payment. PLEASE DELETE THIS LINE & NON-APPLICABLE PARAGRAPH/S BELOW This refund has been made by Direct Debit into the bank account it was collected from and should be cleared into this account within ten working days of the date of this letter. This payment has been refunded to the Credit/Debit card it was taken from. Please allow 10 working days from the date of this letter for it to appear on your statement. This refund has been made by BACS Payment into your nominated bank account and should be cleared within ten working days of the date of this letter. This refund will be made by cheque, which will be sent to you at the address at the top of this letter. Please allow 28 days for the cheque to arrive with you. If you have any other query or require further information please either visit the RCN s web site at or contact RCN Direct on , available Monday - Fri 8.30am to 8.30pm for Membership Services (excluding Public Holidays). This is a local rate number. Did you know you can now use MyRCN to view and update your personal details and mailing preferences online at can also save money by claiming tax relief on your RCN subscription, full details are at Yours sincerely Membership Department, RCN Direct 8

9 Appendix 3 Refund REFUND OF SUBS BY DD OR CC Membership number Member name/refund name Member address/refund address Date money received (Date of most recent if MDD) PMT Number (for CC Refunds) Reason for refund (DD or CC) (Please tick as appropriate) Membership Refund Amount ( ) Journals Refund Amount ( ) Total Amount Refunded to Member Refund Batch Number Original Frequency of payment Date of refund request Requested by Authorised by Team Leader/Co-ordinator (For amounts up to 250) Authorised by Membership Manager (For amounts up to 500) Authorised by Director, RCN Direct (For amounts over 500) «MemNo» «MemFullName» «MailAddressLine1» «MailAddressLine2» «MailAddressLine3» «MailAddressTown» «MailAddressCounty» «MailAddressPostcode» Wrong Training Completion Date Annual DD to Monthly DD Cancelled Membership Category/ Payment Plan Change Duplicate record Journal Other (Explain) «Frequency» «TodaysDate» «UserName» (Print & Sign) (Print & Sign) (Print & Sign) 9

10 Appendix 4 Request For Cheque Requisition (sent to Finance) ROYAL COLLEGE OF NURSING CHEQUE REQUISITION 1. PAYEE DETAILS NOTE: Backing documentation must be provided in ALL cases PAYEE «MemFullName» MEMBERSHIP NUMBER: «MemNo» ADDRESS «MailAddressLine1»«MailAddressLine2» POSTCODE «MailAddressLine3»«MailAddressTown» «MailAddressCounty» «MailAddressPostcode» 2. VAT DETAILS: Please complete boxes - 2a, 2b and 2c as applicable 2a. Net amount: 2b. VAT: 2c. Invoice amount 3. VAT INVOICE: Where VAT box (2b) is not complete, please provide explanation e.g. non VATABLE, Pro Forma, Subscription Subscription 4. REASON FOR REQUISITION: Please make payment by BACS to ; Sort Code Account Number 5. FOR USE OF LEGAL DEPARTMENT ONLY CASE No/REF (T8) 6. FOR USE OF MEMBERSHIP DEPARTMENT ONLY Amount Charged Refund Batch Number; 7. NOMINAL LEDGER CODE ITEM ACCOUNT COST CODE CENTRE ANALYSIS CODE (IF REQ D) AMOUNT ( ) Z050 DESCRIPTION: Membership Subscription Fees Refund Z050 DESCRIPTION: Journal Subscription Fees Refund 8. REQUESTED BY: AUTHORISED BY: NAME:«UserName» NAME: SIGNATURE: SIGNATURE: DEPT: «UserDepartmentName» DATE: «TodaysDate» DEPT: «UserDepartmentName» DATE: «TodaysDate» 10

11 9. DESPATCH INSTRUCTIONS (please tick) SEND TO PAYEE SEND WITH ENCLOSURE ORIGINATOR TO COLLECT NAME: TEL: RETURN TO NAME: DEPT: 10. OFFICE USE ONLY Posted to down payment account: 11