South Gloucestershire Council Department for Children, Adults and Health Direct Payments Card

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1 South Gloucestershire Council Department for Children, Adults and Health Direct Payments Card October 2014 Cardholder guide The safe and efficient way to pay for services, for people who manage their own support using direct payments

2 * Actual Size If you need more information or this booklet in a different format please phone CCHengagement@southglos.gov.uk Or write to Direct Payment Card South Gloucestershire Council PO Box 298, Partnerships & Commissioning, Civic Centre, High Street, Bristol, BS15 0DQ 2

3 Introduction Your Direct Payments Card account is the new way South Gloucestershire Council will pay you your Direct Payments. The card is loaded with your Direct Payments and provides a convenient, secure way of receiving and spending these funds. The Direct Payment Card is a Visa Card and is similar to a debit or credit card to look at. It works just like any other debit card account and this means: You will be able to make payments in person by card using chip and PIN You will be able to make payments over the telephone and Internet. You will be able to make bank transfer payments and set up standing orders. You won t need to have a separate bank account for your direct payments, and won t need to send in monitoring information. We will be able to make sure you are getting the support you need as agreed in your support plan. Please remember that your Direct Payments Card must only be used to pay for support to meet your needs and outcomes identified in your support plan. We will be able to directly view payments made using your Direct Payments Card so you do not need to send us statements. However please remember to keep invoices and receipts for any purchases or services, as we may need to see them. Please also keep any records about your Personal Assistants. The card is provided by a company called Aquarium Card Management Solutions and the account is referred to as CredEcard plus. 3

4 First steps to using your Direct Payments Card account When will I start to use the payment card? If you are new to direct payments, you will receive the card soon after your support plan has been agreed, and you have signed the Direct Payments Agreement. If you already have direct payments, we will work with you over the next few months to transfer to the card. You will receive a letter a month before we begin to pay into your new Direct Payment Card account, together with a checklist to help you transfer to the account. This is so the council can work with you to get your card payments working well for you. When you receive the letter you will need to contact us with some important information. We will then get the card sent to you. You will need to follow the steps below when you receive your card, before you can start using it. For your safety and protection, it s important that you do this as soon as possible. What should I do when I receive my card? Step 1 Sign the back of your card. Step 2 Your card comes with a letter that explains how to get your Personal Identification Number (PIN) and how to activate your card. You can do this by telephone or online. If you find your PIN difficult to remember, you can change it at most cash machines (ATM) that display the Visa sign. It is vital that you keep your PIN a secret. Do not allow anyone to use your card for you unless you have agreed with the council that the person is acting on your behalf. Do not tell your PIN to a member of staff at South Gloucestershire Council or the bank. This is to ensure security of your card. 4

5 How often will I be paid? Payments will be made to you every 2 weeks and the payments are 3 weeks in advance. For people who already have a direct payment, this is the same as it is now. Using your Direct Payments Card Online banking If you have told us that you are an internet user and have given us your address, your online banking logon details will be ed to you. Log on to select the appropriate option and enter your online banking logon details when requested. Remember: you should keep your online banking details safe and secure in the same way you would your PIN details. A separate online banking guide is available and covers all aspects of the online banking facility. This will be available to view or download on the council s website at the following address, or you can call us on and we will send a copy to you. Telephone banking You can make payments by telephone banking by calling Aquarium s CredEcard Customer Services on , if you have inclusive land line/mobile minutes this will be a free call. If you don't have any inclusive minutes, calls to this number are typically charged at 0.09 per minutes from landlines and between per minute from mobiles. Alternatively you can call , calls to this number are charged at 5.1p per minute from a BT landline and other network and mobile operator charges may also apply. 5

6 When you phone, you will be asked to provide some information to confirm you are who you say you are. This is likely to be confirmation of your date of birth, address or something similar. This is necessary to protect the security of your card. Your calls may also be recorded for staff training purposes. Making payments If your service is provided by an agency, you will need to ask for their bank account details and sort code. You will still need to check the invoice the agency sends you is correct. If you employ a Personal Assistant, you will be able to pay their wages directly into their bank account, either online or through telephone banking. Most providers or Personal Assistants will be able to share their account details with you and payments should not be a problem. Bank transfers take upto 3 working days to arrive in the account you are sending money to. You may need to make sure your Personal Assistant or provider is aware of this. There are no fees for BACS transfers however you may be charged for some other types of faster payments. Please see further information about fees and charges on page 7. Please note that it won t be possible to use cheques. Balance queries You can check your Direct Payments Card balance in a number of ways: by using the online banking facility by ringing by texting the word BALANCE to (your mobile number must be registered against your account to use this service). at a Visa cash machine (ATM). 6

7 Statements You can get a statement with full details of your spending by: downloading it, using the online banking facility asking for paper statements to be posted to you. We will ask you whether you would like this when we set up your card, but you can contact us to request statements on Cash Most people don t need to use cash to pay for their support. We advise people to withdraw and use cash only when really necessary because of the way you arrange services. We will talk to you about this when we set you up to use the card. Charges There are no charges for most types of payment or balance enquiries however you will be charged for some activities as follows: Activity Charge Use of card abroad (including cash withdrawals) 1.00 per transaction + 2% of value Fee to cancel transactions 5.00 that have been made Next Day Faster Payment 3.00 CHAPS same day payment Standard International Transfer Urgent International Transfer (SMS) Text Messaging

8 Lost or stolen cards/ suspected fraud Treat your Direct Payments Card like a debit card. If you lose it or suspect it has been stolen, log into your e-account and notify CredEcard plus (Aquarium) immediately. Alternatively call the lost and stolen line on (available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week). It is your responsibility to tell CredEcard Plus as soon as you are aware that your card has been lost or stolen. You can also contact the council on Financial monitoring You will not need to send us financial statements. We are able to monitor your spend online without you needing to do anything specific. You should still keep invoices and receipts from providers and all records about your Personal Assistants. Nominating another person to help with your Direct Payments Card. If you are concerned about using the card, you can appoint a nominated person to help you. This means they can make payments on your behalf using your direct payment. Your nominated person should be someone you trust. We will need to have some basic details about this person to meet data protection requirements. Transactions made by your nominated person will still appear on your statement but your nominated person must retain receipts when they use the card. Please remember that you will remain responsible for your direct payment. If you already receive Direct Payments we may already have details of your nominated person, we will check this with you when we set up your Direct Payment Card account. If you are new to Direct Payments your Social Worker will ask you if you wish to have a 8

9 nominated person when you set up your Direct Payments. If you wish to add a Nominated Person at a later date please contact the council on Paying your assessed contribution If you have been told that you need to make a contribution to the cost of your support, you will be able to transfer this amount directly onto the Direct Payments card account from your personal bank account. Although these account details will be different to your account, the money will transfer into your account almost instantly and you will be able to see this when you log on to your account. Please aim to pay your contribution 4 weekly or monthly. The account you should pay your contribution to is: Account Number: Sort Code: Bank Details: NatWest, Exchange Buildings, High Street, Skipton, BD23 1JL Account Name (if required) should be entered as S Glos Please make sure you quote your council reference number when you make the payment so that it can be matched up to your account. If you are not sure what your council reference number is please call us on If you don t regularly pay your contribution onto your pre-paid card there may not be enough funds in the account to pay for your support services. Security code When making transactions over the telephone or online, you may be asked for the security code for your card. This is the last three digits printed on the signature strip on the reverse of the card and is sometimes referred to as the CV2 code. 9

10 Keeping things safe The following are all sensible precautions to take to protect you from fraud: Make sure your PIN and online banking details are not easy to guess and are not written down anywhere Do not give your PIN or online banking logon details to anyone (apart from your nominated person if you have one) Keep your card in a safe place treat it as you would cash Make sure you report any loss or theft of your card as soon as possible Frequently asked questions Do I have to have a payment card? Yes we are working towards everyone who receives a direct payment using a payment card. We will offer support to make it work for you. Will I have to pay to have the card? No. The council will pay for the card to be set up. How will I know how much I have to spend on my card? The council will load your card with the amount that was agreed to be paid to you as a direct payment (also see page 6). You can check the balance of your account online or on the phone, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It will also be possible to receive a monthly statement in the post or via . 10

11 What happens if I spend more than is loaded on the card? You can only spend up to the amount that is loaded onto the card, so you cannot go overdrawn. How will my Direct Payment be monitored? South Gloucestershire Council will need to monitor the money paid to you as a direct payment. This is so that we can ensure your direct payment is being used to effectively meet your needs and outcomes as outlined in your support plan. You will still receive a review from social work staff, and can ask for a review if things have changed for you. What should I do if I suspect fraud or my card has been misused? You should contact the council s Customer Service Desk ( ) as soon as possible. What happens if there is money left over on the card? You will still be able to keep up to 4 weeks worth of contingency balance on the direct payments card. The council will talk to you about paying money back if your contingency balance is above four weeks. If you need more information or this booklet in a different format please phone or us at CAHBrokerage@southglos.gov.uk or write to: Direct Payment Card South Gloucestershire Council PO Box 298, Partnerships & Commissioning, Civic Centre, High Street, Bristol, BS15 0DQ 11