The automatic or recurring payment facility for mobile recharges, utility and other bills is likely to be stopped from April as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made an additional factor of authentication (AFA) mandatory after March 31.
The central bank had earlier stated that recurring or automatic payments using debit cards, credit cards, Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and other prepaid instruments (PPIs) will need mandatory AFA from April 1.
Under the new set of guidelines, banks will be required to notify customers in advance about any upcoming recurring payment and the transaction would then be carried forward after getting consent from the concerned customer.
According to a Business Standard report, leading banks have already started cancelling the service of e-mandates for auto-debit of funds from debit and credit cards. Many leading banks have already sent messages to their customer informing that they will have to manually transact for paying utility, mobile and other service bills.
Simply put, banks are not likely to deduct such fees automatically on behalf of the customers from April 1. Individuals either have to give consent to their bank before automatic deduction of charges or choose to pay it themselves.
The new rule is likely to impact your scheduled automatic payments for services such as mobile, DTH and utility bills. Other subscription charges for services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar and others will also be affected.
It may be noted that the limit for automatic or recurring payments from cards and various wallets has been set at Rs 5,000. However, an additional OTP will be needed for any amount above Rs 5,000.
News Source: India Today
