Why must I pay the full debt review amount if my PDA statement shows a lower balance?

This is a common question near the end of debt review.

Your PDA statement may show that the remaining balance is less than your normal monthly debt review payment. You may then wonder why DCGsa still asks you to continue with the full payment until we confirm the next step.

The reason is that the PDA statement is not the final legal confirmation that every account has been settled.

A PDA statement shows the payments that went through the Payment Distribution Agency. It helps DCGsa see what was collected, distributed and allocated through the debt review payment system.

However, the PDA statement does not replace the final confirmation from each credit provider.

Before DCGsa can issue your Form 19 clearance certificate, we must complete final checks. These checks may include paid-up letters, final balances, account numbers, end balance differences, final PDA distributions, aftercare amounts, and bond status where applicable.

Even if the PDA statement shows a lower balance, a credit provider may still confirm a different final amount. This can happen because of interest, fees, insurance, payment allocation dates, late payments, short payments, missed payments, reversals, legal costs, or system differences between the PDA and the credit provider.

This is why DCGsa must be careful before reducing or stopping your payment.

If you reduce or stop your payment too early, and a credit provider later confirms that more money is still owing, your clearance certificate may be delayed.

You may then need to pay the shortfall before the credit provider issues the paid-up letter. If you have already used that money elsewhere, the clearance process may take longer.

It is usually easier to deal with surplus funds later than to fix a short-paid account at the end of debt review.

If surplus money remains after all accounts, final balances, distributions and required checks have been completed, the surplus can be dealt with through the correct refund process.

DCGsa will only confirm that you may stop, reduce, change or cancel your debt review payment once we are satisfied that it is safe to do so.

If you still choose to stop, reduce, pause or change your payment before DCGsa confirms that it is safe, DCGsa will require a signed debit order or payment instruction form.

This form records your instruction. It also confirms that you understand the possible risks of late, missed, reduced, paused, short-paid or direct payments.

Changing or cancelling your debit order does not cancel debt review. It also does not remove the debt review status from your credit profile.

In simple terms: even if your PDA statement shows a lower balance than your normal payment, please continue paying until DCGsa confirms the next step in writing. This protects your clearance process and helps us close your file correctly.