READING a bank statement is worth the effort because it will enable you to detect unauthorised debit orders and bank charges and question discrepancies with your bank.

Katoji le Roux, Tobatsi Segele and Alfred Mahlase were able to detect debit orders going out of their accounts without their consent.

Though they know who took their money without their permission, they have been unable to get their refunds totalling R7000.

Le Roux, 30, of Edenvale, Johannesburg, had her savings account debited with R1000 by a company she does not know. She says she did not close her savings account, which she opened while she was a student.

"I only use that account for saving money," she says.

When she checked her statement in August she discovered Stratcol had been debiting her account since June .

On enquiry Stratcol passed the buck to Platinum Credit Card Corporation. Platinum told her she had signed up with them in 2008, but later withdrew her contract. But they did not have the so-called contract and claimed they do not keep old contracts.

They later told her they had mistakenly debited her account and offered to refund the money as soon as she provided them with a bank statement showing the unauthorised debit order.

Le Roux says: "I sent the statements, but my money has not been reversed."

Segele, of Atteridgeville in Pretoria, has been battling for 18 months to get his money from Debtcol, who deducted R5000 from his bank account.

He says when he noticed there was money going to people he did not know, he contacted his bank and was given a phone number that is never answered. A year later Segele found their e-mail address and sent a letter of complaint.

"They promised to place a hold on my account to prevent further debits while they investigated, but the same month they debited my account again," Segele says.

They deducted R70 on the 15th and 31st of each month."

He says R60 was deducted in 2010, but he ignored it, thinking it would stop.

"I took action after the amount increased to R70 and deducted twice every month," Segele says.

Consumer Line discovered that Platinum did not have her name or banking details on their system. Le Roux's ID number was used to open an account belonging to a Mabenga.

Elma Malan, Platinum's customer care manager, agreed to refund Le Roux and Mahlase, but could not explain why they had taken the money.

Responding to Segele's complaint Nape Masemola of Debtcol told Consumer Line he tried to resolve the complaint early in the year, but the client for whom he is collecting the money, Ipeleng Legal, failed to provide a letter authorising them to credit Segele's account.

He says he will give his client 72 hours to produce the letter and if they still don't oblige he will refund Segele with interest and bank charges.

But he says Segele was also not cooperating.

"On numerous occasions, we requested his details so we could request the company to give us his mandate, to address the matter as we could not pick up the information on the system, which might mean his details were captured incorrectly. We are still waiting," he says.