In the spirit of being (hopefully) helpful, it feels like there’s a few things that could be done in the short-term to help here:
Be explicit…
- in the terms, overdraft page, in-app help - and everywhere else - that, where possible, transactions will be declined if you haven’t explicitly agreed an overdraft with Monzo.
- That where transactions can’t be declined for whatever reason, the standard overdraft terms will apply* (£20 buffer, 50p/day - assuming they do?)
In the longer term, it really does feel that how Monzo treats direct debits where there are insufficient funds in the account needs to be revisited. Others have said previously about retrying during the day, but it seems that simple notifications might need a tweak if there is an issue over weekends etc.
Offered in the spirit of being helpful and looking for pragmatic solutions to what seems to be a bit of a confused situation. (I’m deliberately leaving aside the issue of explicit permission for a soft credit search, as it seems like there are more immediate and fundamental issues in clarity over what the offer actually is).
*I think this is right, but I might have misunderstood. Also, it would be useful to know if this will be reported to credit reference agencies and have a negative impact on your profile.