Payment Solutions 2

Enables UK government and wider public sector customers to buy goods and services using procurement cards and to disburse funds using prepaid cards and voucher solutions.

Description

This agreement replaces RM3828 Payment Solutions and RM6255 Voucher Scheme. You can access the supply and maintenance of payment solutions for your payment needs. 

Payment solutions provides you with procurement card solutions which you can use to buy common goods and services, including travel.

You can also access a prepaid card and voucher solution to disburse funds to those who do not have other means of accessing funds.

The solution can provide you with an online management information system which will enable you to manage your purchases and fund dispersal payments effectively and in real time.

Suppliers can offer both off-the-shelf and bespoke solutions to fit your needs. To access bespoke solutions you will need to run a further competition.

The agreement will be for an initial term of 3 years with the option for a 1 year extension. 

For public sector employee benefit reward and recognition use our RM6133 Employee Benefits agreement.

Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation

We completed a piece of work to ensure that suppliers who do not currently hold a Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation, are working closely with the certification bodies to achieve this as quickly as possible. We are satisfied that this is the case in all instances.

We have also worked with suppliers to assess the worthiness of other accreditations. We are satisfied that these alternative accreditations show a level of assurance until suppliers can achieve Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation. You can ask for a list of alternative accreditations by emailing the team.

We will continue to monitor supplier compliance in this area and update our records accordingly. You must always ensure that suppliers meet your requirements before entering into a Call-off agreement with them.

Benefits

  • reduced timescales: CCS has already undertaken a procurement compliant with  procurement regulations – all you need to do is identify your requirements, present these to the market and award a contract
  • choice of supplier: access a wide range of suppliers who can offer both off-the-shelf and bespoke solutions
  • assured supplier standards: suppliers on this agreement are pre-qualified which means they meet the appropriate standards to provide payment solutions
  • receive an annual rebate: available to lot 1 customers based on annual spend and paid retrospectively
  • supports government prompt payment policies:  lot 1 suppliers are guaranteed to be paid within 3 working days
  • management information insights:  analysis of management information can help you understand your behaviours and support future contract negotiations with frequently used suppliers
  • spend control: lot 1 and 2 customers can control spending by setting monthly or single transaction limits using MCG (Merchant Category Group’s) and MCC (Merchant Category Codes)
  • suppliers are Cyber Essentials Plus accredited and meet the required security standards

Products and suppliers

There are 12 suppliers on this agreement

Lot 1: Procurement Cards
Access lodged, virtual and physical card solutions to buy common goods and services. 

You can 'lodge' a card with top spending suppliers so employees can buy goods and services without the need for a physical card.

Lot 1 customers could benefit from:

  • savings between £28 and £45 per card in annual card fees when compared against industry related fees

  • saving at least £5 per transaction when compared to traditional buying methods, such as other bank transfer payments

  • reducing the number of invoices handled by using a lodged or virtual procurement card solution

  • an annual rebate based on spend and is paid retrospectively (back dated) by your chosen supplier

Expires:

4 suppliers

Lot 2: Prepaid Cards
An alternative solution to a cash payment for use at specified merchants. 

Lot 2 customers could benefit from:

  • access services easily through direct award which was not previously available 

  • greater choice of suppliers with flexible pricing to meet your needs

Expires:

5 suppliers

Lot 3: Vouchers
Access an end to end voucher scheme with suppliers who can provide multiple closed-loop vouchers. This means that the merchant (retailer) who issues the voucher redeems the voucher (also known as gift cards). 

Lot 3 customers could benefit from:

  • supplier procedures to provide replacement vouchers and refunds for unused vouchers

  • a wide range of grocery and non grocery merchant vouchers

  • a supplier platform which you can use to administer the voucher schemes and view a transparent report of all orders at all stages

  • suppliers ensuring that vouchers are valid for a period of time specified by the buyer

Expires:

5 suppliers

How to buy

You can buy from this agreement using both direct award or further competition. All customers must take the following steps:

  • review all guidance documents
  • make sure that the scope of this agreement provides a solution for your needs
  • request pricing by contacting info@crowncommercial.gov.uk (pricing will be sent to you in commercial confidence for the purposes of your procurement)
  • decide whether direct award or further competition is the most appropriate route
  • consider your own internal commercial and legal advice
  • keep documents to support decision rational during the procurement process

Pre market engagement

You should consider engaging with suppliers on the appropriate lot before awarding a contract.

Pre market engagement is a useful tool which can help you to state your needs and determine whether direct award or further competition is the best procurement route.

Direct award (all lots)

Check your organisation’s policy to make sure that direct award is a compliant route. You should only use direct award if you are certain:

  • this agreement can meet your product and service needs
  • one supplier meets your needs more than the others and can provide the best value for money
  • you do not need to make any changes to the contract terms and conditions

To place a direct award you will need to:

  1. clearly define your needs by developing your specification
  2. establish your award criteria using Framework Schedule 7 call off award procedure
  3. perform an evaluation of your requirements against supplier price and quality information
  4. award your contract by signing Framework Schedule 6 order form template
  5. publish your contract on Contracts Finder

Direct awards will be priced based on minimum agreement rebate rate for lot 1 and the maximum agreement rates for lot 2 and lot 3.  

Further competition (all lots)

Before running a further competition you should consider what information you need to provide suppliers and how you will provide it.

Suppliers will need accurate and up to date information about:

  • your card/voucher usage and user behaviour
  • your future payment solution needs

This will help them to understand your current profile so that they can accurately respond to your further competition. 

If you would like to use the further competition process, you will need to keep in mind this route to market can take around 4 to 6 weeks to complete, depending on the size of your need.

You can use your own internal eSourcing system to run your further competition or you can use our eSourcing tool. If this is your first time using our eSourcing suite, you will need to register an account.  If you have already registered, sign in to your eSourcing account.

To run a further competition you will need to:

  1. take part in pre-market engagement with suppliers to help you define your needs (optional)
  2. identify the suppliers that can meet your needs and develop your specification (make sure your specification is detailed and includes timescales)
  3.  complete your further competition documents, such as:
    • invitation to tender
    • evaluation criteria
    • draft order form
  4. invite all lot suppliers to submit a tender in writing (this could be by email or through your preferred e-Sourcing tool) 
  5. set a time limit for the submission of tenders, (take into account the time needed to create and submit tenders and the complexity of your needs)
  6. keep each tender confidential until the time limit set out for the return of tenders has ended
  7. evaluate supplier responses (make sure you evaluate all suppliers equally and fairly)
  8. award your call-off contract by sending the following to the successful supplier: 
    • a completed and signed Framework Schedule 6 Order Form
  9. provide unsuccessful suppliers with written feedback on why their tenders were unsuccessful
  10. publish your contract on contracts finder for transparency purposes

Optional schedules

When selecting which optional schedules are relevant to your specific needs, we advise that you follow your own internal process and seek legal advice where appropriate.

You can find a summary of all mandatory and optional schedules within the Guidance and Supplier Quality questions. You can get this by emailing info@crowncommercial.gov.uk or calling 0344 410 2222.

Documents