Cheques move a step closer to extinction

Lansdowne

BarclaysManager wrote: »

Cheques will not always have a place - clearing will eventually cease to be. Clearing reduces year on year, bla bla bla

Use of Royal Mail reduces year on year, and Post Offices are being closed, but no-one suggests they will all close.
Reading newspapers reduces year on year, and one or two may close, but it is not suggested that papers will cease to be.
Fewer people get married each year, yet there is a queue of private venues advertising their facility as a wedding venue.

withnell

What about birthday gifts? My grandparents always used to send me a cheque - bit impersonal for them to just put a note in the card "I've FPed you the money"

AndyInYorks

I have to say I agree with BarclaysManager here, cheques will be a thing of the past soon, and rightly so. They cost the bank more to administer than electronic payments, they are open to fraud/alteration and cheque guarantee cards can be used to "steal" money from the bank by guaranteeing cheques when the account is empty.

Just because we have always had these things doesn't mean we always should.

I opened my current bank account in 2005 and I have used 3 cheques since then. All to pay subscriptions to a local society, but I could just as easily pay them via FP if they weren't so old fashioned as to want a cheque.

Business customers shouldn't be using cheques anyway if they have any sense as most business tariffs will charge more for cheques than electronic payments.

Ifts

BarclaysManager wrote: »

It will happen, and your example is an especially poor one - Know Your Client obligations can be met easily enough without requiring a cheque, or your specific use could be done by Direct Debit.

Like I said IMO (you don't have to agree) I think its handy having a cheque book and they are useful.
And I don't think the example that I used was a poor one, it is only one example of many where a cheque book comes in use.
The reason I used this specific example on this occasion was because only this morning having a cheque book and being able to send a cheque helped me to apply for a savings bond by post.
I was trying to apply to open a Close Brothers premium gold bond. I had to phone their helpline up this morning because I couldn't send them a copy of my bank statement as supporting document because I bank on-line and don't receive statements in the post, the adviser said as long as I sent my opening deposit by cheque from my linked account then that would be fine (which is the same Ive had to ever do previously opening other savings bonds), so it was good to be able to write a cheque.
So although I do know Client obligations can be met easily enough without requiring a cheque. In this instance it DID help me having a cheque book and YES I am grateful that I could write a cheque on this occasion.

Edit: I admit one day they will cease to exist. Fair enough when the retailer refuses to accept your cheque but what about when a bank or other institution actually specifies you have to pay by cheque, it sure is handy having a cheque book.

Sol00

BarclaysManager wrote: »

Greed is a human affliction, it is the selfish desire for something. A bank is not a human, a bank is a business and thus has a responsibility to generate profit for the shareholders.

This is a business decision, not a case of greed. Cheque guarantees are rarely used and often unenforceable.

More over, said decision was made after careful consideration by the Payments Council, which compromises representatives from the banks and the government. So, sorry, it's not "those greedy banks."

Funny that a bank manager would come to the defence of the banks :rotfl:.

Extant

Lansdowne wrote: »

Sorry, BarMan, that is not a proper answer to the reasonable question from Clapton.

A cheque is an instruction to my bank to pay the club/tradesman the given sum from my account.

The unique point about a cheque is that I can send it to the club/tradesman in the post. (A cheque guarantee card is used over the counter and it is understandable that this can be phased out once everyone can use a debit card for the same purpose.)

How do you propose I can use a sort code and account number in the post, in such a way that the money is identified by the trader etc at the other end.

Increased prevalence of direct debit schemes or a shift to you just paying the bill online, etc.

Instead of:

1. Company/trader issues invoice (cost 30p to send)
2. Client returns remittance advice with cheque by post (cost 30p to return)
3. Company banks cheque, waits for it to clear, bill is paid (cost 60p banking fee)

You will have:

1. Company/trader issues invoice with banking details to remit payment to (costs 30p)
2. Client sends funds to quoted banking details, bill is paid (costs nothing to client, costs nothing to most businesses as automated credit)

You have the top process taking days - over one business week with post and clearing included - versus hours, potentially, especially if invoices are e-mailed.

Sorry Lansdowne, but there is no amazing benefit to cheques that cannot easily be replicated or replaced with a little education.

Inactive

BarclaysManager wrote: »

Greed is a human affliction, it is the selfish desire for something. A bank is not a human, a bank is a business and thus has a responsibility to generate profit for the shareholders.

This is a business decision, not a case of greed. Cheque guarantees are rarely used and often unenforceable.

More over, said decision was made after careful consideration by the Payments Council, which compromises representatives from the banks and the government. So, sorry, it's not "those greedy banks."

The Bank Directors are " human " as well we all know, as are the shareholders, greed is the main factor behind this move, whatever your obviously biased opinion is.

There is no other reason for this move.

We all know that the Banks control Government, that is blatantly obvious.:rolleyes:

ahai1

Put your name or a refernece number or something else to identify you in the reference field. It is done by lots of people.

Lansdowne wrote: »

Sorry, BarMan, that is not a proper answer to the reasonable question from Clapton.

A cheque is an instruction to my bank to pay the club/tradesman the given sum from my account.

The unique point about a cheque is that I can send it to the club/tradesman in the post. (A cheque guarantee card is used over the counter and it is understandable that this can be phased out once everyone can use a debit card for the same purpose.)

How do you propose I can use a sort code and account number in the post, in such a way that the money is identified by the trader etc at the other end.

Extant

Lansdowne wrote: »

Use of Royal Mail reduces year on year, and Post Offices are being closed, but no-one suggests they will all close.
Reading newspapers reduces year on year, and one or two may close, but it is not suggested that papers will cease to be.
Fewer people get married each year, yet there is a queue of private venues advertising their facility as a wedding venue.

No electronic alternative exists for the moving of small packets etc., so of course no-one is suggesting Royal Mail/Post Office will disappear.

It is very seriously suggested that newspapers will cease to be, and exist online only. Such a trend has already started in the US; a clear illustration of the benefits of electronic distribution over paper in costs.

The last point is somewhat erroneous, as businesses offering services says nothing for the validity of marriage.

There is no "suggestion" that clearing will disappear, it is a reality. Clearing is going through a managed decline until the end user is adequately aware of alternatives etc. It is, of course, not a simple thing to just finish. But, it will go.

olly300

BarclaysManager wrote: »

Increased prevalence of direct debit schemes or a shift to you just paying the bill online, etc.

Instead of:

1. Company/trader issues invoice (cost 30p to send)
2. Client returns remittance advice with cheque by post (cost 30p to return)
3. Company banks cheque, waits for it to clear, bill is paid (cost 60p banking fee)

You will have:

1. Company/trader issues invoice with banking details to remit payment to (costs 30p)
2. Client sends funds to quoted banking details, bill is paid (costs nothing to client, costs nothing to most businesses as automated credit)

You have the top process taking days - over one business week with post and clearing included - versus hours, potentially, especially if invoices are e-mailed.

Sorry Lansdowne, but there is no amazing benefit to cheques that cannot easily be replicated or replaced with a little education.

Tradesmen are easy to deal with.

The main problem are schools and clubs children belong to.

Yes there are ways around this but this relies on the kids giving their parents letters immediately they get them and this doesn't happen.