Accepting Mail-In Checks?

[adakist]

Hello,

I know that many of you probably accept eChecks through PayPal (or some other processor), but how many accept checks via snail mail?

Recently, we have had several clients cancel because they would rather pay with check rather than PayPal, so I wanted to see how you handle this (I have moved on, but do you offer payment via check and find it helpful for sales)?

Also, do you have a PO Box, UPS/FedEx store address, an actual business location with employees which you have clients send the check to, or even your own home address?

Thank you for your opinions/takes.

[WHM-Billy]

i have a po box where they may send.

[Dexxa]

Problem with cheques is that you have to wait for the mail to come and then another 3 days for to to clear in your bank account,

My company will be having cheques for my clients but must be paid 5 days before the invoice date.

[adil]

Well, Another thing that keeps me away from accepting checks, is the transaction fee. for example, if i am in Middle East, and check comes from Europe, then there would be heavy transaction fee that is charged from the check amount. And obvioulsy, the total check amount minus transfaction fee do not equals the original hosting price.

So, Can anyone please tell me , whats the solution for that. Should we ask for the higher amount of check i.e orginial hosting price + transaction fee from the client. Or is there any other better solution available out there .

[country-tyme]

99.9% of our clients pay either by paypal, money order or interac money transfer. We have a couple that do prefer to pay by cheque. As cheques in Canada and the US can take up to 6 days to clear, we ask that they are mailed at least 15 days before expiry of hosting or domain renewals/registrations...

Overseas cheques can take up to 1 month to clear, therefore we do not accept them. You could try bank wire (Europe to Canada about 3 days).

If you are set on taking checks that cost you a transaction fee, then make it quite clear that htere will be this charge added on, no exception.

Regards,

L. Balek

[Syntax]

I have a mailbox in a shipping store (local version of the ups store basically.) Its about $12 a month...however I opted not to accept checks, I dont really like dealing with paper if I can avoid it. E-checks are basically the same thing...if they can send you a check in the mail they can send you an e-check.

If you were to accept checks, look at the post date, tell them their checks need to be posted 5 days before billing is due. That way you can usually have the money in your account to cover your operating costs by the time their money is due.

[Alex]

We have a UPS/Store mailing address and even though the majority of our customers pay via Credit Card or PayPal, we do allow our local clientel to pay by check. It usually takes 1-2 days for them to clear so it's not so bad.

[Corey Bryant]

Our customers mail the checks to us at our business address. Some prfeer to use eChecks but some like to write them and most of them are using some type of accounting system that reminds them they need to pay.

[etechdesigns]

IMO, online check option is much better than snail mail. However, still it has problem of printing and depositing checks. I think it will be easier for transaction through checks for local businesses.

[Ambienthost]

paper checks are the worst possable form of payment. Maybe it is just us but, of the 85 or so people who pay by check, 30% or so are late on average where as the other clients all manage to pay ontime for the most part.

go figure...

[PWS]

I must agree, we used to accept paper checks and for the few that are still using them from back then we still do...always late, always a hassle...I figure I have to pay for my servers, extra software, Alertra, etc. on-line it's just much simpler if the money comes in and goes out the same way (and I don't have to wait in line at the bank & worry about a $25 charge if the check bounces)

[lelahosting]

we accept check/money order through snail mail.

[remcom]

I have found that most small business's, local or not local perfer to send checks. Not totally sure why but it does count as a large percentage of our business sales.

I had a PO Box prior to my acquisition, but now the address is at our Corp office. As much as its a hassle to accept checks it does result in a steady stream of revenue through out the year. Most of the check customers are the ones that prepay for 6 months to a year.

[DonHouston]

Problem with cheques is that you have to wait for the mail to come and then another 3 days for to to clear in your bank account,

My company will be having cheques for my clients but must be paid 5 days before the invoice date.

I do not agree with you on the early part. The bill is due on the invoice date, The banks process time is not the fault of the customer. I mean would you pay 5 days in advance to eat? Same principal. now if the check does not clear you A, suspend the account. B you send them a certified snail mail letting them know that there check has bounced. They have X ammount of days to pay the check by cashiers check or you will turn it over to the DA and they would be responsible for all fee's. Remember that you have to keep a professional mind to it, we have all had something come up so be willing to work with them if they have a good reason. None of us can forsee the future. But that will keep your customer, and you will have mastered the art of customer service. Also remember banks make errors to so if it is a bank error kindly ask for a letter from the bank. Make a copy for your records and submit it to your bank.

[ArielHost]

We get checks from some local companies that host with us, and one of our dedicated server customers who is located in a different state also pays by check. Never had an issue with it. Always best to accept as many different payment options as possible, or you WILL lose some business.

[futurehosting]

We have been in business more than 5 years and only a small % of people request checks, I would say less than 1% overall. We do have one customer who pays via check becuase he doesn't like to give the information out over the internet. His call, hasn't been an issue for us. He has been with us so long that we no longer require that the check be received before the invoice date, just by the invoice date.

[brianoz]

Nearly all of our business is local, so we accept cheques from them for yearly hosting/renewals.

I wouldn't want to accept cheques from overseas, there are simpler alternatives, for both the customer and myself.

[concreteman]

I take checks late and don't worry about it, we are on net/30 with most Check/Invoice clients and shut them off after 60 days. Our customers pay a little more and all seem to keep kinda up to date. Doesn't cost any more to let someone slide for a while, cept the "Cash is King" principle. I have considered charging late fees and may write that into our TOS, but would probably waive it anyway, I have been known to be late at times and like said our customers are generally good for it.

[kev888]

I accept checks, and money orders aswell. In my opinion, it's easier to cash a money order, as there is no risk of it bouncing. If you are recieving a money order from another country (US --> Canada) Be sure to request an International Money Order. I found that out the hard way with my bank, as some will not accept regular money orders.

[valmg]

One of my locals can't ever seem to be able to pay with paypal so she mails a check.
One other does echeck thru paypal.

[z505]

Hello,

I know that many of you probably accept eChecks through PayPal (or some other processor), but how many accept checks via snail mail?

Recently, we have had several clients cancel because they would rather pay with check rather than PayPal, so I wanted to see how you handle this (I have moved on, but do you offer payment via check and find it helpful for sales)?

Also, do you have a PO Box, UPS/FedEx store address, an actual business location with employees which you have clients send the check to, or even your own home address?

Thank you for your opinions/takes.

It saves you some processing fees and you can always mail your money to the bank if you don't want to take the time to run all the way to the bank just to deposit it.. Maybe enforce that people are responsible if their check bounces because you will end up paying $20 NSF fee if it does bounce. It's a risky situatoin but opens up more business. Don't accept cheques from suspicous places such as Romania, Nigeria - and even if your bank deposits the check immediately without waiting for a clear - wait until it is cleared anyway. Some banks will deposit your check for you right away if you have a good relationship with them but then if the check doesn't clear in 5 or so days it can still come back bounced.

[`josh`]

We accpect checks, via a P.O

[webtech]

We accept checks and money orders to our Post Office box that costs us $25/year to rent. If the check is returned by the bank for any reason we charge the client a $25 fee and if they do not make good on it, we send it to NCO Financial Systems or Cleregy to collect on it.

[BannersWorld]

Accepting check! Hum, it wouldn't workout for my situation. Besides, it is pain:nono: