How does Check 21 affect you?
Every year nearly 60,000 airplanes take off and land with an estimated 36 billion paper checks at an annual processing cost of $8 billion. Who pays this $8 billion dollars? The banks and credit unions across the nation, that's who. Why do they go to all this effort and expense? Many state commercial codes stipulated that only a canceled check was proof positive of payment. Since there are nearly 18,000 financial institutions in the United States, most of them have not been able to charge fees to cover this $8 billion cost of letting you have a checking account. This means that all of that money has to come out of other fees, penalties and loan rates.
At least this was the truth until October 21, 2004 when a new federal law took effect trumping states rights to regulate banks within their borders. The Check 21 Act allows a paper preprint of a check to be considered the equivalent of the original check. In English this means a bank in Oregon can copy a deposited check, send the image to your bank via electronic means and receive their money all in the same day.
Image exchange checks will not replace the old fashioned method of moving paper checks any time soon, though the number of checks written a year is decreasing an estimated 5%. Analysts expect the image exchange checks to surpass paper processing in 2006.
So why do banks want to invest in the equipment and security measures necessary to move checks electronically when the other method works? I can name you 5 reasons for every check every financial institution handles and they are all named Lincoln. Every check a bank does not handle is a savings of 5 cents, for an annual average savings, per bank, per year, of $266,000. How will this affect you, the consumer, who writes 120 checks a year for every man, woman, and child in this country? It doesn't affect you very much, except you will likely be receiving a printout of your checks with every statement.
The exception to this is if you are one of the millions of consumers who will write a check on Thursday, the day before your paycheck is deposited. You have become accustomed to writing a check and having a couple days to get the money into the account before the check reaches your bank.
You are using what is called the float principle. Simply put, the float principle is the amount of time it takes a check to be deposited, trucked and flown to your bank.
With image exchange, the float is sunk. Through 2006 the banks and credit unions can collect an estimated $170 million per month in bounced check fees on nearly 7 million checks written on accounts before the money was in the account.
That $170 million translates into 5 cents for every check written in the nation, or nearly $266,000 per bank, per year.
This money will be taken from consumers in the form of "service fees", turning that $35 check into a $70 check because of the $35 bounced check service fee. Who is more likely to have insufficient funds in their checking account - the above average income or the below average income consumers?
I guess it depends on your definition of below average income. The ultra-below make less than $10,000 a year and mostly operate without checking accounts. The ultra-above make more than $250,000 and use electronic or plastic means of paying for their purchases and everyday expenses. That leaves the rest of the nation, approximately 200,000,000 of us to provide enough service fees for the banks to average a quarter million dollars in unearned income each year.
We're the people writing 10 checks every month for every member of our household. We're the busy parents of active children trying to do everything and be everything in what we call an American dream. How can you protect yourself and keep from adding to your banks bottom line? Control your checkbook and perhaps even change your spending habits. As more and more banks switch to the Check 21 system, you have to be ready for when it happens to you.
You can do this in a very simple, practical, and easy manner.
Flip-flop the order of writing checks. Let me demonstrate on Sue, a typical mother of two children (12 & 14) who works at a local office building. Every Friday her weekly paycheck is deposited in her checking account electronically.
How Sue will respond to Check 21 is that from now on she will no longer do the grocery shopping on Thursday after soccer practice. Instead she will wait until Saturday after gymnastics, or even Monday on her way home from work to swing by the store and pickup a couple bags groceries for the week.
By making this switch in routine, she will know the money for the groceries is in the bank.
Now let's make the assumption that instead of some imaginary woman named Sue, this person was you. Did you see what happened? Instead of writing a check before the money was in your account, you waited to write the check after the money was in available. This guaranteed your check would clear and you would not be charged any unexpected service fees. By waiting to write checks until after the funds are in the account will take a little practice on your part and might be more difficult to do than it sounds.
If you make the effort, and train yourself to think like a banker so you can avoid service fees, you will come out money ahead.
As the rules of banking change, you have to know and understand your rights and what these rule changes mean to you. Check 21 legislation was enacted to make check processing easier and more convenient for financial institutions across the country. They are also anticipating a surge in income through service fees. Do your best to avoid padding their bottom line - write checks only after the money is in your account.
is a Financial Literacy Speaker and Author - his book "You Don't Own Money" is available online at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0595186815/brighterfutur-20..
Invitation Envelopes ? Make or Break Your Party
What will separate your party from all the other events of the season? Of all the planning that goes into your special occasion, there is no excuse to forget about specialty envelopes. Your invitation is the first impression that you and your party will have. There are many ways to make your invitations and envelopes the hit of the party.How important are the invitation envelopes? The invitation envelope is the first contact that you will have with your guest list. You are working hard to create a theme for your get together, and your envelopes need to reflect the theme. If you are having a wine tasting party, let your guests know immediately when they grab the mail.
For a baby shower, your envelopes should reflect baby images.Choose Your Envelope ? Tough to DecideEnvelope styles are cooler than ever. Many craft and scrap booking stores have some of the best options no matter what your theme is. Some of the best envelopes are those that have never been seen before. Here...
Invitation Envelopes ? Make or Break Your Party
Checks > Invitation Envelopes ? Make or Break Your Party
Buy: Hold: Sell: Jump
I'm sitting here at my computer desk with a cup of coffee at my elbow. The coffee rest in a mug, the mug garnished with the words Buy, Hold, Sell, Jump, vertically along its sides. Emblazoned across the top of the cup are the words, Wall Street, which encircles the upper portions of the mug. The handle of the mug is quite ornate, rounded at the bottom, with a cradle in the handle's top. In the cradle is a die, with a small metal pin through the die, which enables my thumb too spin the die.
Instead of numbers, as in a pair of dice, the die's choices are Yes, No, and ?. And, lo and behold, an article is born. When do you buy, sell, hold or jump? (A better question still, what do you buy, when do you sell, how long should you hold, and why would you jump?) This article will tackle the word Jump (to find the answer to those other questions, they've been answered in some of my other articles). Would Jump mean off a building? Or Jump to another stock market security? The word Jump reminded...
Buy: Hold: Sell: Jump
Checks > Buy: Hold: Sell: Jump
Oversight 3.8 Introduces Open Knowledge for Customized Analysis and Testing Web-based Interface Allows Users to Create, Modify Oversight’s Integrity Checks
ATLANTA (ContentDesk) April 24, 2006 -- Oversight Systems Inc. today announced the launch of Oversight 3.8 which extends Oversights continuous controls monitoring software by allowing users to easily customize their analysis and build upon Oversights best practices in transaction inspection and continuous monitoring.For more than two years, Fortune 500 companies have relied upon Oversights real-time transaction inspection software to automate the analysis and testing of auditors and fraud examiners across their heterogeneous financial systems. With real-time inspection over every transaction, Oversight identifies all errors and control violations, drives defect-free financial processes, and sustains Sarbanes-Oxley compliance by providing a wide range of automated mitigating controls. Oversight continues to expand upon our library of Integrity Checks that encapsulate the best practices of auditors and our intuitive interface empowers non-technical users to apply Oversights advanced...
Oversight 3.8 Introduces Open Knowledge for Customized Analysis and Testing Web-based Interface Allows Users to Create, Modify Oversight’s Integrity Checks
Checks > Oversight 3.8 Introduces Open Knowledge for Customized Analysis and Testing Web-based Interface Allows Users to Create, Modify Oversight’s Integrity Checks
10 Easy Ways To Organize Your Business Finances
Whether you are a new entrepreneur or a more experienced business owner, taking control of your finances can feel like a part-time job.
Some simple tips can help you streamline your time, organize your finances and reduce the stress of business money matters.
1.
Keep Your Bills in One Place
When the mail comes, make sure it goes in one place.
Misplaced bills can be the cause of unwanted late fees and can damage your credit rating.
Whether it's a drawer, a box, or a file, be consistent.
Size is also important.
If you get a lot of mail, use an area that won't get filled up too quickly.
2.
Pay Your Bills on Schedule
Bill paying can be simplified if it's done at scheduled times during the month.
Depending on how many bills you receive, you can establish set times each month when none of your bills will be late.
If you're paying bills as you receive...
Checks > 10 Easy Ways To Organize Your Business Finances
A Balancing Act: How To Properly Organize Your Checkbook
With all the things you have to remember to do on a regular basis, balancing your checkbook doesn't always receive priority. But if you plan ahead and schedule some time for this important task, you will reap the financial rewards.Before you begin make sure you have the following items on hand: checkbook, ledger book, ATM and deposit receipts, calculator and a pencil. The next step is to check your items. First, separate your returned checks and ATM withdrawal slips into two distinct piles. Then place your returned checks in numerical order and compare them to your ledger book by writing an "X" in the ledger beside every figure that matches a cancelled check.The next step is to put your ATM withdrawal slips in chronological order (that is, according to date) and compare them to your ledger book by placing an "X" beside every figure that matches an ATM withdrawal amount.
You can make final changes to your ledger by comparing your deposit receipts with your bank statement. Write...
A Balancing Act: How To Properly Organize Your Checkbook
Checks > A Balancing Act: How To Properly Organize Your Checkbook
Composer Says Goodbye to CBS News with “Thank You, Dan Rather” — A Musical Revue
San Diego, CA,
(ContentDesk) June 26, 2006 When Katie Couric arrives on the CBS Evening News there will be brand new music to greet her. That was a harsh blow for composer, Neal Fox, co-writer of the theme, who had been happily depositing checks for over a decade. When I heard they were changing the theme, my house flashed before my eyes. Thats a lot of cash to lose. But, instead of mourning his loss, Fox created his second one-man showThank you, Dan Ratherwhich will open in San Diego this fall. (Dates and venue to be announced.)The cheeky title song, Thank you, Dan Rather, is a clue that theres enough twisted humor and truth in this show to keep you from wandering off to stretch your legs.
Foxs pop songs feature social commentary, satire, and ballads that are touching but never sappy. Fox plays piano and guitar and, in between numbers, shares anecdotes about his life in the music business from his early days as a recording artist (on three major labels) to...
Composer Says Goodbye to CBS News with “Thank You, Dan Rather” — A Musical Revue
Checks > Composer Says Goodbye to CBS News with “Thank You, Dan Rather” — A Musical Revue
Lawsuit Funding
Lawsuit Funding is essential to victims of personal injury who are without sufficient income and are awaiting a legal settlement.
All too often a person is injured by the wrongful acts of another but must wait years to receive his or her fair compensation.Finally there are companies like Global Financial (http://www.glofin.com) that offer plaintiffs cash advances against their pending legal claims.
They do not do credit checks or income varifications, they simply evaluate the legal claim and then advance a portion of the potential award and wait for payment from the proceeds of the settlement or judgment.
It is a very risky business, which is why banks are not involved and specialty finance companies like Global Financial take the risk.Lawsuit Funding is like "Lawsuit Insurance".
A plaintiff can assure or guarantee a financial recovery from his or her legal claim by taking a cash advance from Global Financial...
Checks > Lawsuit Funding
Ring SMS UBiee USA Team Crusades to Help Consumers Combat Rising Fuel Prices
(ContentDesk) September 19, 2005 -- Rising gas, bio-diesel and diesel fuel prices have had an almost insurmountable impact on the trucking industry, as well as railroads and other transportation industries and businesses. Although some increases in fuel can be passed down to consumers, it is not enough to meet their rapidly depleting budgets. According to a recent poll by ABC News / Washington Post, 64% of participants reported a personal financial hardship as a result of recent increases in...
Checks How does Check 21 affect you? Ring SMS UBiee USA Team Crusades to Help Consumers Combat Rising Fuel Prices
Checks > Ring SMS UBiee USA Team Crusades to Help Consumers Combat Rising Fuel Prices
To Waiver or not to Waiver
Waiver RequirementsMost Participant Liability Insurance Policies now require that participants sign waivers. These waivers vary from policy to policy, and their legal implications vary jurisdiction to jurisdiction and case by case. If the participant is a minor, a parent or legal guardian must sign the waiver. Generally, waivers are used when there is a risk of being held responsible for something that should not be your responsibility. In the case of sports, it is a known that accidents do happen.All...
suits Checks How does Check 21 affect you? To Waiver or not to Waiver
Checks > To Waiver or not to Waiver
Checks How does Check 21 affect you? refinance
US Broadband Penetration
Boca Raton, FL (ContentDesk) July 17, 2006 -- voip.com - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reports a 32% increase in the number of US broadband subscribers during 2005, giving the US the highest total number of broadband connections in the world. As of June 30, 2005, the FCC has redefined broadband or high-speed lines as services that deliver connection speeds in excess of 200 kilobits per second (kbps) in at least one...
Checks US Broadband Penetration
Checks > US Broadband Penetration
Checks
This page loaded in 1.75655 seconds.