[Jack Wallace]

I am trying to encourage more of my customers to start paying electronically, quite a few do already but not as many as I would like.
The bank charges me 30p for each cheque I deposit so I have been thinking about passing this on to the customer in the hope it will get them to either use online banking after each clean or set up a standing order.
I was thinking that with a carefully worded letter I could make people see the benefits of standing order, such as cost and time saving.
Has anyone tried charging for cheques? If so what were the results?

[Sean Dyer]

unless you leave a sae its costing them about .30p to send as well

[lee09]

Hi Jack,
I have gone from 50 odd cheques a month to about 6. I asked them to use phone banking or internet transfer.
I tell my custies that they cost over a pound to bank with the banks charges and also my time in taking them and standing in the que. I hate collecting but banking is worse.
Most will understand if you ask or write to them
Lee

[andyjm1]

Next time your prices go up, add an extra 30p onto the customers who usually pay by cheque, problem solved.

[Jack Wallace]

Sean... Yes we leave an envelope but I am thinking of stopping that also as an added encouragement to swap to electronic. As you rightly point out this costs the customer so i hope it will be enough to sway them.

Lee...That’s encouraging news, I am glad it went well for you as I am getting about 250 cheques at the moment and with expansion plans I don’t want that to increase.

Andy... I understand what you mean but it will only solve a part of the problem, processing cheques is not only expensive but very time consuming, I am trying to cut down on both.

[clearlyclean]

Bank transfer is quick convienent and saves paper postage and much more efficent you have to sell it to them its hard no one likes change but no one wants to pay for a cheque either and put your prices up at least yearly or you ll get stuck in a rut and working for peanuts in 5 years time

[Carl2009]

Just changed my bank a/c to Alliance and Leicester - free business banking, and you can pay in at any PO:
https://www.alliance-leicestercommercialbank.co.uk/content/SB010002.asp

Not a complete solution and a bit of a PIA to change bank accounts, direct debits, but so far so good.

[dave.e]

I am trying to encourage more of my customers to start paying electronically, quite a few do already but not as many as I would like.
The bank charges me 30p for each cheque I deposit so I have been thinking about passing this on to the customer in the hope it will get them to either use online banking after each clean or set up a standing order.
I was thinking that with a carefully worded letter I could make people see the benefits of standing order, such as cost and time saving.
Has anyone tried charging for cheques? If so what were the results?

Hi jack i charge £0.50 for cheques and most off the customers are ok with that

[JUST GUTTERS]

why would you charge the customer when your bank charges are tax deductable....

[Clive McDonald]

Good topic jack i get a lot/similar amount to you.

I read the suggested remedies with interest.


I have two biz accounts.sanander and alliance and leicester- both are free.I kept copping for a penalty clause of hitting the ton in any one month with sanander so opened the ally account.

In the ally a machine takes each cheque individually and gives a photocopy receipt.If you go in with ten cheques ( it says in the brochure you may only pay five in on one day) you hog the machine a bit.The staff have told me to take no notice of the five limit and i always staple my reciepts together afterwards. I have to be there every day so this isn't that bad for me.

With santander you have a page from a paying in book that you list the cheques (name and amount and total value and number). I have a specially made stamp with my account details to stamp the back with.These cheques are put into an envelope which a machine swallows.You have to put in the details, say 10 cheques, value £120.

In essence one account takes credit transfer, the other cheques.This does make reconcilliation easier.

I agree it's a huge waste of time.

[formb]

I am trying to encourage more of my customers to start paying electronically, quite a few do already but not as many as I would like.
The bank charges me 30p for each cheque I deposit so I have been thinking about passing this on to the customer in the hope it will get them to either use online banking after each clean or set up a standing order.
I was thinking that with a carefully worded letter I could make people see the benefits of standing order, such as cost and time saving.
Has anyone tried charging for cheques? If so what were the results?

Get an appointment with your bank manager. Your bank is ripping you off.

[lee09]

I am trying to encourage more of my customers to start paying electronically, quite a few do already but not as many as I would like.
The bank charges me 30p for each cheque I deposit so I have been thinking about passing this on to the customer in the hope it will get them to either use online banking after each clean or set up a standing order.
I was thinking that with a carefully worded letter I could make people see the benefits of standing order, such as cost and time saving.
Has anyone tried charging for cheques? If so what were the results?

Get an appointment with your bank manager. Your bank is ripping you off.

A bank ripping us off? are you sure!#
Lee

[geefree]

My envelopes, and ink, and any cheque charges...... are always included in the quote i give.

They have to be .

[traps7]

Just changed my bank a/c to Alliance and Leicester - free business banking, and you can pay in at any PO:
https://www.alliance-leicestercommercialbank.co.uk/content/SB010002.asp

Not a complete solution and a bit of a PIA to change bank accounts, direct debits, but so far so good.

I was thinking of opening an account with these as it's free permanently, but I don't have a branch local enough. (Well it's about 3 miles away)
So just to clarify, I can pay in either at the Alliance & Leicester branch or a Post Office? Also can you pay in at Santander as I think that's who they're owned by?

[Gav Camm lammy 283]

not yet you cant 

[Carl2009]

You can pay in in any PO with this A and L account. I think you can pay in at any Santander branch too. You can pay in 10 cheques on each slip (if I have 14 cheques that's 2 slips - 10 on one and 4 on the next). With cash you just take the wodge in, hand over a swipe card (like a Switch card) and they count your money, confirm the amount is what you think it is and it's done. There is no splitting it all down into £20's £10's £5's and loose change like you have to do in a regular bank.

[traps7]

Thanks Carl. I'm gonna apply Monday. I think it will look much more professional for customers to be able to write a cheque out to my business name rather than me personally.

[mlscontractcleaner]

We use Alliance and Leicester too; no charges, no problems

[CLEANCARE WC]

Im A & L. Instead of using post office or sending cheques to bootle, use the atm in branch it prints a photocopy of each cheque for proof plus you can pay in up to 90 notes (cash) at a time. the machine counts and gives u a receipt. plus cheques clear in four days this way. I do this cos i would be gutted to lose a load of cheques in the post ..far too tight for that.

[CLEANCARE WC]

sorry just realised slumpbuster pretty much covered that