bytebug@pertec.UUCP (06/26/84)
Included with my Sears bill this month was an ad for a new(?)
bill-paying service being offered by Sears. For $3.95/month, you can
have Sears make electronic fund transfers in your behalf from your
checking account to payees of your choice. You can arrange for
automatic payments to occure regularly (rent, car payment, etc), and
also you can call up with a touch tone phone and arrange for other
non-regular payments. I called up the toll-free information number
(1-800-621-4667) for a "live" demonstration, where one of their
operators sets up a conference call between you, the operator, and the
QuickPay computer, to show you what can be done, and answer any
questions you might have. I was impressed, and figure that $3.95 is a
bargain, when you consider the cost of stamps, checks, and gasoline (to
get the stamps and checks to the post office).
Any comments from people already using a service of this sort, since I
understand some banks and credit unions have been offering services
like it for awhile. Anything to watch out for?
I got an ad for Bank of America's "Home Banking" service a few months
back, which is the same sort of thing, but they want $8/month in
addition to having a BofA checking account. The advantage is that you
get to call up a computer instead of using a touch-tone telephone, but
when I asked about this, the Sears representative indicated that this
was in the future, and will be provided by the Sears/IBM/???? Teletext
service announced last year.
--
roger long
pertec computer corp
{ucbvax!unisoft | scgvaxd | trwrb | felix}!pertec!bytebugabc@brl-tgr.ARPA (Brint Cooper ) (06/29/84)
Why should you pay Sears 4 bucks a month to do what any modern bank will be glad to do for esentially nothing?
2212zap@mhuxm.UUCP (putnins) (06/29/84)
I have a checking account from Carteret S&L in New Jersey, and they provide the same service for free.
rld@bentley.UUCP (Bob Duncanson) (06/29/84)
I have been using a service like this for a long time. My bank account is City Federal Savings. I give them a list of 1) "merchants" I wish to be able to pay on an irregular basis, by phone I call an 800 number at the bank, and talk to a person during business hours (I almost never do this) or leave my instruction with the answering machine (almost always). I have my wife's account, all the utility companies (gas, phone, electric) and my VISA card, among others on this list. 2) another list of "merchants" I wish paid a regular amount at regular times. These are paid automatically. I have my mortgage, gas, electric, phone, cable tv, garbage collectors and charitable donations all on this list. I have NEVER had a problem, except once a utilty company messed up. (the gas, phone and electric are on both lists. I pay an estimated amount every month, and if I get too far behind I call up as above to supplement. Once I got too far beyond and write to the company for a refund.) I can change the list whenever I want, just by filing a supplementary form. I am notified by mail with a complete detailed listing a week or two after I file that the lists are updated. The report shows dates and amounts for the periodic bills. The period is not necessarily one month, other periods are allowed. The monthly bank statement identifies each payment by "merchant name", which is better than: CHK 09387761420 $375.00! At the end of each year (well, in January) I receive a summary of amounts payed to each "merchant" for the past year -- useful for tax-figuring! The whole thing costs me on $0.15 per transaction, which is less than the twenty cents (soon to go up) that I would pay in postage if I mailed a check! -- [Nothing cute to say.] Bob Duncanson cbosgd!bentley!rld AT&T Bell Laboratories, Piscataway, NJ eventually to become: Liberty Corner, NJ
ed@mtxinu.UUCP (07/07/84)
Is $3.95 a bargain? I pay $1.50 a month plus 0.15/payment for the same service from First Interstate Bank, where my checking account is. Also, given Sears credit department's history of accuracy and record reporting, I'm not sure I'd use their services at any price. -- Ed Gould ucbvax!mtxinu!ed
ix21@sdccs6.UUCP (07/08/84)
There have been several postings comparing Sears "QuickPay" service with the similar services offerer by banks. I would like to point out some advantages that the Sears service has that the banks don't. The first is that Sears allows you to pay bills to anyone you might owe or would like to pay money to, landlords, friends, another bank account. All the other programs have a list of merchants that have agreed to accept electronic bill payments. Sears will mail a check to anyone you wish as long you agree to make at least two payments to that person or organization. Other programs deduct the money for the bill payment immediately; Sears waits two days after the payment and then charges your checking account for the payment. Sears also charges you for all the payments for a given day in one charge, so that your bank only charges you for one transaction if they charge you per transaction. Personally at the current time I don't use any bill paying service. All my banks and utilities are within walking distance or have drop boxes within walking distance of where I lived, but I find it funny that the bank whose bill paying service I formerly used, First Interstate Bank, gave me more trouble than Sears ever did, and there was another posting today saying that FIB is probably more error free than Sears.
bytebug@pertec.UUCP (07/26/84)
> Why should you pay Sears 4 bucks a month to do what any > modern bank will be glad to do for esentially nothing? Since when did *any* bank do something for essentially nothing?!?! It used to be that savings accounts were free, but now, unless I maintain a minimum balance of at least 3-4 digits, I end up paying the bank for the privilege of letting them use my money! And much the same thing with checking accounts - every one I've seen says that you must have at least $N in an account (not necessarily the checking account) or else pay a fixed monthly fee and/or a fee for each check/transaction. I posted the original query, and still haven't really made up my mind about the Sears "QuickPay" Service. Since they offer a free month's serivce if I sign up by the end of July, I think I'll give it a try. I'm also evaluating different banks, and would be willing to switch to a different bank if it were to offer a service essentially the same as the Sears service, at a lower cost. I'd be interested in hearing from people who have used a bank's bill paying services and/or hints about what banks to avoid, what banks to look into, etc. -- roger long pertec computer corp {ucbvax!unisoft | scgvaxd | trwrb | felix}!pertec!bytebug