Electronic Check Conversion And How It Works
Author: Peter Kenny
Electronic check conversion is becoming more popular these days
and consumers should know what it is and how it can affect them.
The last thing anyone wants is to bounce a check or to have a
clerk deny a sale because of a lack of funds in your account.
So what is electronic check conversion?
In simple terms, electronic check conversion is a transaction
in which your written check is used only as a source of
information. The information taken from it includes the check
number, your account number, and the number that identifies your
financial institution or the routing number. This information
about your check is then used to make a one-time electronic
payment from your account. This is also known as an electronic
funds transfer. The written check itself is not the method of
payment, which is the main difference between what we used to
know about check payments.
You will know that an electronic check conversion is taking
place because, by law, when you provide your check, you must be
given notice that information from your check may be used to
make an electronic payment from your account.
Consumers should understand that there may be different ways
that this information is given to them. For example, a credit
card company might put a notice in your monthly bill telling you
that if you pay by written check, your check may be used to make
an electronic fund transfer from your bank account.
For those who use checks at stores that use electronic check
conversion, you will receive notice in two different ways. The
first notice is a posted sign, usually located at the register,
which states that if you pay by written check you are agreeing
to let the store make an electronic fund transfer from your
account. The second notification is a copy of the posted notice
that you keep for your records. In most cases, this second
notice usually appears on your sales receipt.
It is important for all consumers to understand that an
electronic transaction may be processed faster than a check. For
this reason you want to make sure that you have the money in
your account when you make the transaction.
Your bank will not return any checks that are converted, even
if you normally receive your original checks or images of those
checks with your statement. This is something new to many
consumers. In addition, you have different rights with an
electronic check conversion transaction than you do with your
normal check payments.
With an electronic check conversion, consumers have the legal
right to an investigation by bank when an error occurs.
Consumers also have the right to receive notice that if they
provide a check as payment, information from the check may be
used to make an electronic payment from their account. You must
also be notified of any fees that the store collects if there is
not enough money in your account to cover the transaction.
Consumers should understand that merchants can charge for
non-sufficient funds just as they can do with written checks if
there is not enough money to cover the purchase. This is the
same as with written checks.
About The Author: Peter Kenny is a writer for The Thrifty Scot,
please visit us at
http://www.loansubmit.co.uk
http://www.thriftyscot.co.uk
http://www.thriftyscot.com
