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Get Permission to License or Reproduce this Article. Most Popular Newsletters News Alerts. How carefully do you guard your digital privacy? I take every opportunity to manage my data sharing.
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Canonical Launches Ubuntu Convert more international customers by selling like a local with Digital River. More from Personal Finance: Even financially savvy savers are getting this wrong The IRS delayed refunds for , taxpayers last year Americans feel bad about this investing mistake. Grant suggests using debit instead of credit cards wherever possible, so consumers are limited to spending up to their account balance. If using a credit card, consumers should avoid charging more than they can pay off in full when the bill arrives.
Some businesses have also shifted entirely away from cash, and only allow for card transactions. But barring cash discriminates against people who don't have credit cards or bank accounts. Around 6. While the Federal Reserve couldn't directly measure the number of cash transactions, ATM withdrawals were down 0. Skip Navigation. Key Points. The number of check payments in fell below the number of automated clearing house debit transfers for the first time ever, according to a new Federal Reserve study.
We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification. I Accept Show Purposes. Your Money. Personal Finance. Your Practice. Popular Courses. What Is an Automatic Bill Payment? Key Takeaways An automatic bill payment occurs when money is automatically transferred on a scheduled date to pay a recurring bill, such as a mortgage, credit card, or utility bill.
Individuals can set up an automatic bill payment through their online checking account, brokerage, or mutual fund to pay their monthly bills.
Advantages of automatic bill payments include the ease of automated payment, the ability to avoid late payments, and the potential to maintain or improve your credit score.
Disadvantages of automatic bill payments include the difficulty in canceling them, the need to keep adequate funds in your checking account, and the potential of incurring a returned payment or late fee. Pros Payments are easy to automate from a checking account. Organizing automatic bill payments helps you avoid late payments.
Paying automatically and always on time helps you improve or maintain a good credit score. Cons If you don't keep a cushion in your checking account, an automatic payment could bounce.
You may incur a returned payment fee or late fee. You could miss catching mistakes or fraud because the payment is automatic. It does mean that consumers have to view claims critically on both sides of an environmental issue. Electronic communications are digital, not renewable. Trees are renewable, as long as paper manufacturers use sustainable businesses practices, and these days most are required to under regulations designed to limit carbon emissions.
Manufacturing paper leaves a carbon footprint, as does manufacturing the computers and smartphones used to receive electronic communications. In recent years, consumers have seen a shift in how financial institutions, utilities and government agencies communicate with their customers.
As private companies and government agencies look for cost savings, the move toward electronic communication has been sweeping the nation. As the private and public sectors push to go paperless, Consumer Action has joined the Keep Me Posted campaign and the Coalition for Paper Options to ensure that consumers have a choice in how they receive bills and statements. The Keep Me Posted campaign works to ensure that consumer access to paper billing options is protected. Since it started, Keep Me Posted has focused on educating and challenging corporations that are removing consumer choice and changing to all-digital communications, and even charging fees for paper statements.
The campaign argues that the move toward digital communication as a savings for corporations merely shifts the cost of printing onto the consumer, either by charging a fee for sending paper statements, or by relying on consumers to print previously free documents at home. However, cost is not the only issue. Accessing these documents online is impossible for many consumers. According to the Pew Research Center, 33 percent of Americans in urban areas and 42 percent in rural locations have no access to broadband internet, making electronic communication an unlikely option.
Millions of others with internet access lack the digital skills or confidence needed to manage their finances online. When confronted with these stats, the need to retain consumer access to paper communications becomes clear.
Another group, the Coalition for Paper Options, composed of consumer organizations like Consumer Action, National Consumers League and National Grange, labor unions, rural advocates and printing companies, is pushing back on government agencies that have redirected their communications with consumers to electronic notices rather than paper.
The Coalition believes it is crucial for consumers to have choice in the way they receive financial information. SSA blamed budget restrictions and the rising number of beneficiaries for the decision. Social Security contributors were asked to go online and create an account to access their statements, requiring them to provide personal details like a Social Security number, mailing address and email address.
This decision created increased security problems for SSA, including a rise in phishing emails and fake government websites. It also required that those who could not create a legitimate online account due to problems with the verification system go to understaffed SSA offices to solve the problem. For a time, it seemed mounting pressure from the Coalition for Paper Options and the public had won the day when, in , the agency reinstated paper statements.
However, in , SSA once again stopped sending annual paper statements to those under age Investors who want paper reports will be required to request them. The SEC made the move this past summer, despite overwhelming data suggesting that consumers prefer paper as the default.
Consumer Action and other groups filed a petition for review of the rule with the U. The petition for review is pending before the court. The Coalition calls for paper default with the option for investors to proactively choose opt-in to e-delivery if it fits their needs. This imbalance will force many investors—the very population the SEC is commissioned to protect—to go out of their way to access important information mandated by securities regulators and designed to keep shareholders informed.
Consumer Action is a non-profit c 3 organization that has championed the rights of underrepresented consumers nationwide since Throughout its history, the organization has dedicated its resources to promoting financial and consumer literacy and advocating for consumer rights in both the media and before lawmakers to promote economic justice for all. With the resources and infrastructure to reach millions of consumers, Consumer Action is one of the most recognized, effective and trusted consumer organizations in the nation.
Consumer education. To empower consumers to assert their rights in the marketplace, Consumer Action provides a range of educational resources.
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