Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Paperless Billing?

Posted by Cliff on from the keeping-a-paper-trail dept.

Bruha writes "Almost all of the bills I receive today have the option to go paperless. I already pay all utilities and creditcards online but have yet to tell them to stop sending me a physical bill even though they heavily advertise the advantages of it. My concern are mistakes they could audit out and claim were not there. Has anyone experienced any problems with paperless billing or are my worries without merit?"

16 of 114 comments (clear)

  1. Problems happen no matter what... by -=[Dr.+AJAX]=- · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I think mistakes could be made either way. Personally, I'd be checking both against my own records rather than errors between the two version of the statements.

    1. Re:Problems happen no matter what... by sporktoast · · Score: 3, Funny

      I think mistakes could be made either way. Personally, I'd be checking both against my own records rather than errors between the two version of the statements.
      Aw, cmon! If paperless is good enough for something important, like voting, then it should certainly do for something as insignificant as your personal finances.

      --
      In a related story, the IRS has recently ruled that the cost of Windows upgrades can NOT be deducted as a gambling loss.
  2. I won't give them the satisfaction. by digitalvengeance · · Score: 4, Insightful

    My credit card provider has been trying to get me to go with online billing for a while now, and to be honest, it would be easier for me - but I just won't give them the satisfaction.

    They save money when you choose to get your bill online only, and so they refuse to allow me to get my bill online and off, though that would be truly customer-centric. So, until they offer to give ME a portion of the savings from mailing every month, they'll just have to keep licking envelopes.

    Josh.

    --
    How many roads must a man walk down? 42.
    1. Re:I won't give them the satisfaction. by hawkstone · · Score: 4, Insightful

      they refuse to allow me to get my bill online and off

      I do almost all of my bills online. Interestingly, my credit card company allows me to keep getting my bill in paper even though I pay the bill online. (It's not that interesting in that they're not the only ones doing this for me, but judging from this comment, I'm guessing it's not uncommon to disallow it.)

      Here's the problem, though. They keep "offering" to stop sending me my paper bill. First question: why would I want to stop receiving it? It's an automatic reminder that it's due, it leaves me a way to pay by check if I change online banking companies, and it's a nice double-check that they're not screwing me.

      Continuing on: when I choose to stop receiving my paper bills (by a simple mouse click online), they won't allow me to go back to receiving them. I might be able to do so if I sent them a letter or something, but still.... Zero incentive to stop receiving the paper versions.

    2. Re:I won't give them the satisfaction. by Prior+Restraint · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I assume you're joking about the envelope-licking, but one incentive to go paperless is that it reduces their costs, which means they'll be capable of charging you less. These days, it's easy enough to roll any balance to a new card, so those with good credit can demand a lowered APR (case in point: about a year ago, I decided to cancel one of my cards, and told the sexy-voiced woman they transferred me to that another credit limit hike wouldn't make me change my mind, so they offered to permanently drop my APR to 6%; that changed my mind).

  3. Paperless Billing by calcifer · · Score: 5, Funny

    I bought a doughnut and they gave me a receipt for the doughnut...I don't need a receipt for the doughnut - I give you money and you give me the doughnut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a doughnut. To some skeptical friend, Don't even act like I didn't buy a doughnut, I've got the documentation right here... Oh, wait, I left it at home. In the filing cabinet. Filed under D. For Doughnut. -Mitch Hedberg

  4. Digitally Signed Bills by Knetzar · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I just with companies would send out digitally signed paperless bills. That way one could keep them on CD and use them to show that a mistake was made (if one was made). Until that happens I will continue to keep paper bills.

    Although now that I think about it, I audit stuff as soon as the bill gets sent to me (ok, so in my world that's a few weeks), if there is a problem I call and fix it right away. Whats the difference between paper and email when I call to say that my bill is wrong? For everything (except for maybe banks) you should have proof in another account, such as to prove you paid your credit card bill, just check your bank statement.
    Ok, now I'm confused about what I should do.

  5. Statement Life by aaarrrgggh · · Score: 4, Interesting

    My biggest problem with online statements is that they are only kept online for six months. Between doing taxes and reconciling business expenses, that isn't nearly long enough! It doesn't seem logical for that sort of limit.

    Anybody know a credit card company that keeps records for at least 18 months? Citibank is killing me!

  6. Paperless != No Statement by thecampbeln · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I get a PDF statement emailed to me from my Aussi telephone company and save $5/month to boot. Best of all, just have to file the PDF into a network folder and I've got a "hard copy" to refer to.

    --
    "1984" was ment to be a warning, not a guidebook. You hear that Kim Jong-il!? BushCo?!
  7. lazy by jptechnical · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Ever heard of PDF995? At the least you could pdf your statements. There are a number of ways of storing your statements. If you cant get your statements from 6 months ago because you didnt save them it's your fault, not theirs.

    I am lenient in consideration of your low slashdot number ;-)

    --

    Boredom's not a burden anyone should bear.
  8. You just wait.... by HotNeedleOfInquiry · · Score: 3, Insightful
    Until you get hepatits from that doughnut you bought. Then you'll wish you had a receipt so as you can sue the doughnut maker's pants off...

    --
    "Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
    1. Re:You just wait.... by zulux · · Score: 4, Funny

      Until you get hepatits from that doughnut you bought. Then you'll wish you had a receipt so as you can sue the doughnut maker's pants off...

      Maby if you left their pants on you woulden't get hepatits as easily.

      --

      Moneyed corporations, non-working 'poor' and criminal prisoners are turning productive citizens into tax-slaves.

  9. Don't trust them for reminders to pay by menscher · · Score: 3, Informative

    I've got a credit card (Citibank) and when I went paperless I asked that they email me each month to remind me to pay it. Worked wonderfully for a year or two, and I saved a few dollars on stamps and checks. Then one month they never sent the email, and I didn't pay. They charged a late fee. Fortunately, I log *all* my incoming email, and I could prove they never sent the reminder. They decided to waive the fee THIS time, but if there is a next time I'm responsible. Yeah right. There hasn't been a "next time" yet, fortunately.

  10. Paperless rocks. by ffsnjb · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In the last five years I've been able to get down to writing out 2 checks a month (rent and my net connection - time warner sux and I can't pay it online.) Everything else (I have a ton of bills) gets paid online, and I don't get statements sent.

    I went through my filing cabinet last week and rid myself of all past credit card statements (so many cards in 5 years, all at lower and lower rates). When I was done, I had shredded an entire drawer full of garbage. The best part is that I can't fill it back up because I don't get paper sent to me. The only thing I kept were the account closed notices, but only until I order a new credit report to verify closed accounts.

    Save a tree, man. Get rid of the paper (and recycle your shredded stuff!)

    --
    "Why do you consent to live in ignorance and fear?" - Bad Religion
  11. Some problems by flonker · · Score: 4, Interesting

    My roommate tried going paperless. The telephone company double charged him, and then refused to refund the money. Instead, they gave him a credit for the amount. Problem being, he needed the money they took for food. (He has a nasty habit of letting his bills pile up until they're $300, $400, or more, and only paying when they threaten his service.)

    He also had the gas company claim they didn't receive payment. They did. He showed them proof. Problem resolved, but it was still quite a hassle.

    Long story short, he doesn't do any electronic billing of any sort anymore. (BTW, we're on the south side of Chicago, in case anyone cares.)

  12. paytrust / paymybills by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    i've been using paymybills.com (now paytrust.com for years now.

    I am a rather disorganized person, so i was looking for some service to simplify my management of bills. Online banking services at the time i signed up for paymybills only offered bill payment, not bill receipt. even now, i don't think that anyone else provides such a complete service.

    with paytrust, the beauty (or terror, depending on your viewpoint) is that they receive all of your bills. Bills that are electronically deliverable are handled electronically. those that are not are snail-mailed to them, where they have an army of drones ready to scan them in as jpgs so that you can view them online.

    there are the usual email notifications, scheduling, selective automatic payment of bills( you specify which bills, when, how much, limits, etc, as you would expect). you can also write checks like you would with a bank online payment system.

    yes there are privacy concerns, and it is a little scary to no longer physically recieve bills (but also nice! less mail!) but i wagered that paytrust, a company in the business of providing this service was less likely to screw up than me, someone highly experienced at screwing up bill paying. to my knowledge, paytrust has yet to make any mistake. Something very private doesnt have to be sent to them.

    i cant recommend them more highly.