Page 27 - Book4E

bills. Some institutions also provide a service for sending payments to small companies that don’t have their own electronic capabilities, usually for a small fee. Online services are often a way for financial institutions to entice customers much as they used to do with giveaways.
If you use a personal finance software program such as QuickenTM for managing your budget, there is usually a section in the soft- ware program that will help you connect with your bank and download the information from your bank to your
computer, so you can keep your financial records current.
2 . Direct to company: This involves
signing up for a company’s bill
payment service directly from the
company’s website. This is usually
for credit card or utility compa-
nies. You agree that you are giving
permission to the company and to
your bank to exchange your finan-
cial information. The company
will electronically visit your bank
and withdraw the payment from
your account. One advantage of signing up at individual compa- ny websites is that it allows you to be able to view your complete bill and transaction history and to monitor your current activity.
3 . “Aggregation” or gathering services: Some companies offer online bill-paying services to customers who do not have
these services through their own financial institution. These gathering companies link many websites on one secure website. By entering some pertinent personal information and selecting the companies to which you want to make online payments, this aggregation service makes it easy for you to make all your pay- ments from one place. Again, you can make a one-time payment or set up recurring payments for a single bill or multiple bills.
Online Banking 17
I don't have a bank account, because I don't know my mother's maiden name.
—Paula Poundstone