Contents tagged with Paycards

  • Hurricane Sandy reminds small businesses importance of disaster preparedness planning

    October 29, 2012
    With Hurricane Sandy bearing down across the east coast, small businesses are reminded of the importance of disaster preparedness planning. And direct deposit paycards are an important part of any such plan.

    Both local and non-local emergencies can make receiving pay on payday difficult if not impossible for workers who aren't on direct deposit. When natural disasters occur in a hub city from which paychecks are mailed or air traffic is grounded, employees can not receive paper pay checks in a timely manner.

    Yet according to a recent NACHA study, small businesses account for nearly 50 percent paper checks written in the U.S., not including government checks. Research suggest that many of the paper checks written in the US are small B2B payments but 12 percent are for small business … more

  • Paycards better for unbanked than prepaid, traditional checking

    January 10, 2012
    Paycards better for unbanked than prepaid, traditional checking A recent article “Why Banks Shun 30 Million Americans” makes the case that banks are uninterested in the unbanked and underbanked customer and that mega-retailers don’t offer much long-term value.

    New federal regulations have impacted the banking industry’s business model of subsidizing once “free” services, driving banks to focus on “profitable” customers while discouraging others with higher fees on basic banking services.

    Big retailers have stepped in to profit on the unbanked by charging fees to cash checks and by selling prepaid debit cards. Retail fees charged for these services, when added up over time, can be just as high as maintaining a checking account.

    Yet one of the best solutions for the unbanked and underbanked was not … more

  • The Benefits of Paperless Pay

    August 29, 2010
    The recently signed financial regulatory overhaul bill named the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is expected to reduce the debit card Interchange fees used to support free consumer check accounts. This is on top of the loss of overdraft fee income. As a result, big banks are requiring higher minimum balances to qualify for a free checking and adding other service fees.

    What will this mean for employers?  For one, employees may opt to close their traditional bank accounts. And if your employees move from banked to unbanked status, this will impact their participation in direct deposit.  Fortunately, the Dodd-Frank act offered an exemption for reloadable prepaid and government-administered debit card programs. This compromise is an attempt to protect the … more

  • Visa Payroll Debit Cards Speed Tax Refunds

    April 01, 2010
    Another big benefit of having your pay direct deposited onto a Visa payroll debit card is that you can use the same routing and account number to also file your tax return electronically and get your refund directly deposited to your pay card in weeks instead of months!

    According the IRS.gov, you can get your refund faster by telling the IRS to direct deposit your federal income tax refund on up to three different accounts.  If you want the IRS to deposit your refund into just one account, use the direct deposit line on your tax form.  However you also have a choice to direct deposit your refund to more than one account.  With split refunds (use IRS’ Form 8888), you have a convenient option for managing your money.  For example, if you use two paycards within … more

  • Debit cards highly valued

    December 28, 2009
    According to a new survey commissioned by Visa Inc., U.S. consumers whose primary payment method is their debit card would rather give up coffee, their MP3 player, their mobile phone, email, visiting social network sites for one week than they would their debit card.

    Employers issuing Visa payroll debit cards to under-banked workers not only benefit by moving all employees to direct deposit but are also providing a cash management tool highly valued by employees.  Consumers are focused on controlling spending and understand that cash purchases can be difficult to track.  The Visa survey reveals that consumers believe debit cards can help them monitor spending more closely and stay within budget.   Plus employees enjoy convenient access to their funds by using their … more

  • Unbanked Americans need Plastic

    December 05, 2009
    The number of “unbanked” Americans rose 1.3 million nationally last year, according to a survey released Wednesday by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.   Of the unbanked Americans in 2008, more than 31 percent said they closed bank accounts because of overdraft fees, service charges or high minimum balance rules.  Yet they are substituting other more costly, less regulated services like payday loans, check-cashing services and pawn shops for their financial needs. 

    While few banks are reaching out to under-banked communities, employers can pick up the slack by moving employees to direct deposit using a Visa debit payroll card.  And employers can help control costs by negotiating group discounts for their unbanked employees. 

    Payroll cards … more

  • Not all Prepaid Debit Cards are alike

    October 06, 2009
    Recently I’ve seen a few stories like this one in the New York Times: Prepaid, but Not Prepared for Debit Card Fees. In the article, author Andrew Martin explores the numerous fees many card companies are charging their customers. The moral of this story from my perspective is that it pays to shop around. Not all prepaid debit cards are alike.

    Avoid buying a prepaid debit card. We advise consumers wanting a prepaid debit card to get a payroll debit card instead. Consumers can get a payroll debit card from their employer or sign up directly with a payroll card provider (for example online at http://vantagecard.com/paycard) and then simply provide the card’s routing number and account number to their employer for direct deposit.

    Payroll cards have lower costs than prepaid … more

  • Go Green With Your Pay

    October 03, 2009
    The American Payroll Association is part of an initiative to eliminate the use of paper paychecks nationwide. Currently, employers can go paperless in about 20 states. We’re tackling the rest state by state, and we need help from employers! We’re posting sample letters pre-addressed to the state officials in those states that currently keep employers from enjoying a paperless payroll. If you are an employer, please download a copy of the letter, personalize it, and send it on company letterhead.

    The focus of the request is to allow employers to mandate direct deposit. Where employees do not provide their bank account information, employers should be able to provide paycards instead of paychecks.

    Please join the effort!  Sample letters can be downloaded from the “ … more

  • Prepaid Visa Payroll Cards Replace Expensive Paper Checks

    August 22, 2009
    PlatinumPay Thousands of employers currently offer Visa payroll cards to employees and for companies looking to go green, streamline payroll operations and lower costs, paycards are only gaining in popularity. The Visa paycard is designed as a financial tool; providing employees a way to participate in their company’s direct deposit program. U.S. employers are realizing significant savings while helping their employees avoid the escalating costs associated with check cashing fees and delays in receiving their checks via mail or pick-up.

    CARD BENEFITS

    The benefits of direct deposit have been well documented for years. Payroll professionals all tend to agree that increasing direct deposit and reducing, or even better, eliminating the antiquated paper check creates a positive impact to employer … more