Can you continue to shop with checks? In an increasing number of stores within the US, the reply is “no”. The major retailer Target not accepts checks on 15 July 2024. Decisions will follow on Decade earlier by supermarket Chains whole food And Aldi not accept this payment method.
Target said it might phase out the checks because not many purchasers use themThat's a superb point: Check usage has declined dramatically everywhere in the world in recent many years.
As Business School professor I ponder if Target has one other, unspoken motivation. After all, customers have made the switch to away from checks years agoWhat is latest today is the rise in check fraud.
A transient history of verification
Checks have been around since a protracted time – centuries, to be exact. Paper checks are simply instructions telling banks how much money to transfer from one account to a different. Today, these instructions are lasts between several days as much as several weeks. That is why shops prefer payment with debit cards, which work like checks, but immediately withdraw money from an account.
Just a couple of many years ago, checks were a very important a part of the US economy. The Federal Reserve, the central bank of the USA, In 2000, 17 billion checks were processed per yrin comparison with 3 billion today.
While the Fed doesn’t process every check – for instance Checks issued between accounts at the identical bank Don't go over the Fed system – the numbers give a way of the general decline. In 2000, the typical American wrote about 60 checks annually that were cashed by the Fed, in comparison with about nine today.
Until 20 years ago, all checks needed to be physically returned to the drawer after processing so the drawer could make sure that the quantity of the check they wrote matched the quantity debited from their account. Years ago, I paid all my bills by check, and each month my bank would send me a thick envelope – which I never opened – containing my canceled checks.
In order to physically return all checks, the federal government maintained a special fleet of planes that each night Checks throughout the country. Then in In 2004, a brand new law allowed banks to send pictures to their customers their controls, eliminating the necessity to fly them in.
Who will still write checks in 2024?
Even though the Fed is processing 80% fewer checks than it did within the early 2000s, its data shows that the typical person still writes a minimum of nine checks per yr. So who’s writing all those checks? The answer is a variety of individuals who deny ever having written checks.
Let me explain. Many people today use the Online bill payment serviceWhile lots of these payments are made electronically, Payments to smaller corporations and personal individuals are made by the bank issuing a check in your name.
Besides, there are still individuals who write Checks to landlords, contractors, charities and government agencies. Many people still give checks at weddings, births and other special occasions. Recently many Companies are still writing checks to other corporations in paying their bills.
Why businesses don’t want checks
Considering that checks are still used – albeit less regularly than they once were – why are corporations like Target, Whole Foods and Aldi rejecting them? I feel a very important a part of the story is that Check fraud is increasing within the USA
The US Treasury Department has its own department to combat financial crime, the so-called Network to combat financial crimeFinCen for brief. FinCen receives “Reports of suspicious activity” from banks to activities starting from money laundering to credit fraud. FinCen reports that the variety of check fraud cases has exploded since 2020 and has almost doubled from 2021 to 2022.
One of The biggest places where this fraud occurs are checks on the checkout. As the Atlanta Fed points out: “Anyone with graphics software and a high-quality printer can easily create fake checks.”
Merchants are doubly affected when check fraud occurs. First, they lose the merchandise, which they can not sell to a legitimate customer. Then, unlike shoplifting, the shop has much more financial problems because most banks charge fees. each the merchant and that Check writer when a forged check is presented. Both sides are charged since the Federal Reserve charges high fees for return bad checks.
Target's latest Annual report mentioned an issue with theft, saying, “We continue to experience higher inventory shrinkage as a percentage of sales compared to historical levels.” Translated into plain English, meaning more theft is going on at Target than up to now.
Given the rise in check fraud, Target's recent announcement will likely be replicated by other chains soon. I expect in the long run only stores like Costcowhich photographs each member and has the address of every customer on file will enable controls.
Since check fraud often causes retailers to lift their prices to offset losses, curbing check fraud results in lower prices and is within the interest of each honest consumer.
And for the companies which can be nervous about rising checks, Direct debit And Credit card fraudthere is an easy answer: encourage your customers to make use of money. Paper money is protected and secure, and once it’s handed over, every retailer knows the transaction is paid. Go old skool with Paper money has real benefits.
image credit : theconversation.com