It's virtually inevitable.  The NSF or "bounced" check.  If you accept checks, chances are you received some NSF checks along the way.  And when you do, your now in the collections business even though you don't want to be.  Most likely you attempted to deal with this nagging problem in several different ways.

The Traditional Approach

1. You may elect to send the check back through again and hope it clears.  
2. You may hold the check and then attempt to call the customer.  
3. You may send it to a collection agency.
4. You may just write it off because you don't have the time to chase after bad check writers.

In the meantime, your out your cash while the collection process begins.  Or maybe there is no collections process and you are just out your cash.  Unfortunately, your bank probably also weighed-in and dinged you a $5 or $6 returned item fee as well.  So now you've lost the face value of the check plus a bank processing fee.

To make matters worse, if your business typically receives lower dollar amount checks, you have to wonder if your time and effort trying to collect is worth it.  For example, how much time do you spend trying to collect a $19 check?  Unless you have a bunch of them, it may not be worth any of your time.  For larger dollar amount checks, it's another story.  Not only does your cash flow take an immediate hit, but now you have to wait and wonder.  Will I ever get my money back?

There is better solution.  And it's now available for your business.  It doesn't matter whether you run a mom and pop shop or a larger enterprise with many locations.  Also, it doesn't matter whether you get small dollar amount checks or large ones.  Now you can harness the same tool the "big boys" are using to collect their bad checks at virtually all the national chain stores this very moment.  Here's how:

The Electronic Approach to NSF Check Collection
Instead of the traditional approach to NSF check collection you can now use the electronic approach.  It's called Check Re-presentment or RCK.  The RCK process utilizes the ACH network to electronically collect the full face value of the check from your customer's bank account.  Whether you have a few bounced checks a month or hundreds this solution can work for you.

Here's how the electronic approach to check collection works using RCK:

1. With your approval, your bank will automatically forward all your NSF checks to our processing center.  You won't need to do anything here.  It's all automatic.
2. Next, we enter the NSF check data for processing through the ACH network.  We may enter the item immediately or wait until specific days (like paydays) to increase the likelihood of recovery.  We may also utilize other techniques to improve collections.
3. We send you daily or weekly (your option) status reports by fax or email that inform you of our progress. 
4. If the funds are successfully collected, we electronically deposit the full face value of the check into the bank account of your choice.  The cost to you for this process.  Zero.  That's right, you pay nothing for using our RCK service.  The bounced check writer is responsible for paying the fees associated with RCK. 

 
In practice, some checks will not clear.  RCK rules allow only two tries after the original paper check bounced. Therefore, if we are unsuccessful after two attempts, we can provide follow-up actions using a traditional collection agency.

Now, you don't need to become an expert on the ACH network or learn how to process a RCK transaction through it to successfully use our service.  But you do have a role in the process.  Next time your at your major retailer, take a look around the register when you are checking out.  You will most likely see an sign that says something like this: 

"If your check is returned we may electronically collect the face value and a processing fee from your account". 
You too will need to clearly state at the point of sale that you recover bounced checks and recovery fees electronically to use our service.  To collect the fees, we will need to have authorization from your customer.  For both cases, we will provide you with the proper signage and tools to get you out of the collection's business and back to running your own business.

Here is a summary of the key benefits you get using RCK:

1. You get your cash sooner (typically within 5 to 7 days) for every item we successfully re-present.
   The full face value of the check is deposited electronically into your bank account.  Compare that to the 30 to 60 days traditional collections require.
2. Status reports are generated to keep you in the loop on each step of the process.
   You'll know the exact status of each item in our system. These reports can be faxed or email to you.  It's your choice.
3. Checks submitted electronically using RCK have priority over paper checks. 
   This means you'll get your money before a payee for a paper check, if adequate funds are available.
4. Removes the need to confront your customer with embarrassing phone calls asking them to pay. 
   With RCK, the process is handled efficiently and does not require any action by the customer.
5. The service is free to you. 
6. Your only role is properly notifying the customer with POS signage and receiving their authorization.
   We will help you with this step.
7. RCK is an excellent sorting tool. 
   You don't know upfront which NSF checks will ultimately clear and which won't.  RCK will quickly help you determine the status of every bad check so that you can take action sooner.  Now you can use RCK first, and a collection agency, if necessary second.
    

Now, it's time for you to decide.  Contact our office and get a FREE, no-strings attached consultation.