With Online Bill Pay, you can pay your bills securely whenever you want. No more writing checks. No more stamps and envelopes. Online bill pay with your credit union allows you to pay any bill, anyone and any business, without ever touching a pen. It doesn’t matter if your invoices are paper or electronic. Online Bill Pay will make the payment for you. Best of all, it’s fast, easy, and free!

I love paying my bills online. In fact, I think I’ve only written three or four checks in the last year and they were all sent to individuals, not a business. I really love the comfort. So, aside from the convenience of paying bills online, what are the other benefits of paying bills online?

Save time. I can pay a stack of bills in less than 10 minutes and that includes logging into my account online.

Save money. Now that a first-class stamp costs $.49, it makes paying your bills the old-fashioned way pretty expensive. If you have 10 or more bills each month, you’ll spend about $5 per month. Online bill pay at most credit unions is free, adding up to a savings of $60 per year.

Increase security. Online bill payment can help prevent identity theft and provide added security for your transactions. Online bill pay at most credit unions uses the latest technology and security to keep your financial information safe.

Support the Environment. It’s amazing how much can be achieved if everyone strives to improve the environment. Did you know that reducing the amount of paper you use saves trees and reduces greenhouse gases and fuel emissions? Less paper means more green.

The benefits outlined above are the most obvious, but there are many more:

• Pay bills from anywhere.

• Control when bills are paid to avoid late fees.

• Pay bills individually or in batches.

• Schedule one-time or recurring payments.

• Access your payment status and payment history.

• Only enter beneficiary information once with a convenient customizable beneficiary list.

• View select payee statements online.

• Set up email alerts for bill arrivals, due dates, and upcoming payments.

• Skip or modify a single instance of a recurring payment.

• Run payment reports and create custom reports.

• View your payments up to six months in advance with the payment calendar.

• View pending and recently processed payments on the main bill payment screen.

Mobile access to check balances, transfer funds, and pay bills from your cell phone or other mobile device.

There has been an explosion of technological advances in recent years, so it surprises me that more people haven’t started banking online. I urge you to take advantage of online bill pay to save time and money, reduce clutter, and most importantly, improve your financial management.