Times Advocate, 1995-01-25, Page 17- Frenchman's inn
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Second section - January 25 1995
Approaching a cashless society
Direct Payment and Interac help to advance the approach of the cashless society
By Heather Vincent
T -A staff
EXETER - In an ever in-
creasingly cashless society, Interac
and Direct Payment have become a
convenience we take for granted.
But just what is this convenience
costing us and the businesses who
provide the service?
Seip's Valu -Mart was one of the
first businesses in Exeter to get on-
line with Direct Payment in March
of 1994. They now have the ser-
vice at all four check-out counters.
Betty Watson, an employee of
Seip's says "more and more people
are using it (debit card) all the
time." Watson finds it is less ex-
pensive and more convenient for
the customer to use a debit card.
Writing a cheque means providing
identification as well as paying a
slightly higher bank fee.
To clarify; the debit card is the
same card as the instant teller card.
The price for using Direct Payment
does not increase if you are using a
different machine than you have an
account with.
Direct Payment is an advantage
to merchants because they don't
have to worry about the cheques
coming back with non -sufficient
funds. Carol McNall of Seip's said
that she felt many customers were
misinformed about the cost of us-
ing a debit card.
Linda Wuerth of Wuerth Shoes in
Exeter installed the Interac Direct
Payment system along with VISA
and Mastercard in all four stores
before the holiday season. Wuerth
found the Initial cost was high be-
cause it required a separate phone _
line in addition to the cost of the
equipment. She has found that In-
terac has made for less mistakes by
the sales staff who used to process
credit cards manually. As well,
each credit transaction is verified.
In the past only purchases over
$100 were called in for approval.
Lori Cook of Exeter's CIBC said
the cost for a merchant to set up In-
terac Direct Payment will vary. "If
the merchant wantsto have VISA
on the system as well, the cost will
be higher," said Cook. The cost per
month ranges from a minimum of
$24.00 to a maximum of $39.00,
there is also a $0.15 charge per
transaction.
The CIBC client is charged a
$0.30 fee for each transaction. For
a withdrawal from instant teller ma-
chines there is a charge of $0.37
per use with a minimum monthly
account balance of Tess than
$1,000.00. At a non -CIBC ma-
chine, the cost is $1.00 per use.
The cost of Direct Payment is Tess
than writing cheques or in -branch
withdrawals at a fee of $0.50 each.
Nancy Treseder of the Bank of
Montreal said that the cost for cli-
ents varies from branch to branch
and is dependant on the type of ac-
count. Some clients 'may pay an
all-inclusive fee each month which
covers cheques and use of debit
cards. Treseder said that the Inter -
ac fee is "basically the same as
writing a cheque."
The Bank of Montreal charges
$35.00 each month for the mer-
chant to rent the equipment which
includes a terminal, stand, printer
and paper. This fee also includes
VISA, Mastercard and American
Express on the system. The cost
to purchase the equipment is in
the neighborhood of $1,000.00.
The fee for each transaction for
the merctt is $0.15.
The Royal Bank also charges
clients $0.30 per transaction on a
personal account for the use of
the debit card. This is compared
with a $0.50 charge for writing
cheques.
Royal charges approximately
$30.00 per month for the rental of
the Direct Payment equipment and
$0.15 per transaction.
Debit cards are providing more
convenience and less costly to the
customer than withdrawing cash or
writing a cheque. It is also a way
to avoid carrying a lot of cash. Al-
though cheque writing may be time
consuming, it does provide a way
to track spending. Without a de-
tailed account of spending, the re-
sult may be more overdraft charges.
As a society we are gradually ar-
riving at the point where we don't
deal with cash at all in daily trans-
actions. Salaries are often de-
posited straight into a bank account
and many services have a direct
withdrawal programs. Bills can be
paid without lifting a finger. Dol-
lars are exchanged rapidly. The
only time many people actually go
inside
a
bank is to update their bank book.
This too can be done without the
help of a teller at some branches.
Many local stores and service
providers have Direct Access Pay-
ment through Interac. In Exeter
this convenience can be found at
IGA, Darling's, Valu -Mart, Home
Hardware and Wuerth's Shoes to
name a few.
"More
and more
people are
using it
all the
time."
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•
Carol McNaII of
Selp's Valu -Mart
demonstrates the
use of the Interac
Direct Payment
method at the
check- out counter.
Seip's was one of
the first businesses
in Exeter to provide
the service.
BEC/KER
600 Main St. S.
Exeter, Ont.
Ph. (519) 235-2757
Products Inc. Fax: (519)235-4067
CUSTOMER v
APPRECIATION DAYS
DAY ONE
Thurs., Feb. 2na
11:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Centralia, Ont
DAY TWO
Fri. Feb. 3rd
8:00 a.m.-Noon
. (Centralia College Area, same as last year)
We Invite You to Join Us For
Lunch on Thurs.
Feb. 2nd ,11:30 a.m.
I/
Pancake Breakfast
and/or Fri. Feb. 3rd - 8:00 a.m.
ZES"
w 0 • ' "
0 A
RE
IATION
Wen
FARM EQUIPMENT - EXETER, ONTARIO
Sales, Service 8 Rentals since 1932
2519) 23S4 1-800-265-2121 Fax: - 8ra
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"•0Lucen
Centralia, Ont
DAY TWO
Fri. Feb. 3rd
8:00 a.m.-Noon
. (Centralia College Area, same as last year)
We Invite You to Join Us For
Lunch on Thurs.
Feb. 2nd ,11:30 a.m.
I/
Pancake Breakfast
and/or Fri. Feb. 3rd - 8:00 a.m.
ZES"
w 0 • ' "
0 A
RE
IATION
Wen
FARM EQUIPMENT - EXETER, ONTARIO
Sales, Service 8 Rentals since 1932
2519) 23S4 1-800-265-2121 Fax: - 8ra
19 i
_ r;
C \J
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r;
1