FAQs about our Cash Flow Services
Pre-Authorized Checking Program - for Medical Practices & Healthcare Providers
Q: How much does this service cost? You pay a small set-up fee to enroll in the service. That's it. You have no ongoing cost for the service. Your patients pay a one-time setup fee for enrollment and a small service charge for each check. This is where we make our money. The fees paid by your patients are very small.
Q: Can this service work for any kind of business? This service works for any U.S. business that takes payments or invoices.
Q: Will my patients actually consent to having their account drafted every month? YES. Think about it. If a patient has a bil of $500 to pay out of pocket, you can now offer them the ability to make smaller monthly payments instead of paying in one lump sum. You can choose the amount of the payment, but let's say you decide to have the patient pay $50/month for 10 months. That is $500 right? To keep the math easy, let's add a 5% service charge to their $50 payment. The patient how has to pay $2.50 for the service fee to use the service that month, bringing their total monthly payment to $52.50. Do you think that for an extra $2.50/month the patient is going to turn you down? Generally the answer is no. In essence you have just extended them credit at an extremely low 5% interest, without a credit check or additional hassles. And remember that the money will be automatically drafted out of their account every month, which virtually assures you of payment.
Q: How do you collect your fee for the service? We automatically draft your account the day after the patient checks are deposited for the total amount of the combined service fees. For example, we will use a 5% service fee. If you have 20 patients on the plan who pay you $50/month, they would each incur a $2.50 service fee, making their total payment $52.50. Se each month, we would be depositing $1,000 worth of payments into your account, plus the $50 worth of service fees for a total of $1,050. We simply draft your account and collect our $50 fee. It's completely hassle free for you and does not cost a thing.
Q: Does the monthly payment have to be the same for every patient? No. Our program is completely flexible. Payment amounts can be different for each patient depending on their circumstances. You may have a patient who owes you $2,200, and you could put him on a plan to draft $220 out of his account for 10 months. You could also draft $100 for 22 months, or $22 for 100 months. It is completely up to you. You just need to take a look at each patient and decide how much they will be willing and able to pay and set your payments accordingly.
Q: How complicated and time-consuming is the paperwork to enroll patients? No, it's very simple. First, we will provide you with professionally designed handouts that describe the program to your patients and lets them know exactly how it works. Then we provide you with application forms in electronic format so that you can easily print copies for your patients. The patient fills out the easy one-page form with all of the pertinent information about themself and their banking information. The last step is to attach a check made out to us for the one time setup fee. The application form and check are then sent to our office. That's all there is to it.
Q: What if a check bounces - is there any protection against that? We can collect the funds electronically, directly from the bad check-writer's bank account as soon as the funds become available.
Pre-Authorized Checking Program - for Businesses
Q: Can this service work for any kind of business? This service works for any U.S. business that takes payments or invoices.
Q: Will I be able to use this service if the amount billed to the customer is different each month? Absolutely. This service works well in situations in which the amount owed by customers varies from month to month. The only difference in the program is that the business would need to send out a monthly statement to their customers with varying payments to let them know the amount to be drafted so they could make a note in their checkbook register.
Q: How do you get paid? We use the same technology to collect from businesses using the service that they use to collect from their customers. We simply create a bank draft from your business's account for the amount of the combined service fees for a given month. Please see the answer above for a detailed example.
Q: How is the customer informed that the check has been submitted and cleared their account? A customer's check is noted in their monthly bank statement. The check will be numbered as "000" or will not be numbered at all. This prevents a conflict with their checkbook numbering system. The on-line bank account statement will refer to the transaction as a "Pre-authorized Check". The customer can then balance their checkbook as usual.
Q: What is the agreement between you, me, and my customer? We print pre-authorized checks on behalf of your customers. Any contractual or cancellation clauses in the agreement will be settled upon prior to initiating your service. We will go over typical arrangements and make suggestions on a course of action depending on the individual needs of each business.
Q: Do you have access to my account or to my customers' account? Absolutely not. Our system does not have the ability to electronically access any bank account information. Ours is proprietary software that was developed to store information in database form and print checks only.