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Please email the City of Columbia water services before you pay your next bill. They are now charging a "convenience fee" to pay online EVEN THOUGH I OPTED TO GO PAPERLESS. I am so upset about this. I could MAYBE see using the fee as an incentive to get people to go paperless, but I am saving THEM money by them not sending me a paper bill yet they are charging me a fee to pay online. I no longer have a convenient envelope to send in my payment by mail if I wanted to do that. Honestly, I'd rather go back to paper and pay for the stamp than pay this convenience fee, even if paperless bills are better for the environment. There are plenty of other utilities (i.e. SCE&G) who drop the fee if you go paperless, or who don't charge a fee at all if you pay online...so why can't our lovely city do the same?? Again, please email them about this issue!!
They charge a convenience fee because when you use a card they have to pay a fee to the credit card company/bank. You pay SCE&G online via ACH (automatic clearinghouse), but the city's site requires a card right now.
Not a good reason. I'll just go back to paper statements...wasn't that costing them money too?? That's like the gas stations who all of a sudden started charging extra to use a credit card. Thanks, but I'd rather pay a couple cents more and use the gas station across the street. What happened to trying to ATTRACT customers, not alienate them?
Oh and my main point is that it's fine to charge a fee if you still receive paper statements but choose to pay online, but when I am already SAVING THEM MONEY by going paperless, they shouldn't be charging me a fee when I don't even have another convenient way to pay anymore!
Not a good reason. I'll just go back to paper statements...wasn't that costing them money too?? That's like the gas stations who all of a sudden started charging extra to use a credit card. Thanks, but I'd rather pay a couple cents more and use the gas station across the street. What happened to trying to ATTRACT customers, not alienate them?
You're not getting charged for online statements, you're getting charged to make your payment online via credit card - big difference.
Oh and my main point is that it's fine to charge a fee if you still receive paper statements but choose to pay online, but when I am already SAVING THEM MONEY by going paperless, they shouldn't be charging me a fee when I don't even have another convenient way to pay anymore!
I recall reading when they first implemented this that they were required by law to charge the customer any fee they encounter while processing payments. It is like many of our laws, well intentioned but not in step with the times.
Why don't you just pay them through your banks online bill pay? It wouldn't cost you a stamp and if there are enough others doing the same the bank arranges an EFT so the whole thing goes paperless.
yeah but they could be nice like the grocery stores and gas stations and just pay the merchant fees for us. seeing as how all of us give them millions a year. big utility corporations are worse than homeless people about getting a dollar.
Location: American People's Democratic Capitalist Republic of South Carolina
176 posts, read 454,729 times
Reputation: 44
Quote:
Originally Posted by wingirl1999
Not a good reason. I'll just go back to paper statements...wasn't that costing them money too?? That's like the gas stations who all of a sudden started charging extra to use a credit card. Thanks, but I'd rather pay a couple cents more and use the gas station across the street. What happened to trying to ATTRACT customers, not alienate them?
I guess those petrol stations are charging a "skimming protection fee" where they will actually "make sure" your debit card data is safe and no strange cameras nor skimmers are inserted inside of the petrol pump or an ATM. Many businesses in the U.S. are learning the new trend - Ban Your Customer and win. Not sure what they win, but to some it seems, once banned and abused, a customer seems to spend more (elsewhere?). Some companies will begin charging "honesty fee" where a customer is guaranteed an honest, no cheat, no scam service. ;-)
They charge a convenience fee because when you use a card they have to pay a fee to the credit card company/bank. You pay SCE&G online via ACH (automatic clearinghouse), but the city's site requires a card right now.
FYI...I pay my SCE&G bill on-line w/a credit card and don't get charged a fee b/c I agreed to go paperless w/my bill.
As for the water bill, just pay that straight out of the checking account w/on-line bill pay, no problems whatsoever doing it that way.
Location: American People's Democratic Capitalist Republic of South Carolina
176 posts, read 454,729 times
Reputation: 44
SCE&G keeps on raising kWh cost several times per year now with no slow down in the horizon. Is there a group to fight that kind of greed without going solar/wind and moving into 500 sq. ft. homes. Cost of living has become ridiculous. All these people who are trying to survive this corporate greed are moving to places like Mid SC.
This is an image of the newest rate increase (post factum). A third or a fourth one this year: http://yfrog.com/bcscegj
Last edited by neonrider; 09-14-2010 at 12:14 PM..
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