Originally Posted by
Biggie Fries
So, as I understand it -- and, believe you me, I do not trust my, or the random CSR's, understanding of SErve, which is why I am writing -- when you do Bill Pay, and the payment is not going to a place on their pre-existing list:
At least the first time they are making a payment, they are cutting a check from their bank and mailing it to the payee. Serve gives us an expected payment date with our on-line receipt, and a guarantee that if the payment does not arrive by that date, they (Serve) will pay late fees up to $50.
But unlike with some other pay-bill services, Serve never seems to tell you when or if the payment was sent/delivered/cashed ... and when you call (or at least when I called) they just repeat back to you what has already been "said" by the computer when you (I) did the pay-bill thing in the first place: amount sent, when it will arrive.
So if the payee is not showing receipt, how do you (I) try to convince them that the check was actually sent? Or do you just wait until you are dinged with a late fee, then send it to Serve and ask, "So now will you tell me how it is that you think you actually paid them?" Does not seem like a promising strategy.
this is true in my experience and I don't get emails from them whether my payment has been received by my payee. They leave it to me to follow up and make sure; I guess I just have to live with this inconvinience or find other solutions. If I want a payment posted immediately, what I do is just to w/d funds and deposit it to my bank and pay the CC from there. That gives me assurance my payment goes through same day I sent it especially when I initiate payment early morning.
I have to follow up with my payees especially those that are not in their list if they received the check from B/P sent on X date supposedly received on Y date. I've noticed it takes an average of 4 to 6 biz days for some to arrive. Good thing that soon as I get email notice of a bill, I initiate payment immediately so that even if it takes 6 days, I'm assured payment will get there. For other payees like CC companies, payment is posted as paid in 2 biz days but I still don't take chances of sending payment that is due in 2 days or else I am sure to take the late fees from the CC company. I've always paid ahead, never late ever since I used CCs.