Number of business cheques written in sharp decline

CHARLIE TAYLOR

The number of business cheques written in Ireland has dropped by 21 per cent since 2012, according to new figures from the Central Bank-led National Payments Plan (NPP).

An estimated 39 million business cheques were sent over the last year, compared to 49.5 million two years earlier. The data show the number of personal cheques written also declined, although at a slower rate of 13 per cent from 26.5 million to 23 million.

The figures cited combine annual cheque numbers with a survey of 16,000 cheques that took place in April and May this year at AIB Bank, Bank of Ireland, Permanent Tsb and Ulster Bank.

Ireland currently has one of the lowest users of e-payments is Europe, with 133 e-Payments per capita per annum versus the EU average of 273.

The figures were released three months before e-Day on September 19th. This is the date from which central Government, local authorities and State agencies will stop issuing and accepting cheques from businesses.

The National Payments Plan is seeking to double the level of e-payments in Ireland by next year to bring Irish use of cash and cheques in transactions down.

NPP programme manager Ronnie O’Toole said that businesses are migrating away from cheque usage and that e-Day should do more to speed up this process.

“Cheques are an expensive means of payment for businesses because of bank charges, stamp duty, postage, time spent making lodgements, unpaid cheques, and the ‘cheque is in the post’ culture of late payments. It shouldn’t be surprising to learn that businesses are moving away from cheques at a faster rate than consumers,” he said.

The NPP estimates that savings of up to €1 billion per annum could be made to the economy as Ireland migrates away from cheques and cash in favour of electronic payments.