@Justin: I like receiving e-bills as well, but I don’t think it is a cookie cutter, “set and forget” fix.

@Russell: I don’t think it’s a mailroom issue — most firms outsource this (yes even for account information mailers). And if you want to talk about paper costs many times these credit card offers (several per week) outweight the one per month I get with my statement in it. You might save on the postage, but there is still an envelope, still paper, the little fake plastic card in it, etc. I don’t buy that the costs are significantly different when my own company (AMEX) is actively courting me for premium cards.

@Abigail: Again I see your point. But let’s not paint it up in a “this is the best thing for you” paint. There are risks involved.

@DYDR: Perhaps I am being too cynical.

@Mike: I may come off as cynical, that was kind of the point. So you’re paying $10/month to protect your identity? You might want to check out a post that Master Your Card did a while back where you can LifeLock yourself for free.

@Lauren: That sucks! I would switch back to paper bills if that were the case.

If anything causes people to overlook wrong charges it is automatic billing.

I set up a calendar reminder for every bill I have and it alerts me a week before it is due. I check the bill to make sure it is accurate and then I schedule the payment.

I would rather not have the company take the money directly. If they do and you find an error later where is your negotiating ground?

I’m sure you’re right about people missing more payments, but the flip side of that is people AUTOMATING payments online. So there’s one way that you can deal with a possible pitfall of electronic billing. But seriously – if you’re too lazy to even read your bill when you get it via email, how much effort are you going to take to pick up the phone and call about an error if you find one? The lazy guy who can’t be bothered to check his bills, deserves the penalty.

Sorry I have no compassion for not paying attention when it comes to money either going into or out of your wallet. If you don’t care enough to track it, you shouldn’t care if a mistake is made.

I agree with the other commenters who’ve stated that the real reason here is cost of printing, paper and postage. Ever compared the cost of doing a physical mailing vs an email campaign? Its fractions of pennies on the dollar.

Regarding green initiatives – you sound too cynical on that subject. There are some companies that actually do want to protect the environment, checkout a companies stated corporate goals to verify that on a per-company basis. You won’t get very far just throwing out blanket statements without some backup evidence.

I personally receive NO credit card or other promotions in the mail thanks to LifeLock. Their service, besides protecting my families personal information also restricts junk mail by contacting companies directly on your behalf. Look into it if you’re swamped with paper that you just throw away anyway.

Will some people forget to pay if the bill comes in their email? Sure, but some will forget if it comes in the mail. I think that’s a function of personal choice.

I know I didn’t move my bills to email for the reason you mentioned – they’d become lost in my inbox but the same statement could be made of someone with a more digital mindset.

I am intrigued to see your follow-up tomorrow as I sure you have some good advice for us… I have a solution that has worked beautify for me but I’ll save that for tomorrow’s comment section.

Thanks!
Dave

Actually Missy & Phillip weren’t talking about the environmental angle. They were talking about the COST of buying the paper, printing it out, mailing it. Every month. To tens or hundreds of thousands of members.

Yes, they probably do get a few people forgetting to pay online. But most people do so much online, that doesn’t really work these days.

Just the paper alone would cost an enormous amount! Then it has to be cut to the right size. Then there’s the ink costs (and printers, and fixing printers that break…) and the cost of the envelopes (also printed on). Then the cost of mailing EACH envelope. Oh and let’s not forget the salaries of the people who oversee the printing process or do quality control or whatever. The fewer statements printed, the fewer man hours they have to pay for.

Think of it this way: If a credit card company can get 10,000 people to do paperless billing, it’s automatically saving $4,200 A MONTH (over $50,000 a year) just on mailing costs. Plus whatever the company would save on ink, electricity for the printers, salary, and the paper & envelopes.

That’s a little more compelling than the small percentage of people who will forget to open the email/pay the bill on time.