Girobank is offering to donate £1.00 to the Wildlife Trust conservation group for every new customer who signs up to its electronic bill payment service. The UK bank's outbreak of charitable largesse comes days after the Post Office launched a rival EBPP offering.
The bank is backing its pledge with "research" intended to demonstrate the environmental hazards of old-fashioned cheque-based bill payment. Before it reaches its final destination an average cheque will travel as far as 450 miles around the country in a journey that will use 25 gallons of diesel and contribute to the ever-increasing number of cars, vans and lorries on UK roads, says the bank.
Joan Edwards, marine manager for The Wildlife Trusts, says funds raised from the initiative will be used to continue the group's work protecting the marine environment.
The bank currently has 35,000 people signed up to its billpayment.co.uk Website which can be used to settle accounts with more than 100 different utility companies, local authorities, housing associations and other organisations.