Electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) is on the rise but paper cheques remain a hard habit for most consumers to break, according to research from TowerGroup.
In a survey of nearly 4000 US households, one in five had viewed electronic bills or statements online, compared with only one per cent in 1998.
The use of online bill payment also continues to grow with 13% of respondents paying for bills via the Internet, compared with only two per cent in 1998. On average of 3.7 bills are paid online each month.
But despite changes in behaviour, paper cheques are still more popular, even for active online consumers, with 41 per cent of Web bankers preferring to write out cheques to pay bills.
Elizabeth Robertson, senior analyst, TowerGroup e-Banking practice, says: "The use of EBPP services is accelerating, but not without concern and hesitation demonstrated by many consumers."
Banks or other parties interested in developing these services should look to building on their marketplace strengths, as well as providing information and value-added services to users," adds Robertson.
The report also shows that consumers prefer to review bills at the billers Web site (22%) rather than their online banking service (six per cent), while a quarter are 'uncertain' as to which location they prefer.
Robertson says, as the use of EBPP grows, these preferences will carry major implications for financial firms: "Banks should be looking to strengthen customer relationships and capture transaction flow, as they seek to deflect encroachment by non-banks."