Visa Pre-Paid Cards can reduce management and reconciliation times and significantly lower the amount of back office administration required. By removing cash and cheques from the payroll system they can improve monitoring and fraud control. Lost or stolen cards can be blocked or replaced as necessary.

Payroll departments have traditionally had to wrestle with the many and varied requirements of their employees - those with and without bank accounts, permanent and temporary. Organisations are dealing with this while trying to automate and streamline company systems to achieve simplicity and security. Until the advent of stored value pre-paid cards this has proven difficult. Now, payroll managers can utilise a pre-paid card scheme to remove cash and cheques from the process and transfer all wages electronically to create 'one payroll system'.

The Visa Pre-Paid Card eliminates the need for employees to have bank accounts and removes any difficulty in meeting the needs of temporary, short-term or migrant workers. They all benefit from the flexibility of the world-wide Visa network, having a re-loadable card in either sterling, US dollars or euros. Individuals are then able to use it, like a debit card, almost anywhere in the world displaying the Visa sign. Visa Pre-paid cards are increasingly being acknowledged as the payment method of choice to a wide range of recipients because they are secure, inclusive and safe.

For those without bank accounts there is the very real advantage of having access to wages without any additional costs, being able to draw money at cash machines and receive cashback at retailers while having the benefit of Chip and PIN protection. Pre-paid cards also allow point of sale, Internet and mail/telephone order transactions.

James Le Brocq, Director of Pre-Paid Cards at Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank, said: "The introduction of a pre-paid card scheme into an organisation's payroll system manages to achieve three important advantages at one stroke - simplification, cost savings for the company and a vastly improved experience for the employee or contractor.

"As a leading bank we are able to provide everything payroll managers require in banking terms - supported by a dedicated relationship management team."

The complementary strengths of Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank and MoneyCard Limited ensure a unique balance of experience and innovation in pre-paid cards. Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank has a track record of providing cost-effective financial solutions stretching back nearly four decades.

Graham Utton, Director of Sales and Marketing at Money Card Limited, said: "The payroll card offers organisations the ability to reduce the need for cash or cheques and gives employees an improved and more efficient way of receiving payment. Money Card Limited's association with Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank combines our state of the art technology with the bank's expertise, to deliver this simple, cost effective payroll and money distribution system."

Once funded by the organisation, a Visa pre-paid card may be used for a predetermined timescale until the allocated funds are exhausted. They are easily adaptable too - for use as expense payments, staff allowances or one-off payments such as relocation payments.