talkmagic.co.uk

Just a quick thing to discuss...
With cheques being phased out (may take a few years to disappear fully), what other payment methods are available / do people accept?
Obviously cash but also...
Some people have paid me through bank transfer, but is that 100% safe, giving people part of your bank details.

Also,
do any of you have a deposit policy? This is why I ask because sometimes I will speak to people before hand on the phone / email, etc... but won't meet them until the actual gig, but still need to take a deposit - I know some people use a paypal system, but there are charges for that.

I'm thinking of taking deposits for my close up magic - weddings, etc... but not for my kids shows, which is a smaller fee.

Of course I'm not a pro magician, but when I do freelance work for people I usually have the terms of 50% upfront before I start any work, and I'll accept cash, cheques, paypal and bank transfer - preferring the latter because I then don't have to mess around cashing in cheques or paying the paypal fees

From what I understand it's safe enough to give people your bank details - I print them alongside my paypal address on my invoice. The only instance I've heard of of people 'stealing' money using someone's bank details is when Jeremy Clarkson printed his details in the newspaper to make a point, and someone set up a direct debit in his name to donate money to charity... but then, he did challenge the readers

It is very easy to set up a new account with banks such as National Westminster or Barclays. Your clients can then pay money into an account you keep almost empty and you just collect the money they've paid into your account and transfer it to your regular bank account after they've paid it in.

I mentioned Westminster Bank and Barclays because with both those Banks your clients don't need to queue up at the counter to pay money into your account, there are special electronic self service paying in machine where they can put the money in an envelope and deposit into your account using the account number and sort code you provide to them using one of the machines inside the branches. The accounts themselves are very basic and a bit rubbish but are okay for your clients to pay money into easily without compromising the security of your usual bank account. It saves you having to worry.

The Jeremy Clarkson thing was a mountain out of a molehill. All he had to do was to tell his bank it was an unauthorised direct debit and they have to refund immediately under the terms of the direct debit guarantee scheme. You are not going to lose money by giving out your bank account details.

As for taking payments I have a credit/debit card machine so can take deposits over the phone. I have fount that the simplest way. There is a cost however and unless your volumes are at a reasonable level paypal is probably a cheaper option for you.

Now that cheques are going to disappear (there is already no such thing as the cheque card guarantee scheme anymore) I think we will see other money transfer schemes being launched based around things like mobile phones.

Dave.

www.madetomeasuremagic.co.uk

made to measure magic wrote:The Jeremy Clarkson thing was a mountain out of a molehill. All he had to do was to tell his bank it was an unauthorised direct debit and they have to refund immediately under the terms of the direct debit guarantee scheme. You are not going to lose money by giving out your bank account details.

Oh sure, he said that he could've stopped it and had it refunded, but it's just a pain

Now that cheques are going to disappear (there is already no such thing as the cheque card guarantee scheme anymore) I think we will see other money transfer schemes being launched based around things like mobile phones.

Yeah, they said that they're not going to stop cheques for a few years yet and it's not going to happen until there's a viable alternative. I'd love something mobile phone connected, when NFC starts to take off in the next year or so maybe that'll start to happen, because people will start linking their phone to their bank account


A second bank account is a good idea... it'll help with your accounts/tax returns too

They've been told that the replacement system must be paper-based. Basically, it has to be like cheques, but processed faster!

I'm afraid my cynical side thinks that the banks want rid of cheques because they are relatively expensive to administer. Electronic payments are quick and easy for them.

The trouble is that such systems are insecure. There was always a chance of a chequebook being stolen, or some other kind of cheque fraud, but electronic systems are, in practice, quite vulnerable.

Same thing happened when the Land Registry stopped issuing Land Certificates. Loads of people pointed out that it would be easy for fraudsters to deal with properties they don't own, and guess what! It was. Property fraud levels have increased hugely.

I have a limited company and accept direct transfers. I tend to invoice the client on the day. Many of my corporate clients pay in advance.

Cheers

Dr T

Whilst cheques are to be phased out, they have to stay until the Banks find an acceptable replacement. What's happening right now is that the cheque guarantee card system ends on June 30th so we go back to the way it was in the dark ages when cheques were issued but you took the risk of it bouncing. The cheque guarantee idea simply meant that up to £50 was guaranteed so it wasn’t all that good for payments of, say, £200 – you’d still risk losing £150 if and when it bounced. Bank transfers are the cheapest way for the banks so they ought to charge minimal or no fees but, of course, they charge more than that.

Whatever the banks use instead of cheques will act in very much the same way; as yet they haven’t acknowledged that there are still some transactions where transfers and other electronic methods just aren’t suitable. If there's a business advisor at your local bank, why not arrange an appointment and ask what alternatives they can offer?

Ive used PayPal and that works quite nicely.

As far as deposits go, I always ask for a 10% to secure the date and then full payment no later than a week before the event. I've been stung once or twice with non payers so getting the money before hand stops that from happening.

15 - 25 % deposit with the balance no later than 1 week before the booking. I accept cheque and paypal.

I take a 10% deposit at time of booking. Remainder paid a few days prior to the event (not a good idea to be hassling bride and groom for money on their wedding day itself!) Cash, cheque or PayPal.

You may not know this, but at present there is a good chance that there will be U turn re the phasing out of Cheques.

I was listening to the radio on Monday, and it turns out the powers that be, have no alternative.

so.. basicaly, they have realized that if you get rid of cheques..the economy grinds to a halt.

As usual, Dale has foreseen the future very accurately! The banks announced this morning that they won’t be phasing out cheques and will continue with them for ‘as long as the public want them’.

You can always accept money orders, bank checks/official checks issued from the banks. At least you can here in North America. But both official checks from the bank and money orders can be cancelled just like a regular check.

I dont know if a PayPal Biz account would work for you ? its free to setup and you can invoice someone who can then use there paypal account or debit/credit card to make the payment.

Matt