Additional Interface

The Utility Direct Pay creates an ACH (Automatic Clearing House) file which your bank will use to collect amounts from your customers’ bank accounts. This file can be transferred to a bank via diskette, modem, or e-mail. The ACH file contains the payment date, customer name, customer number, bank account information, and the amount to be deducted.

Contact your bank to learn which method of transfer is preferred.

The interface with Utility Billing is easy. Utility bills are printed and mailed as usual. After the customer receives the bill, there is a user-defined period for the customer to scrutinize and accept the bill. Two or three days prior to the payment date, run the Utility Direct Pay to create the ACH file, then send it to the bank.

When the bank processes the ACH file, the money from the designated customers’ bank accounts is transferred to the organization’s account. The organization then runs another program to post utility payments to customer accounts and revenue to the General Ledger.