Paying bills when not at home

[omni550]

Since FIRE-ing, I've traveled sporadically. And it appears as though I may have some travels of a month (or longer) in the future.

Currently, I still get paper bills but pay them online. I like getting the physical bills as it [-]forces[/-] allows me to review my expenditures.

I'm wondering how my fellow FIREees handle payment of their monthly (and semi-annual, like property taxes) bills while not at home, especially when traveling on an irregular and unplanned short-notice basis (which precludes mail-forwarding).

omni

 

[rescueme]

DW/me travel quite often, and most is ex-CONUS.

All our bills (except for taxes) are on-line, both statements and payments. Also, most are "automatic" wherever we can set up a debit directly to our bank accounts.

We have (over the last decade) have no problems paying any of our bills, in time, and to avoid any extra charges.

Even though we are "old pharts" (in our mid 60's), current technology does not present a problem - in fact, it's made our life (and our lifestyle) much easier.

BTW, we still get "paper bills". Not so much for me/she, but just to let each other know about charges in the event that either of us would pass, without knowing any bill against our name.

Just our POV...

 

[easysurfer]

My payment preferences go like this:

1) auto pay via credit card (love those cash back rewards)

2) auto pay via checking account (this includes entire CC balances each month)

3) pay online with credit card

4) pay annual, semi-annual online via checking (for example, my property bill, and vechile registration allows for this)

5) pay via good old fashion checking

When traveling, if a bill is due that I really have to pay before I get back, I pay it online. So far, I haven't been away long enough to miss a bill payment. I try to go with paperless bills when possible.

 

[donheff]

My payment preferences go like this:

1) auto pay via credit card (love those cash back rewards)

2) auto pay via checking account (this includes entire CC balances each month)

3) pay online with credit card

4) pay annual, semi-annual online via checking (for example, my property bill, and vechile registration allows for this)

5) pay via good old fashion checking

When traveling, if a bill is due that I really have to pay before I get back, I pay it online. So far, I haven't been away long enough to miss a bill payment. I try to go with paperless bills when possible.

This is my approach also. I have switched all recurring payments that I can to auto pay.

 

[KingB]

Most of my bill are in auto pay through my credit cards or my checking. Credit card payments are automatically paid from my checking account. The bills that are not in auto-pay (1 HOA, property taxes, auto and home insurance, auto registration) are paid by on-line using CC or my checking account. I hardly use my checks anymore.

 

[W2R]

I don't travel but all of my regular monthly bills have been automatically deducted from my bank account for the past thirteen years.

Most bills can be paid online these days.

 

[Animorph]

We also autopay as much as possible, but there are a few bills we still have to do manually though still through online Billpay.

As long as you can see the bills online, can pay them online, either directly or via a Billpay service, and have internet access at some time in your travels you should be fine.

 

[grasshopper]

Here is what I do,

Phone & electric autopay CC

Auto and house insurance auto registration, CC on line

CC autopay through ACH Vanguard Advantage, where there is always 6 months cash

Estimated taxes through eftps.gov ACH Vanguard

 

[omni550]

I appreciate all the responses.

One thing kept me from switching to autopay. I've heard about people who had trouble with autopay when they either tried to cancel a service (e.g. switching cell phone providers or gyms)...and the older provider kept deducting from their account even after the switch to the new provider.... or incorrect amounts were deducted.

Has anyone had these types of issues (or any others I haven't heard about)?

omni

 

[arky]

All utilities are on auto-pay. The rest are manually initiated through "bill pay" online. Been that way for approx 8 years now. So far, no issues.

 

[M Paquette]

I appreciate all the responses.

One thing kept me from switching to autopay. I've heard about people who had trouble with autopay when they either tried to cancel a service (e.g. switching cell phone providers or gyms)...and the older provider kept deducting from their account even after the switch to the new provider.... or incorrect amounts were deducted.

Has anyone had these types of issues (or any others I haven't heard about)?

omni

Sadly, yes.

In dealing with my moms estate there were several of these autopay items that I had to deal with. The worst was an absurd "accidental death and dismemberment" policy sold through Wells Fargo to my dad, who had passed away twelve years before. The thing was draining $4.95 a month that my mom had never noticed. (It looked like a bank fee the way it was titled, but had an 800 telephone number attached.). This took multiple certified letters to the bank CEO, Consumer Products Executive VP, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to cancel.

 

[dmdunca44]

My payment preferences go like this:

1) auto pay via credit card (love those cash back rewards)

2) auto pay via checking account (this includes entire CC balances each month)

3) pay online with credit card

4) pay annual, semi-annual online via checking (for example, my property bill, and vechile registration allows for this)

5) pay via good old fashion checking

When traveling, if a bill is due that I really have to pay before I get back, I pay it online. So far, I haven't been away long enough to miss a bill payment. I try to go with paperless bills when possible.

This is what I do. Since the only bills I pay by check are semi annual (property taxes) and some utilities (water and propane), I could be gone for months. I can review the status of everything else online.

 

[pb4uski]

Prior to this year I used Quicken Bill pay and had for years. I like the fact that I could review my bill prior to paying and that i had more control.

In an effort to simplify my life, I converted everything possible to auto pay in January (at DD's suggestion). It has worked out very well and made my life much easier. Definitely the way to go. For more occasional vendors who don't do auto pay, I pay them online through my bank (free).

Has saved me time, effort and the $9.95/month that I was paying to Quicken Bill Pay (though their service was fine).

I can get an pay almost all my bills anywhere I can get an internet connection.

 

[W2R]

I appreciate all the responses.

One thing kept me from switching to autopay. I've heard about people who had trouble with autopay when they either tried to cancel a service (e.g. switching cell phone providers or gyms)...and the older provider kept deducting from their account even after the switch to the new provider.... or incorrect amounts were deducted.

Has anyone had these types of issues (or any others I haven't heard about)?

omni

Never had an issue in 13 years. I have saved hundreds (thousands?) on stamps, though, and oddly my credit report seemed to get a boost from it, too.

When you move or switch providers, it helps to have the common sense to shut off the payment at BOTH ends - - at the provider and at your bank, separately. You'd be surprised at how many people forget to do that. Also it isn't instantaneous so I usually allow a month or two.

 

[KingB]

Prior to this year I used Quicken Bill pay and had for years. I like the fact that I could review my bill prior to paying and that i had more control.

In an effort to simplify my life, I converted everything possible to auto pay in January (at DD's suggestion). It has worked out very well and made my life much easier. Definitely the way to go. For more occasional vendors who don't do auto pay, I pay them online through my bank (free).

Has saved me time, effort and the $9.95/month that I was paying to Quicken Bill Pay (though their service was fine).

I can get an pay almost all my bills anywhere I can get an internet connection.

I also use Quicken to pay some of the bills on line (HOA and Landscape services) and I never have to pay any service charge. I have the bill reminders and when I mark them to pay, Quicken will send the request to my bank to initiate the payment. Bank does not charge a fee as well.

 

[pb4uski]

I also use Quicken to pay some of the bills on line (HOA and Landscape services) and I never have to pay any service charge. I have the bill reminders and when I mark them to pay, Quicken will send the request to my bank to initiate the payment. Bank does not charge a fee as well.

My bank didn't offer that degree of integration with Quicken.

 

[kaneohe]

Never had an issue in 13 years. I have saved hundreds (thousands?) on stamps, though, and oddly my credit report seemed to get a boost from it, too.

When you move or switch providers, it helps to have the common sense to shut off the payment at BOTH ends - - at the provider and at your bank, separately. You'd be surprised at how many people forget to do that. Also it isn't instantaneous so I usually allow a month or two.

No issues here either in ? yrs tho it's mostly switching credit cards and not so much providers. Switching cards is enough of a pain during the transition that I try to minimize that these days. For some (all?) providers, when you get an updated card (new exp date), you need to inform them ahead of the next charge of that new exp date. No problems w/ charge amounts tho I must admit I don't check to the penny anymore because the record is so good I got lazy and probably would only catch a gross error these days.

 

[SpencerM]

I appreciate all the responses.

One thing kept me from switching to autopay. I've heard about people who had trouble with autopay when they either tried to cancel a service (e.g. switching cell phone providers or gyms)...and the older provider kept deducting from their account even after the switch to the new provider.... or incorrect amounts were deducted.

Has anyone had these types of issues (or any others I haven't heard about)?

omni

This is not uncommon. I avoid giving any risky vendors direct access to my main bank account. For example our health club pushed for this but I achieved the same rate reduction by setting up direct charge to our MC which I pay in full each month. If there were to be a problem I would just notify the CC company to deny the charges. If you set up direct ACH transfers the bank will refer you back to the vendor.

There are many instances also of third party vendors being soft targets for cyber intrusion due to weak safeguards. If they have your bank info that is bad.

I also keep a second checking account at another bank which I fund with cash needed while traveling overseas for ATM transactions etc. Easy to monitor or close with minimal loss if I detect a problem without lasting damage. It is the world we live in...

 

[BUM]

I struggled with this for years before switching to on line bill pay through my bank. As needed (quarterly) I transfer funds from VG. Wonder what took me so long. I still get lots of paper bills and statements mailed to the house. When we get home, we hardly glance at them before DW shreds them :/

 

[grasshopper]

I still get lots of paper bills and statements mailed to the house. When we get home, we hardly glance at them before DW shreds them :/

Save a tree, go paperless.

 

[marko]

All utilities are on autopay PLUS budgeted for an even monthly amount (with no interest)

All credit cards and insurance premiums are paid online but not autopay (I want the flexibility to not pay the full amount from time to time).

Been doing the online thing since about 1986 with the old 'CheckFree' system

That's it. We write about 1 or 2 paper checks a month for the odd 'once a year' thing.

 

[Nords]

One thing kept me from switching to autopay. I've heard about people who had trouble with autopay when they either tried to cancel a service (e.g. switching cell phone providers or gyms)...and the older provider kept deducting from their account even after the switch to the new provider.... or incorrect amounts were deducted.

I think the process has become much more common & standardized over the last decade. If you tell your bank to stop that deduction from your checking account, then they're supposed to stop. Banks have learned that they spend far more time & money unscrewing their mistakes (and countering the bad publicity) so they're doing a much better job on the changes. Especially when it's so easy to take your business elsewhere.

Same for credit cards-- you can challenge the charge and force it to be reversed.

We've put all but four of our bills online and on autopay through our checking account. We're waiting on the water company to update their 2nd-millennium billing system from bimonthly to monthly, and then it's also going online autopay.

I have not yet put our three credit cards on autopay, but I should do that in a month or two. Old-style thinking and lazyness.

 

[Katsmeow]

How does anyone handle any bills that can't be received online -- paper only -- and that don't allow online payment?

We receive one bill -- natural gas -- that there is no ability to even see the bill online or to receive it any way other than mail. You can pay it by mail or by dropping it in the dropbox. There is no ability to pay online. Now if I wasn't here I could use bill payment through my checking account to mail a payment. The problem would be if we took any long vacation that we would not see the bill since we couldn't look it up online.

How does anyone handle that kind of situation?

(For other bills I usually get bills electronically or I can look up online and I usually pay online. I usually don't do automatic payments although a few people require them to pay online and for those I do automatic payment).

 

[REWahoo]

The problem would be if we took any long vacation that we would not see the bill since we couldn't look it up online.

How does anyone handle that kind of situation?

- Have a friend/relative gather your mail for you and call you with the amount of the bill when it arrives?
- Call the gas company a couple of weeks prior to the due date and get the amount from them?
- Estimate the amount based on past usage and send a check for slightly more than that amount? You will overpay for the month but the gas co will credit your account for the difference.

 

[Katsmeow]

- Have a friend/relative gather your mail for you and call you with the amount of the bill when it arrives?
- Call the gas company a couple of weeks prior to the due date and get the amount from them?
- Estimate the amount based on past usage and send a check for slightly more than that amount? You will overpay for the month but the gas co will credit your account for the difference.

No one could do 1 (just moved to this area so don't have good friends and it isn't that close to any relatives who wouldn't be traveling with us)

No 2 -- they haven't been able to do this before

No 3 -- The best option which I think is the one we would use...