Irish remain big users of cheques - The Irish Times - Tue, Feb 05, 2013

Irish remain big users of cheques - The Irish Times - Tue, Feb 05, 2013: "Ireland remains one of only a few European Union member states that still use cheques for regular payments, according to a new survey from the Central Bank, despite the high charges.

According to the analysis, Ireland ranks behind France as the second most intensive cheque user in the EU, with 20 of the 27 member states having effectively eliminated cheques. In these countries, usage is down to two or less cheques per person per year, while Ireland’s average is 19 cheques.

A study from the European Central Bank estimates that a cheque costs around €3.55 when all costs are included.

“For a small business this cost includes the 50c stamp duty on each cheque, bank charges and postal charges, not to mention the time it takes for staff to process cheque payments.
Further, there is strong evidence that cheque usage is a contributor to Ireland’s ‘late payment’ culture. Unless we move from the ‘cheque in the post’ culture, the problem of late payments will remain,” Ronnie O’Toole, programme manager of the National Payments Programme said.
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