By Tara Casey, Attorney Success Team TFS Bill Pay
Anyone can miss a payment – forgetting is part of being human.
It can happen because of stress, lack of sleep, too much multitasking or just a simple lapse in attention.
Many companies send out payment reminders, but often those come after the due date when it’s too late to fix the problem.
TFS takes a smarter approach and reminds users before payments are due.
With these notices, the client is not alone in the process. The notifications help prevent default, one reminder at a time.
“TFS is like having a friend by your side,” wrote Cathy S.
The stakes in missing a bankruptcy plan payment are much higher than forgetting to pay a utility bill. An early reminder gives users the time to review their budgets and adjust their spending so they can make their plan payments.
“The payment reminders were very useful. It was at that time each month I reviewed the previous month’s budget compliance and scanned for unnecessary spending,” wrote Joan N., a TFS graduate.
And TFS doesn’t just send one reminder, it sends two. One prompt arrives a week before, and the other a day before the due date.
“TFS helped me to keep my payments on track by giving early payment reminders and making monthly payments from my account,” wrote Pamela C, a TFS graduate. “I did not have to worry about payments being late or forgetting to pay. Bankruptcy in and of itself, is very stressful. TFSBillPay method took away the added stress.”
Reminders are not new. You get them from your credit card company, auto dealer, even your dentist.
There’s a reason nearly every industry uses reminders, they work – and research backs this up.
A 2019 study in the Journal of Consumer Affairs found that consumers offered reminders were 21% less likely to fall 60 or more days behind and were 12% less likely to have a 30-day or more delinquency.
These reminders don’t just help the clients stay on track with payments, the benefits are multifold. It helps them improve their cash management and improves their financial planning and budgeting. It also gives them a sense of security and accomplishment.
“It was great to have someone sending reminders of the amount that was taking place in deduction from my account, as well as knowing the money will reach destination on time and secure,” wrote Ana F., a recent TFS graduate.
TFS also gives users the option of getting the reminders by either text or email.
According to Salucro, a payment technology company in the medical field, 62% of those surveyed preferred receiving notifications via text or email and that a simple text reminder would prompt them to pay faster.
Those TFS payment reminders can support others in the bankruptcy field as well.
Attorneys see the advantages from higher compliance, fewer trustee issues, and improved client outcomes.
In addition, when clients are on a set schedule to pay their plan payment, there is a greater likelihood attorneys will see their claim paid.
Trustees save the cost of the time it would take to track down those who didn’t make their plan payments and deal with the complications from failed payments.
Late payments aren’t just an inconvenience – they ripple through the entire process. TFS’s timely, automated reminders, helps users stay the course, keeps attorneys focused on their practice not bill collecting, and gives trustees peace of mind – ensuring every case moves smoothly to one goal: a successful discharge and fresh start for those in Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
“It hasn’t been an easy journey, but TFS made it painless, and my payments were on time,” wrote Vonda, a TFS graduate.
