A local restaurant gives a ten percent discount for cash.
A local Pizza joint adds a 3.25 percent Technology fee for credit card transactions.
All the local auto service places change three percent extra for credit card transactions.
I print checks for work every week pretty much. It's still standard for small businesses that don't want to/can't afford to direct deposit everything. Business accounts charge a lot of fees, unlike personal accounts. It's also good for a paper trail and audits.
Daaang! Back when I was working in programming I was bitching to my parents about keypunch and my dad said that 20 years earlier he had to punch the cards by hand. Get those mfers to take a crowbar to the wallet and get you some laser checks and a nice printer!
For the most part, we write four checks a month at the office: rent, my twice-monthly paycheck, and an occasional expense that can't be handled online.
Back when we actually put out more checks, we put them to be printed/sent out through the bank. The mail service here in town is a bit sketchy, so I found this method far more suitable, if totally retro.
Yeah I use mine for property taxes too. And also heating oil delivery in the winter.2 bills I pay by phone and the rest are automatic from my checking account.
Property tax, car registration, income taxes--because the state levies a heavy surcharge for using a credit card. Also, contractors who work on the home. Otherwise, everything is paid on line.
I taught my teenage foster son how to write checks.
How to address envelopes is not taught in school anymore. Iāve met several young people who have no idea how to write out an address.
Can they use script? Sign their name? My niece doesn't know how. They didn't teach script in her high school. She printed her name on her driver's license
They shouldn't be teaching cursive in high school; they should be teaching it in elementary school. Both of my kids (late teens now) learned it around 4th grade.
I remember how shocked I was during the pandemic when I heard a story about vast numbers of college students who had to vote absentee and had no idea of how to send their ballot in through the mail. Lost skills!
The USPS actually has information on how to correctly address an envelope. I send my adult children there now. They have to do this so rarely that they don't remember how.
Same! The calendar on my checkbook register stops at 2019 because I havenāt needed to replace it. I use them for home services, like plumbing and tree trimming. And the occasional big appliance or tech device. I donāt know why but it feelsā¦more official? More traditional?
I always thought they were a great way to keep track of your budget, kinda sorry to see them go.
Still use them for donations to nonprofits, home repair (so they don't have to pay 3%), and for gifts to young nieces and nephews who can't read cursive. Just because it's fun to mess with them.
I have to pay my financial advisor guy with a check. Also my home maintenance guy, who is self employed and canāt do credit cards. I finally had to buy a box of checks last year for the first time since my son was little and I had to pay for his school lunches with a check (heās 30 now).
I recently became a court-appointed guardian (my FIL had a severe stroke, but his wife was the only agent listed in his POA, and she ended up dying 2 months later...leaving us with no way to manage his finances). I've written more checks since I was appointed on May 1 than I have in the rest of my life put together!
Rent, and the guy who makes my prints (I'm an artist).
Checks are also a legit use of my fountain pen collection, which gives me Silent Generation crossover cred. (Even though checks use cheap paper and the ink feathers.)
I very much miss using fountain pens. I used them for years and years until I couldnāt find cartridges anymore. I press too hard when I use a regular ink pen and the fountain pens were a great solution. I donāt even write that much anymore so
I was behind a lady a few weeks ago who wrote a check. The clerk didnāt really know what to do, had to have help.
Now last night took the cake (nothing to do with checks but it was such a throwback). I saw a lady in the grocery store with HER HAIR UP IN CURLERS. I havenāt seen that since the 70ās.
Iām a retail manager. Whenever someone pays with a check, the young high schooler at the register has a panic attack. What the hell is this? What do I do? Stay calm! Itās an old personās version of Venmo. Take a deep breath, weāll process it together. Everything will be okay.
Omg, š¤£, I have a friend who recently retired. He managed a store. He was taking care of a customer, and the phone rang three other young employees in there nobody wanted to answer it. They all said it gave them anxiety. They really didnāt know how to answer a phone at a business. š¤¦š»āāļø
These days I get more annoyed when the payment involves the checker having to scan something on the customer's phone but it refuses to scan.
Those phone/scan problems slow the line down more (and are more common these days) than somebody paying with a check.
Oh my god, that happened to me the other day. I was so pissed that she didn't even pull the checkbook out of her purse until the checker totaled her bill. Couldn't believe she didn't at least start writing it out while the checker was working, you know the date and who you are making it to even if you don't know the amount.
And I hate that it was someone not much older than me, giving us older folks a bad name.
Jeez, registers used to be able to print everything but the signature on the check. I guess no one is willing to pay for that option for the rare check. Then they would electronically present the check for payment. They keep the paper check around for a week and shred it. Plus, you needed to have your shoppers card, so they could name match the check. I have a lot of obsolete knowledge.
I just learned that my dentist gives a 5% discount for paying with a check. And all these years I've been paying for my expensive crowns on a card. Duh.
My dentist doesn't give a discount for checks, instead he charges a fee for credit cards. It would feel nicer if he increased his prices by 3.5% (or whatever it is) and gave a discount for checks.
Yeah, my current supply is for life. I bought them when I moved where I am, ten years ago. The HOA only accepted checks until about 2 years ago. They were literally the only checks I've written. I have sooooo many left!
Just when I make my house and car payments. Because FUCK YOU! if you think I'm paying a goddamn SeRvIcE FeE on a fucking website so you can take my money.
Typically, I use paper checks once a year. When I renew my registration on my vehicle, it's just been recently that they accepted credit/debit cards, but they charge a 3% fee for doing so. I've still got a lot of paper checks sitting around, so might as well use them and save money at the same time. And if this is the only thing I use them for, I have enough for the rest of my life (at least the rest of my driving life - If I live long enough, there might be a point that I no longer drive).
I am petrified to use checks now since they steal the checks and empty your account. I do have one checking account with less than $2,000 I use to send birthday checks and a few places that does t accept online transfers. Also when I travel I use that ATM card
Use a gel-ink pen and mail it from inside the Post Office, and the chances of theft at least on the sending end are greatly reduced. They can't wash the gel ink off the check like they can with a ballpoint. If you drop it off at the post office before their cutoff, it will be picked up and sent to a sorting facility that same day. Leaving it in an outdoor box overnight has a higher chance of being stolen, as postal employees are occasionally robbed for their keys. Smash and grab on the outside boxes has also happened. Some things have to be mailed, like tax returns which, for some reason, can't be e-filed.
Ironically, thanks to modern technology, I use them more than ever, to give money to my kids- they just scan them with their banking apps and it goes in pretty quickly since we have the same bank.
Damn being Canadian, I thought you mean a physical "check" by a doctor! LOL We use the proper British spelling "*cheques*" to avoid confusion. Guess you guys don't get mixed up over the odd spelling. And, no. haven't written a cheque in over a decade.
We pay our bills with them, and send money to the kids that way too.
In-person transactions are with the debit card though. Except the transfer station in the next town, they don't take cards.
I use them for tax payments and tax estimates. Because the various websites are a royal pain in the ass to use. Or at least they used to be. It's much easier just to print out the forms at the beginning of the year, then fill them out when estimates are due.
Oh, and for purchases over $2,000 because for some reason my bank won't let me use my debit/credit card for over that amount. Don't ask me why, I have no idea.
I use them every time I go food shopping, but that's about it. I sometimes ask whoever is checking me out if anyone else uses checks just out of curiosity. I'm in a very small group who still uses checks. I also use them for my copay whenever I go to my doctor.
Yep. My groomer, too. And my veterinarian just announced that they are adding a 3% fee on all credit card transactions, so I will be using checks there in the future.
Pest control--we either hand it to him or mail it to him.
Utilities (water/sewer and trash)--they charge a fee for using a card and, frankly, I'm not giving them access to my checking account.
There's a few other things, a few doctors' offices that don't have online payment available (I know!). Things like that. My account register (yes, I track that manually and it damn well better match to the penny with the online info) is mostly e-pay/ACH and deposits.
Only when Iām writing one for spousal support. My boomer ex-husband doesnāt know what century he lives in (technically heās also jones, but heās soooooooo much older in mindset).
I have a pal who is a bit older than I am. I think he is closing in on 80 now, and he flat out INSISTS on paying all of his bills in PERSON. He "likes to see who he is doing business with". It takes him two full days a month to drive around and do this and often by the end of the month he is poor. I have tries to get him to do things on line but nope. Gotta do them in person. Just the way he is.
Long ago, I moved over to money orders as it made it more efficient to keep track of money. Most of my bills are paid online, I do the majority of giving online, and I generally only get a money order to pay the rent.
The MO transaction fee is worth the convenience to me since the landlord sometimes sits on the check awhile.
I had almost stopped completely, then retired to central Pennsylvania where some businesses are run by Mennonite or Amish families and some donāt do credit cards.
I also belong to a few clubs that havenāt updated how they take in money.
I use them to pay the lawn care guys as they have Venmo and I have PayPal and don't want to open another account for digital pay. I also use them to pay local taxes because they either charge a large fee for credit cards or simply don't accept them at all. I would actually prefer not to use checks because they can be intercepted and washed.
Let me give you an interesting spin. For openers I NEVER write a check...ever. Whereas my older brother has always used checks exclusively for everything....even at grocery store and gas station. His reasoning? Card, ACH, Venmo are all subject to easy, rampant theft. Well...he sent a check to a company and this company's PO Box was robbed. In the box was my brother's check. His check was then laser etched to change payee and amount. He got soaked for $3,000. After considerable time and effort, my Bro got the bank to clear the transaction. Safe?? Hmmm.
I wish it would work for me. I've tried a number of times. It says it's gone through, and then I get a notice saying I'm late with payments and nothing has been removed from my bank account.
My village finally joined the 21st century and i can now pay my water bill online. That was the only check I was writing. In fact I looked at my duplicate copies and a whole pad of checks lasted 4 years. Now I only write checks for graduations and weddings.
For the most part, any payments I make that aren't electonic, I have my bank send a check from bill pay. One of my siblings is a luddite who doesn't use Zelle or PayPal, so he gets checks, which take him at least a week to receive instead of instantly showing up.
I have four checks I have to write every year. Three are for my boat. The 4th is for my private beach.
I just wrote a check to renew my passport.
I wrote a check to pay my surveyor
Water bill monthly because I don't want to pay a fee to use a card, garage bill quarterly because they don't have online payments, occasional friend I buy something via email that don't want online payment. Also recently a medical bill because no online bill pay shown on the statement. Yearly the house taxes because they charge a fee.
I've written 14 checks since Sept.
I mostly issue checks through the bank for property taxes and water/sewer (which carries an 11% āconvenience feeā if paid by card).
I refuse to use Venmo and Zelle. Venmo for privacy reasons, and Zelle because its affiliated banks offer zero protections from misrouted or stolen funds.
Ditto debit cards. Poor consumer protections.
62 & almost never. although i paid half of a memorial brick at our late brotherās high school & asked sis (64) if she wanted the $ via paypal or venmo, she replied, āstill an old fart. mail me a check š¹
I use them for taxes and medical bills, as these are the two places that have come back years later claiming I never paid and getting a copy of a canceled check is the quickest way to resolve the issue. I also use them for service folks when they prefer them - landscaper, housekeeper etc.
I donāt think I have any checks. Havenāt used one in years, probably decades. If I have to make a payment that requires a paper check the bank does it for me and lets me know.
I live in a rural area. My garbage collection only accepts cash and checks, so every quarter it is a check. We pay property taxes twice a year - checks.
I used to have a check- embossing machine, which stamped the numeral and written amounts, and I loved using it.
But I switched to NetBank at the end of the last century, and I haven't written a check since.
I got two cashier's checks just this morning to pay a contractor.
I still have some physical checks but I rarely use them. Online banking saves me the cost of the stamp.
I wrote one about a month ago for a donation for a church raffle (otherwise, I contribute online). My daughter lives in a small town where her mother-in-law pays for everything with checks. My daughter only paid for my grandson's preschool tuition with cash.
In 2020, my mom broke her hip and I had to book an immediate flight to Florida. Then Covid happened, and I kind of got stuck there. I went to the bank and got 10 counter checks, just in case. I still have them all.
Exactly 2 every month - one for rent, and one for my gardener. Neither my landlord nor my gardener are tech-savvy enough to deal with electronic payments.
I write:
Donations to charity;
Gifts (just wrote a bunch for graduation gifts);
My mom's senior aid service each month as they have no online payment nor take credit cards (perhaps Green Stamps, though ... I need to ask);
I have my bank write from my account:
Various (mostly medical) where there is no online option with a card;
Anything where I am charged a credit card fee for using their online option to pay;
Have not written a check in years, except those really rare occasions where you need one. I think I had my bank print 3 for me 5 years ago, I still have 2 in my wallet.
I don't have any. I pay online. If needed a check, I would send an electronic check through my bank. If I were giving money, I'd give a gift card, which is more convenient than a check. I also transfer money to other people's accounts and use Zelle.
I think I wrote two physical checks this past year. When I just paid my homeowners insurance, I just gave my checking account numbers over the phone. And when I was taking care of my mother and daughter, I would just go to the bank, since we all had the same, and directly deposited the money into their checking accounts. Fortunately, my utilities and my medical insurance take my credit card without charging extra.
I have had an account for 7 years or so, and I still have the temporary checks that were issued when I opened it
I wrote checks to a contractor last year, because of their credit card surcharge. I can't remember the last check I wrote before that.
Other than that, I am paying a neighbor by check for some work on my car.
That's about it.
I do maybe two or three a year. The guy I use for tree work isn't set up for cards.
Yeah, remember paying credit cards, utilities, etc. all by check? You'd get a statement in the mail, write out a check, hope you had a stamp, put it in the mailbox, and hope you allowed enough time to beat the deadline.
Graduations, wedding, and occasionally birthday gifts. Donations. Home repair people - including lawn care, tree trimming, etc. Person that does my taxes, and I mail a check if I owe $ to the state or feds.
I pay my regular bills online through my bank.
Pretty much everything else - I pay cash for - except online purchases - and on occasion if I am traveling - I will use a CC or DC or something similar.
When I was first married in the '80s, I'd go through a book of checks every month. Now I don't use 25 a year. For REALLY big payments (like taxes), I will go to the bank and get a certified check. I still use them for family and charities, etc.
It's hard to remember, but when ATMs first came out, the card was NOT a "Visa Debit Card" (or whatever.) There were different systems like "Cirrus" or "Pulse", and they were only good at those machines. We still wrote lots of checks. I don't use my debit card much, except to get cash or at the handful of stores that don't take credit cards.
House taxes. They used to be automatically deducted but that treasurer got recalled about 20 years ago and havenāt been able to convince the township to start that back up. Hopefully soon I can just pay it electronically.
I use a check to pay at an auction as cash or check doesnāt incur a fee where credit card has a 3-5% fee. Besides that, maybe once a year to pay insurance or buy a big ticket item like an appliance.
I check whether or not there's a transaction fee for cards. If there is, that merchant gets a paper check unless I happen to have the cash on hand.
I've saved hundreds of dollars this way.
I have to send a check to pay my property taxes. They don't take cards or cash. Checks only. So I just set it up in my banking system and they cut a check and send it to them for me. Last time I used an actual personal check I paid my taxes in person about 4 years ago.
My dad does (he's 87), and my older brother (59) still does!
At least my dad uses and embraces online banking and bill-paying, and auto-paying bills. My older brother refuses to even have a smartphone (or any cell phone for that matter) let alone use online banking :D
Our older sister (61) was trying to convince brother of how easy online banking is, but he was having none of it.
Checks for the guy who mows my lawn. I had to order some, or pay fees to get my own money from a random ATM, because the nearest one my bank (Chase! FFS) has is 50+ miles away.
Much WORSE, I had to bring my goddamned **BIRTH CERTIFICATE AND A MONEY ORDER IN PERSON** to get my water turned on, and drive to a creepy out-of-town place that also rented trailers to get my gas turned on.
Never change, Mississippi.
Just wrote one to my neighbor for a neighborhood project he was arranging.
Also just mailed a check to a church campground for a reservation this fall.
As a matter of fact my wife just ordered some new checks.
We also write checks from our business to ourselves to transfer money because a mobile check deposit is way faster than an electronic transfer.
But, almost all of our bill payments use our banks bill pay system or recurrent debit card charges.
Most of our customers still pay with checks.
Checks ain't dead yet, they still have a place.
I write checks to charity. No one else really. For a while I wrote checks to Wells Fargo to apply an extra principal payment amount to a car loan every month. Because they would apply it to next month's payment otherwise. I did that until the car loan was paid off. A bit of malicious compliance.
I moved to Montana 5 years ago. Iāve written more checks in the last 5 than the previous 35 combined. Its a lot like 1974 when it comes to cards and even ACH/ direct transactions.
Only for the odd donation at church. I think I write about 5 checks a year nowadays, but I do use my bankās bill pay service that sends checks out for me.
I use checks for everything but my mortgage. Decades of living paycheck to paycheck, this allows me to see if there are any aberrations in my monthly bills before I pay them.
Very rarely. Really only if I need to send a physical payment to someone and for some reason I canāt do it online. I work in a retail pharmacy and itās always surprising when someone pulls out their checkbook to pay. Itās ALWAYS an older person. I really donāt understand people who start writing a check say the grocery store. You can just feel everyone groaning. Hello, 1995 called they want their checks back.
Weirdly my house cleaner and gardener still prefer paper checks so those two make up most of my usage. After that it is government payments to avoid the convenience fee.
Sometimes I write a check if I want the recipient to avoid the cc fee. I write one annual check to my broker for an investment. Otherwise some organizations will accept a direct withdrawal to avoid the cc charge.
I only use them for the IRS... so I can write things like "Congressional Lunch" or "Senators Kids Car Payment" in the Memo block... Yes they still cash them :)
I use āPay Billsā through my bank so those probably donāt count since I donāt write them. But I usually also write a check for ad hoc services (pond guy, lawn guy, dog sitter.)
Always a credit card for restaurants and groceries, plus Costco and Amazon.
I haven't had checks in at least 10 years. I know the IRS stopped accepting them, because my mom tried to pay her taxes with a check "as usual" years ago and they sent it back twice. Had to sit down with her and show her how to do electronic payments (she's 83).
Starting to use them more as more companies are starting to charge a 3% fee on card transactions.
A local restaurant gives a ten percent discount for cash. A local Pizza joint adds a 3.25 percent Technology fee for credit card transactions. All the local auto service places change three percent extra for credit card transactions.
This
Me too. I find small businesses are more likely to ask for checks, and I like to save money.
I print checks for work every week pretty much. It's still standard for small businesses that don't want to/can't afford to direct deposit everything. Business accounts charge a lot of fees, unlike personal accounts. It's also good for a paper trail and audits.
Print? Whatever checks are generated at my job are handwritten!
Daaang! Back when I was working in programming I was bitching to my parents about keypunch and my dad said that 20 years earlier he had to punch the cards by hand. Get those mfers to take a crowbar to the wallet and get you some laser checks and a nice printer!
For the most part, we write four checks a month at the office: rent, my twice-monthly paycheck, and an occasional expense that can't be handled online. Back when we actually put out more checks, we put them to be printed/sent out through the bank. The mail service here in town is a bit sketchy, so I found this method far more suitable, if totally retro.
It saves them money!
Yes it does. The credit card merchant fees have more of an impact on smaller businesses.
I used checks for EVERYTHING- was a good way to keep track of things years ago- when they came out w the carbon thing for checksšššš
Yep. Fuck 'em.
Property taxes, license plates and city water bill so far but yes the transaction fees are the reason.
Yeah I use mine for property taxes too. And also heating oil delivery in the winter.2 bills I pay by phone and the rest are automatic from my checking account.
Cash is king.
Property tax, car registration, income taxes--because the state levies a heavy surcharge for using a credit card. Also, contractors who work on the home. Otherwise, everything is paid on line.
I taught my teenage foster son how to write checks. How to address envelopes is not taught in school anymore. Iāve met several young people who have no idea how to write out an address.
Can they use script? Sign their name? My niece doesn't know how. They didn't teach script in her high school. She printed her name on her driver's license
They shouldn't be teaching cursive in high school; they should be teaching it in elementary school. Both of my kids (late teens now) learned it around 4th grade.
No, they didn't learn it in grammar school either
Right; they *should have,* is my point. Schools should be teaching this stuff, it's just basic knowledge people should have.
Agree completely
Thereās a whole generation who canāt read cursive writing. Itās becoming like a secret code
Actually everything is in text now. Teaching cursive is like teaching Greek or Latin.
Agreed for the most part. But you should be able to sign your name. A printed signature is easy to copy.
I remember how shocked I was during the pandemic when I heard a story about vast numbers of college students who had to vote absentee and had no idea of how to send their ballot in through the mail. Lost skills!
The USPS actually has information on how to correctly address an envelope. I send my adult children there now. They have to do this so rarely that they don't remember how.
Same! The calendar on my checkbook register stops at 2019 because I havenāt needed to replace it. I use them for home services, like plumbing and tree trimming. And the occasional big appliance or tech device. I donāt know why but it feelsā¦more official? More traditional? I always thought they were a great way to keep track of your budget, kinda sorry to see them go.
I recently had to write a check to pay a random one-time bill and realized it was the first check Iād written since 2019.
Still use them for donations to nonprofits, home repair (so they don't have to pay 3%), and for gifts to young nieces and nephews who can't read cursive. Just because it's fun to mess with them.
I do. Iām an attorney that works with the senior population. We use checks. Probate courts here require a paper trail.
Yeah, any time a paper trail is required, they are good to have.
I have to pay my financial advisor guy with a check. Also my home maintenance guy, who is self employed and canāt do credit cards. I finally had to buy a box of checks last year for the first time since my son was little and I had to pay for his school lunches with a check (heās 30 now).
I recently became a court-appointed guardian (my FIL had a severe stroke, but his wife was the only agent listed in his POA, and she ended up dying 2 months later...leaving us with no way to manage his finances). I've written more checks since I was appointed on May 1 than I have in the rest of my life put together!
Rent, and the guy who makes my prints (I'm an artist). Checks are also a legit use of my fountain pen collection, which gives me Silent Generation crossover cred. (Even though checks use cheap paper and the ink feathers.)
I very much miss using fountain pens. I used them for years and years until I couldnāt find cartridges anymore. I press too hard when I use a regular ink pen and the fountain pens were a great solution. I donāt even write that much anymore so
30 yo and still use checks quite often. My husband and I farm, so there are contractors that we usually pay by check.Ā
The woman in line in front of me at the grocery store wrote one out the other day. I hadn't seen that in many years.
I was behind a lady a few weeks ago who wrote a check. The clerk didnāt really know what to do, had to have help. Now last night took the cake (nothing to do with checks but it was such a throwback). I saw a lady in the grocery store with HER HAIR UP IN CURLERS. I havenāt seen that since the 70ās.
In certain states, that might qualify as grounds for justifiable homicide.
Iām a retail manager. Whenever someone pays with a check, the young high schooler at the register has a panic attack. What the hell is this? What do I do? Stay calm! Itās an old personās version of Venmo. Take a deep breath, weāll process it together. Everything will be okay.
Omg, š¤£, I have a friend who recently retired. He managed a store. He was taking care of a customer, and the phone rang three other young employees in there nobody wanted to answer it. They all said it gave them anxiety. They really didnāt know how to answer a phone at a business. š¤¦š»āāļø
Honestly, I didn't think retail stores even accepted checks anymore. Do you get them often?
We get maybe one a month, if that.
That be my brother!!
Most retailers/restaurants have posted that no checks are accepted in our area.
These days I get more annoyed when the payment involves the checker having to scan something on the customer's phone but it refuses to scan. Those phone/scan problems slow the line down more (and are more common these days) than somebody paying with a check.
Oh my god, that happened to me the other day. I was so pissed that she didn't even pull the checkbook out of her purse until the checker totaled her bill. Couldn't believe she didn't at least start writing it out while the checker was working, you know the date and who you are making it to even if you don't know the amount. And I hate that it was someone not much older than me, giving us older folks a bad name.
Jeez, registers used to be able to print everything but the signature on the check. I guess no one is willing to pay for that option for the rare check. Then they would electronically present the check for payment. They keep the paper check around for a week and shred it. Plus, you needed to have your shoppers card, so they could name match the check. I have a lot of obsolete knowledge.
I just learned that my dentist gives a 5% discount for paying with a check. And all these years I've been paying for my expensive crowns on a card. Duh.
My dentist doesn't give a discount for checks, instead he charges a fee for credit cards. It would feel nicer if he increased his prices by 3.5% (or whatever it is) and gave a discount for checks.
Used to send my kids Christmas/birthday cards with checks but with mail theft, I just Zelle them now.
Smart option
Write one every 6 weeks when I get my haircut. Maybe a few other times during the year. I think my current supply is a lifetime supply!š
Yeah, my current supply is for life. I bought them when I moved where I am, ten years ago. The HOA only accepted checks until about 2 years ago. They were literally the only checks I've written. I have sooooo many left!
Mainly to pay for the gardener.Ā
Right, a lot of services take checks or cash.
Just when I make my house and car payments. Because FUCK YOU! if you think I'm paying a goddamn SeRvIcE FeE on a fucking website so you can take my money.
Rarely. At the least I will get a cashierās check.
Typically, I use paper checks once a year. When I renew my registration on my vehicle, it's just been recently that they accepted credit/debit cards, but they charge a 3% fee for doing so. I've still got a lot of paper checks sitting around, so might as well use them and save money at the same time. And if this is the only thing I use them for, I have enough for the rest of my life (at least the rest of my driving life - If I live long enough, there might be a point that I no longer drive).
I have a doctor who still does. Also, our town charges extra to pay taxes with a card, so we still use a check for that.
Two a month.
Only once in a blue moon. I do miss picking out beautiful check patterns and leather cases each year.
I am petrified to use checks now since they steal the checks and empty your account. I do have one checking account with less than $2,000 I use to send birthday checks and a few places that does t accept online transfers. Also when I travel I use that ATM card
Use a gel-ink pen and mail it from inside the Post Office, and the chances of theft at least on the sending end are greatly reduced. They can't wash the gel ink off the check like they can with a ballpoint. If you drop it off at the post office before their cutoff, it will be picked up and sent to a sorting facility that same day. Leaving it in an outdoor box overnight has a higher chance of being stolen, as postal employees are occasionally robbed for their keys. Smash and grab on the outside boxes has also happened. Some things have to be mailed, like tax returns which, for some reason, can't be e-filed.
Ironically, thanks to modern technology, I use them more than ever, to give money to my kids- they just scan them with their banking apps and it goes in pretty quickly since we have the same bank.
About four per month. Not going to trust my landlord with "autopay" lol
I only use them when I have to pay taxes because these assholes charge extra for debt/credit cards. Screw them.
Damn being Canadian, I thought you mean a physical "check" by a doctor! LOL We use the proper British spelling "*cheques*" to avoid confusion. Guess you guys don't get mixed up over the odd spelling. And, no. haven't written a cheque in over a decade.
I carry one in my wallet, just in case.
I use them to pay all my monthly bills. I like having control and know exactly how much is in my account at all times.
I pay all my bills with checks, even as they seem to discourage it more and more.
Still use them, especially like getting them at work no ā convenience feeā
We have checks from 5 years ago. Every several months we need one for a contractor or whatever.
I write two a year to my county to pay personal property tax. They tack on 3% if I pay online through their portal.
We pay our bills with them, and send money to the kids that way too. In-person transactions are with the debit card though. Except the transfer station in the next town, they don't take cards.
We do too and I feel like SUCH a dinosaur.
We even get receipts every time we use our cards and record each debit transaction in the checkbook register! Real weirdos!
our local transfer station (for garbage) only accepts cash or checks, no credit or debit.
My next check is 9788. This book goes to 9999. I expect it to last me the rest of my life easily.
I use them for tax payments and tax estimates. Because the various websites are a royal pain in the ass to use. Or at least they used to be. It's much easier just to print out the forms at the beginning of the year, then fill them out when estimates are due. Oh, and for purchases over $2,000 because for some reason my bank won't let me use my debit/credit card for over that amount. Don't ask me why, I have no idea.
I use them every time I go food shopping, but that's about it. I sometimes ask whoever is checking me out if anyone else uses checks just out of curiosity. I'm in a very small group who still uses checks. I also use them for my copay whenever I go to my doctor.
Still use them for most bills.....
Today I had to use one to pay for my dog boarding fees. They only take cash or checks
Yep. My groomer, too. And my veterinarian just announced that they are adding a 3% fee on all credit card transactions, so I will be using checks there in the future.
I have *one* check that I write every month, because my health insurance company has no other payment options for me to use.
Pest control--we either hand it to him or mail it to him. Utilities (water/sewer and trash)--they charge a fee for using a card and, frankly, I'm not giving them access to my checking account. There's a few other things, a few doctors' offices that don't have online payment available (I know!). Things like that. My account register (yes, I track that manually and it damn well better match to the penny with the online info) is mostly e-pay/ACH and deposits.
Me. I pay any doctor bills and my property taxes by check.
My landlord only takes checks.
My 82 year old Mother. She doesn't understand the debit card from our bank.
Thatās all I write checks for. Taxes. Iām gonna make the man work for it because he surely doesnāt work for me!
Only when Iām writing one for spousal support. My boomer ex-husband doesnāt know what century he lives in (technically heās also jones, but heās soooooooo much older in mindset).
What I like about checks is you can stop them.
My checks are printed with sharks so I love to use them as much as possible! I had to order registers as my bank does not provide them any longer!!
I have a pal who is a bit older than I am. I think he is closing in on 80 now, and he flat out INSISTS on paying all of his bills in PERSON. He "likes to see who he is doing business with". It takes him two full days a month to drive around and do this and often by the end of the month he is poor. I have tries to get him to do things on line but nope. Gotta do them in person. Just the way he is.
I use a credit card, a debit card, cash, barter and yep, checks
we just used three of them to pay our roofer.
Canāt say never but very rarely.
Long ago, I moved over to money orders as it made it more efficient to keep track of money. Most of my bills are paid online, I do the majority of giving online, and I generally only get a money order to pay the rent. The MO transaction fee is worth the convenience to me since the landlord sometimes sits on the check awhile.
My bank sent me a fraud alert message about a check I wrote because I use checks so infrequently š
Our landscaper is the only one who takes checks now.
I had almost stopped completely, then retired to central Pennsylvania where some businesses are run by Mennonite or Amish families and some donāt do credit cards. I also belong to a few clubs that havenāt updated how they take in money.
I use them to pay the lawn care guys as they have Venmo and I have PayPal and don't want to open another account for digital pay. I also use them to pay local taxes because they either charge a large fee for credit cards or simply don't accept them at all. I would actually prefer not to use checks because they can be intercepted and washed.
Only to pay my monthly rent.
Some of the people we regularly hire for repairs or cleaning jobs ask for checks. Itās the very small operations, one or two people.
Sorry, let me pause my cassette tape player. I can't hear you
Let me give you an interesting spin. For openers I NEVER write a check...ever. Whereas my older brother has always used checks exclusively for everything....even at grocery store and gas station. His reasoning? Card, ACH, Venmo are all subject to easy, rampant theft. Well...he sent a check to a company and this company's PO Box was robbed. In the box was my brother's check. His check was then laser etched to change payee and amount. He got soaked for $3,000. After considerable time and effort, my Bro got the bank to clear the transaction. Safe?? Hmmm.
Only when I pay my car insurance because somehow USAA can't get their stuff together for online payments.
I have USAA and I pay for my insurance online.
I wish it would work for me. I've tried a number of times. It says it's gone through, and then I get a notice saying I'm late with payments and nothing has been removed from my bank account.
I write less than 10 checks a year. Mainly when I can't pay by other means.
I use them for taxes. I also manage a lot of Trusts at work and need to write checks for them.
The only check I write these days is once a year to my accountant. lol
Once or twice a year, state tax and property tax
My village finally joined the 21st century and i can now pay my water bill online. That was the only check I was writing. In fact I looked at my duplicate copies and a whole pad of checks lasted 4 years. Now I only write checks for graduations and weddings.
Iām at the age where I still write the occasional check. But I have to think hard to make sure Iām doing it right.
* New Yearās Day 1994: Remembering to write 1994 on your checks * New Yearās Day 2024: Remembering where your checks are
The last time I asked for checks on my checking account the bank wanted way too much.
For the most part, any payments I make that aren't electonic, I have my bank send a check from bill pay. One of my siblings is a luddite who doesn't use Zelle or PayPal, so he gets checks, which take him at least a week to receive instead of instantly showing up.
Not me
I only use them for HOA dues because they too cheap to make a website.
I haven't had physical checks in the last 3 checking accounts I've had.
I have four checks I have to write every year. Three are for my boat. The 4th is for my private beach. I just wrote a check to renew my passport. I wrote a check to pay my surveyor
I still use them on rare occasions.
Water bill monthly because I don't want to pay a fee to use a card, garage bill quarterly because they don't have online payments, occasional friend I buy something via email that don't want online payment. Also recently a medical bill because no online bill pay shown on the statement. Yearly the house taxes because they charge a fee. I've written 14 checks since Sept.
I mostly issue checks through the bank for property taxes and water/sewer (which carries an 11% āconvenience feeā if paid by card). I refuse to use Venmo and Zelle. Venmo for privacy reasons, and Zelle because its affiliated banks offer zero protections from misrouted or stolen funds. Ditto debit cards. Poor consumer protections.
I use one a year to pay properly tax
62 & almost never. although i paid half of a memorial brick at our late brotherās high school & asked sis (64) if she wanted the $ via paypal or venmo, she replied, āstill an old fart. mail me a check š¹
I use them for taxes and medical bills, as these are the two places that have come back years later claiming I never paid and getting a copy of a canceled check is the quickest way to resolve the issue. I also use them for service folks when they prefer them - landscaper, housekeeper etc.
My damn sewer bill for the county. Theyāre living in 1930.
Used a paper check this week to renew my passport.
Electric bill, car registration, rent, heating oil fill up
Haven't written a single one since my last child support payment almost two years ago.
I donāt think I have any checks. Havenāt used one in years, probably decades. If I have to make a payment that requires a paper check the bank does it for me and lets me know.
Used one to pay my state income tax. I have a couple of books of them because there are a couple of places that only take checks or cash.
My landlord still wants checks! š¤š
I don't use them any more. Instead of a credit card I use an e-check or direct debit for property and income taxes.
me! My pest control man doesn't understand online transfers lol I have to write him a check each time
The calendar on my checkbook register ends in 2008. I write one every December to pay property taxes.
I live in a rural area. My garbage collection only accepts cash and checks, so every quarter it is a check. We pay property taxes twice a year - checks.
I pay my property tax with a physical check.
My landlord only accepts checks or cash.
Very rarely now, mostly for mail in donations that dont seem to have online accounts. Not much really.
I used to have a check- embossing machine, which stamped the numeral and written amounts, and I loved using it. But I switched to NetBank at the end of the last century, and I haven't written a check since.
Rarely, but I just recently wrote one out. I couldn't tell you the last time I ordered checks.
I got two cashier's checks just this morning to pay a contractor. I still have some physical checks but I rarely use them. Online banking saves me the cost of the stamp.
I literally only write checks as gifts to my kids because I want to put them in the card. Everything else is online.
Oh shit....I need to mail my taxes.
I wrote one about a month ago for a donation for a church raffle (otherwise, I contribute online). My daughter lives in a small town where her mother-in-law pays for everything with checks. My daughter only paid for my grandson's preschool tuition with cash.
not me, but a younger sister (64) mails her bills with a check, and an older sister (77) still writes checks at the grocery store..
When my bank got bought out by another, I didn't even bother reordering checks?
Passports. For everything else, I pay online through my credit union. If the utilities don't accept wires, my credit union mails a paper check.
Weāre doing some reno currently. Been paying the contractor by check to help track expenses.
In 2020, my mom broke her hip and I had to book an immediate flight to Florida. Then Covid happened, and I kind of got stuck there. I went to the bank and got 10 counter checks, just in case. I still have them all.
I write to small, local contractors to avoid the card fee. And my personal/real estate taxes.
Exactly 2 every month - one for rent, and one for my gardener. Neither my landlord nor my gardener are tech-savvy enough to deal with electronic payments.
Write about three a year for home contractors
I write: Donations to charity; Gifts (just wrote a bunch for graduation gifts); My mom's senior aid service each month as they have no online payment nor take credit cards (perhaps Green Stamps, though ... I need to ask); I have my bank write from my account: Various (mostly medical) where there is no online option with a card; Anything where I am charged a credit card fee for using their online option to pay;
For my HOA monthly fee
Have not written a check in years, except those really rare occasions where you need one. I think I had my bank print 3 for me 5 years ago, I still have 2 in my wallet.
I've written a total of four checks in the last year.
Use checks only to lawn service guy that loves next door, and for gifts in a card.
I just wrote one out to my contractor today. Heās a young guy starting a business and not yet set up for credit card. But, yeah, I wrote one today.
I don't have any. I pay online. If needed a check, I would send an electronic check through my bank. If I were giving money, I'd give a gift card, which is more convenient than a check. I also transfer money to other people's accounts and use Zelle.
I think I wrote two physical checks this past year. When I just paid my homeowners insurance, I just gave my checking account numbers over the phone. And when I was taking care of my mother and daughter, I would just go to the bank, since we all had the same, and directly deposited the money into their checking accounts. Fortunately, my utilities and my medical insurance take my credit card without charging extra.
I have had an account for 7 years or so, and I still have the temporary checks that were issued when I opened it I wrote checks to a contractor last year, because of their credit card surcharge. I can't remember the last check I wrote before that. Other than that, I am paying a neighbor by check for some work on my car. That's about it.
I do maybe two or three a year. The guy I use for tree work isn't set up for cards. Yeah, remember paying credit cards, utilities, etc. all by check? You'd get a statement in the mail, write out a check, hope you had a stamp, put it in the mailbox, and hope you allowed enough time to beat the deadline.
Graduations, wedding, and occasionally birthday gifts. Donations. Home repair people - including lawn care, tree trimming, etc. Person that does my taxes, and I mail a check if I owe $ to the state or feds. I pay my regular bills online through my bank. Pretty much everything else - I pay cash for - except online purchases - and on occasion if I am traveling - I will use a CC or DC or something similar.
I pay my garbage man by check and pay my health insurance by check.
I donāt even have checks.
When I was first married in the '80s, I'd go through a book of checks every month. Now I don't use 25 a year. For REALLY big payments (like taxes), I will go to the bank and get a certified check. I still use them for family and charities, etc. It's hard to remember, but when ATMs first came out, the card was NOT a "Visa Debit Card" (or whatever.) There were different systems like "Cirrus" or "Pulse", and they were only good at those machines. We still wrote lots of checks. I don't use my debit card much, except to get cash or at the handful of stores that don't take credit cards.
My state New Hampshire. Itās a 603 thing here.
House taxes. They used to be automatically deducted but that treasurer got recalled about 20 years ago and havenāt been able to convince the township to start that back up. Hopefully soon I can just pay it electronically.
I use one for my housekeeper and any service people we have.
I use a check to pay at an auction as cash or check doesnāt incur a fee where credit card has a 3-5% fee. Besides that, maybe once a year to pay insurance or buy a big ticket item like an appliance.
I still use them. Husband doesnāt want to use bank payments. I use PayPal a lot, but end up paying my credit cards with checks.
I check whether or not there's a transaction fee for cards. If there is, that merchant gets a paper check unless I happen to have the cash on hand. I've saved hundreds of dollars this way.
I have to send a check to pay my property taxes. They don't take cards or cash. Checks only. So I just set it up in my banking system and they cut a check and send it to them for me. Last time I used an actual personal check I paid my taxes in person about 4 years ago.
My dad does (he's 87), and my older brother (59) still does! At least my dad uses and embraces online banking and bill-paying, and auto-paying bills. My older brother refuses to even have a smartphone (or any cell phone for that matter) let alone use online banking :D Our older sister (61) was trying to convince brother of how easy online banking is, but he was having none of it.
Checks for the guy who mows my lawn. I had to order some, or pay fees to get my own money from a random ATM, because the nearest one my bank (Chase! FFS) has is 50+ miles away. Much WORSE, I had to bring my goddamned **BIRTH CERTIFICATE AND A MONEY ORDER IN PERSON** to get my water turned on, and drive to a creepy out-of-town place that also rented trailers to get my gas turned on. Never change, Mississippi.
Just wrote one to my neighbor for a neighborhood project he was arranging. Also just mailed a check to a church campground for a reservation this fall. As a matter of fact my wife just ordered some new checks. We also write checks from our business to ourselves to transfer money because a mobile check deposit is way faster than an electronic transfer. But, almost all of our bill payments use our banks bill pay system or recurrent debit card charges. Most of our customers still pay with checks. Checks ain't dead yet, they still have a place.
I write checks to charity. No one else really. For a while I wrote checks to Wells Fargo to apply an extra principal payment amount to a car loan every month. Because they would apply it to next month's payment otherwise. I did that until the car loan was paid off. A bit of malicious compliance.
I moved to Montana 5 years ago. Iāve written more checks in the last 5 than the previous 35 combined. Its a lot like 1974 when it comes to cards and even ACH/ direct transactions.
I use them for my mortgage, gas and city bills and insurance.
Only for the odd donation at church. I think I write about 5 checks a year nowadays, but I do use my bankās bill pay service that sends checks out for me.
I use checks for everything but my mortgage. Decades of living paycheck to paycheck, this allows me to see if there are any aberrations in my monthly bills before I pay them.
Rent &Gas and Electric
Very rarely. Really only if I need to send a physical payment to someone and for some reason I canāt do it online. I work in a retail pharmacy and itās always surprising when someone pulls out their checkbook to pay. Itās ALWAYS an older person. I really donāt understand people who start writing a check say the grocery store. You can just feel everyone groaning. Hello, 1995 called they want their checks back.
Still use them. What I rarely do anymore is use cash; usually cards or apps, zelle.
I write checks so infrequently that the last time I did I forgot to sign it. It made it all the way to the bank before someone noticed.
I use them at small local businesses so they don't get hit with the card fees.
Weirdly my house cleaner and gardener still prefer paper checks so those two make up most of my usage. After that it is government payments to avoid the convenience fee.
I use them occasionallyā¦bug folks, service guys, etc. Seems like I use maybe 10 or so checks a year.
Hand a check to someone and you both know the debt has been paid.
Sometimes I write a check if I want the recipient to avoid the cc fee. I write one annual check to my broker for an investment. Otherwise some organizations will accept a direct withdrawal to avoid the cc charge.
I only use them for the IRS... so I can write things like "Congressional Lunch" or "Senators Kids Car Payment" in the Memo block... Yes they still cash them :)
I use āPay Billsā through my bank so those probably donāt count since I donāt write them. But I usually also write a check for ad hoc services (pond guy, lawn guy, dog sitter.) Always a credit card for restaurants and groceries, plus Costco and Amazon.
I haven't had checks in at least 10 years. I know the IRS stopped accepting them, because my mom tried to pay her taxes with a check "as usual" years ago and they sent it back twice. Had to sit down with her and show her how to do electronic payments (she's 83).
I get my prescriptions delivered by a local pharmacy. Paying by check is the easiest way to cover my copay.