Send Payments

[Ken Blake]

Send Payments no longer works. I assume it's been turned off in
Quicken.

I assume it's been turned off for all banks. Is that correct or is it
just for my bank (Bank of America)?

Is there some other way to accomplish the same thing in Quicken,
without doing it at the bank's web site.

[John Pollard]

On Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 11:01:57 AM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:
> Send Payments no longer works.
> I assume it's been turned off in Quicken.

I wouldn't interpret it that way.

> I assume it's been turned off for all banks. Is that correct ....

No.

> or is it just for my bank (Bank of America)?

Not exactly.
It's for any financial institution that used to allow Bank Bill pay (which requires Direct Connect), but has now switched away from Direct Connect, such as BofA (the switch has typically been from Direct Connect to Express Web Connect+ - though Discover has switched from Direct Connect to plain Express Web Connect).

> Is there some other way to accomplish the same thing in Quicken, without doing it at the bank's web site.

No.

For payments that occur at regular intervals and are for the same amount each interval (Rent, for example), it's just a one-time trip to the financial institution's web site to schedule a recurring billpay transaction.

For non-regular payments:

Some payees offer what are called "e-bills" (electronic bills). Those payees send an electronic bill to your bill payer, then you're informed of the upcoming bill date/amount. You can do nothing and the bill payer will pay automatically. Or you can go online and alter the payment amount. This method is especially useful for bills that vary in amount and/or interval.

For irregular payments to payees who do not offer e-bills, you can often have the payee automatically debit your bank account for each payment.

I've used all three; I spend very little time at the bill payer's web site for bill paying.

[Ken Blake]

On Sun, 9 Oct 2022 14:02:27 -0700 (PDT), John Pollard
<8plu...@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 11:01:57 AM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:
>> Send Payments no longer works.
>> I assume it's been turned off in Quicken.
>
>I wouldn't interpret it that way.
>
>> I assume it's been turned off for all banks. Is that correct ....
>
>No.
>
>> or is it just for my bank (Bank of America)?
>
>Not exactly.
>It's for any financial institution that used to allow Bank Bill pay (which requires Direct Connect), but has now switched away from Direct Connect, such as BofA (the switch has typically been from Direct Connect to Express Web Connect+ - though Discover has switched from Direct Connect to plain Express Web Connect).

OK, understood. Thanks for the clarification.

>> Is there some other way to accomplish the same thing in Quicken, without doing it at the bank's web site.
>
>No.
>
>For payments that occur at regular intervals and are for the same amount each interval (Rent, for example), it's just a one-time trip to the financial institution's web site to schedule a recurring billpay transaction.
>
>For non-regular payments:
>
>Some payees offer what are called "e-bills" (electronic bills). Those payees send an electronic bill to your bill payer, then you're informed of the upcoming bill date/amount. You can do nothing and the bill payer will pay automatically. Or you can go online and alter the payment amount. This method is especially useful for bills that vary in amount and/or interval.

I didn't know they were called e-bills, but I've paid bills that way.

>For irregular payments to payees who do not offer e-bills, you can often have the payee automatically debit your bank account for each payment.

Yes, unless they were e-bills and I didn't realize it, that's the way
most of my bills are paid--utilities, credit cards, etc.

>I've used all three; I spend very little time at the bill payer's web site for bill paying.

Same here. Almost never.

[Ken Blake]

On Sun, 09 Oct 2022 14:15:51 -0700, Ken Blake <K...@invalid.news.com>
wrote:

>On Sun, 9 Oct 2022 14:02:27 -0700 (PDT), John Pollard
><8plu...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>On Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 11:01:57 AM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:
>>> Send Payments no longer works.
>>> I assume it's been turned off in Quicken.
>>
>>I wouldn't interpret it that way.
>>
>>> I assume it's been turned off for all banks. Is that correct ....
>>
>>No.
>>
>>> or is it just for my bank (Bank of America)?
>>
>>Not exactly.
>>It's for any financial institution that used to allow Bank Bill pay (which requires Direct Connect), but has now switched away from Direct Connect, such as BofA (the switch has typically been from Direct Connect to Express Web Connect+ - though Discover has switched from Direct Connect to plain Express Web Connect).
>
>
>OK, understood. Thanks for the clarification.

Two other things:

When I go to the Account List, in the Transaction Download column most
accounts either say Yes (Direct Connect) or Yes (Express Web Connect).
But Bank of America says Yes (Improve connection). Should I click on
Improve Connection? What will it do if I click there?

In the Online Bill Pay column, Bank of America and a couple of other
banks (one Direct Connect and the other Express Web Connect all say No
(Set up Bill Manager). What is that? Should I do it? Is it hard to set
up? Any disadvantages to doing it?

[John Pollard]

On Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 4:42:30 PM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:

> Two other things:
>
> When I go to the Account List, in the Transaction Download column most
> accounts either say Yes (Direct Connect) or Yes (Express Web Connect).

I would expect Express Web Connect accounts to say, "Yes, (Improve connection), if the financial institution offers Direct Connect or Express Web Connect+.

> But Bank of America says Yes (Improve connection).
> Should I click on Improve Connection? What will it do if I click there?

I would not. When I tried that in a test file, Quicken froze (I had to use Task Manager to "End Task").

As I understand it, at the end of the day, there will be NO "improved connection" for users whose Connection Method is Express Web Connect+. EWC+ will be at the top of the Connection Method food chain. Financial institutions offering Express Web Connect+ will no longer be supporting Direct Connect - and, in my opinion, the only Connection Method that could be considered an "improvement" over EWC+ would be Direct Connect. So I consider the "Improve connection" text on EWC+ accounts to be a mistake which Quicken will hopefully fix at some point.

But during the period of conversion to Express Web Connect+, Direct Connect will still be an allowed Connection Method for those who have not converted ... until such time as the deadline for conversion is enforced.

The current Quicken fidir.txt file shows BofA (for example) still allowing Direct Connect (*). My recollection is that today, October 10, 2022, is the deadline for converting from Direct Connect to Express Web Connect+. Until today, Direct Downloads from BofA worked as usual; but today (in a test file with BofA connected by Direct Connect), when I initiate a One Step Update in that file, I am presented with a dialog requiring me to "Sign In" to "Authorize" my BofA account(s). So today, the conversion requirement is being enforced.

I do not know when the fidir.txt file will be updated (by Quicken) to remove the Direct Connect capability.
[My fidir.txt still shows Chase having Direct Connect available, though I believe their deadline to switch to EWC+ has passed. That same fidir.txt file shows Schwab no longer having Direct Connect available, and their deadline to switch to EWC+ has also passed. Something of an inconsistency there.]

[ (*) There is currently no way I know of to indicate EWC+ in the Quicken fidir.txt file.]

> In the Online Bill Pay column, Bank of America and a couple of other banks
> (one Direct Connect and the other Express Web Connect all say No (Set up Bill Manager).

> What is that? Should I do it? Is it hard to set up? Any disadvantages to doing it?

Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied. Your experience my be different.
"Set up Bill Manager" is a link; you should find some guidance by clicking on it.

Here are some articles on Bill Manager (they may cover some/all the same ground as the Quicken "Set up Bill Manager" link).

https://www.quicken.com/support/what-are-differences-between-quicken-bill-manager-and-quicken-bill-pay

https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-windows-frequently-asked-questions

https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-how-can-i-purchase-additional-quick-pay-or-check-pay-payments

[John Pollard]

On Monday, October 10, 2022 at 10:32:39 AM UTC-5, John Pollard wrote:

> Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied. Your experience my be different.
> "Set up Bill Manager" is a link; you should find some guidance by clicking on it.
>
> Here are some articles on Bill Manager (they may cover some/all the same ground as the Quicken "Set up Bill Manager" link).
>
> https://www.quicken.com/support/what-are-differences-between-quicken-bill-manager-and-quicken-bill-pay
> https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-windows-frequently-asked-questions
> https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-how-can-i-purchase-additional-quick-pay-or-check-pay-payments

FYI: I believe that Quicken Premier (and above) users get Bill Manager for free, for at least some maximum number (12?) of checks/month. Users of lesser Quicken versions pay $9.95/month.

https://www.quicken.com/product-selector

[Ken Blake]

On Mon, 10 Oct 2022 08:32:37 -0700 (PDT), John Pollard
<8plu...@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 4:42:30 PM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:
>
>> Two other things:
>>
>> When I go to the Account List, in the Transaction Download column most
>> accounts either say Yes (Direct Connect) or Yes (Express Web Connect).
>
>I would expect Express Web Connect accounts to say, "Yes, (Improve connection), if the financial institution offers Direct Connect or Express Web Connect+.
>
>> But Bank of America says Yes (Improve connection).
>> Should I click on Improve Connection? What will it do if I click there?
>
>I would not. When I tried that in a test file, Quicken froze (I had to use Task Manager to "End Task").

OK, thanks

[Ken Blake]

On Mon, 10 Oct 2022 11:16:19 -0700 (PDT), John Pollard
<8plu...@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Monday, October 10, 2022 at 10:32:39 AM UTC-5, John Pollard wrote:
>
>> Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied. Your experience my be different.
>> "Set up Bill Manager" is a link; you should find some guidance by clicking on it.
>>
>> Here are some articles on Bill Manager (they may cover some/all the same ground as the Quicken "Set up Bill Manager" link).
>>
>> https://www.quicken.com/support/what-are-differences-between-quicken-bill-manager-and-quicken-bill-pay
>> https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-windows-frequently-asked-questions
>> https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-how-can-i-purchase-additional-quick-pay-or-check-pay-payments

Thanks. I'll look at these in a little while.

>FYI: I believe that Quicken Premier (and above) users get Bill Manager for free, for at least some maximum number (12?) of checks/month. Users of lesser Quicken versions pay $9.95/month.

I use Premier, and12 check is more than I need,



>https://www.quicken.com/product-selector

[Ken Blake]

On Mon, 10 Oct 2022 12:23:35 -0700, Ken Blake <K...@invalid.news.com>
wrote:

OK, I went to that web site and followed the instruction to set up
Bill Manager. I mostly want this to use for having payments sent by
check from BofA to a couple of small companies I sometimes have to
pay.

So I entered the exterminating company I use. The next payment will be
the next time he comes, December 7. So I tried to set up that
payment, but all that happened was that an entry was made in the BofA
register. Essentially the entry is just a reminder to me.

Did I do something wrong? I there a way I can have the payment
scheduled to be made by a check that BofA will mail?

If I can't do that, I think Bill Manager will probably be useless to
me.

You said "Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied."
Can I ask what was unsatisfactory about it to you?


>>https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-windows-frequently-asked-questions
>>
>>https://www.quicken.com/support/quicken-bill-manager-how-can-i-purchase-additional-quick-pay-or-check-pay-payments

[John Pollard]

On Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 1:56:44 PM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:

> OK, I went to that web site and followed the instruction to set up
> Bill Manager. I mostly want this to use for having payments sent by
> check from BofA to a couple of small companies I sometimes have to
> pay.
>
> So I entered the exterminating company I use. The next payment will be
> the next time he comes, December 7. So I tried to set up that
> payment, but all that happened was that an entry was made in the BofA
> register. Essentially the entry is just a reminder to me.

It has been a while since I tested Bill Manager, so I may not be able to help as much as I'd like.

But Bill Manager doesn't just setup reminders in your register; it communicates with a third-party provider to get your bills paid.

As I recall, the third party goes to the payee's server, determines what you owe and when; then, at the appropriate time, causes the payment to be made from the bank account you designated.

> Did I do something wrong? I there a way I can have the payment
> scheduled to be made by a check that BofA will mail?
>
> If I can't do that, I think Bill Manager will probably be useless to me.

I think Bill Manager does more than what you've experienced, but I don't know that it works exactly as you are imagining.

I don't think anything is scheduled at your bank, I think it's scheduled with the third-party who will cause a payment to be made when it's needed.

I believe the place to monitor and manage Bill Manager payments in Quicken is on the Bills & Income tab.

> You said "Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied."
> Can I ask what was unsatisfactory about it to you?

Since it has been a while, I don't recall all the details, but it seemed a bit difficult to work with, and somewhat unreliable/inconsistent (plus I don't have all that many bills that are not already automated).

I would go through all the Quicken FAQ links I provided earlier; and give the Bills & Income tab a thorough going over. But I wouldn't beat my brains out trying to get satisfactory results; I don't think Bill Manager is ready to satisfy many Quicken customers, especially those who came from using Bank Billpay.

[John Pollard]

On Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 1:56:44 PM UTC-5, Ken Blake wrote:

> You said "Personally, my tests of Bill Manager left me unsatisfied."
> Can I ask what was unsatisfactory about it to you?

You may find the following Community discussion of interest:

Online Bills and Bill Reminders do not work together well.
https://community.quicken.com/discussion/7920403/online-bills-and-bill-reminders-do-not-work-together-well

[Ken Blake]

Thanks very much.