How to Setup and Pay Bills Online from a PC Financial No Fee Chequing Account

After I opened my PC Financial chequing account and deposited a cheque at a CIBC ABM to fund it, I decided to set it up to pay some bills. Since I managed to pay my Bell bill once from our ING THRIVE chequing account, I picked Bell to test first. This time I know about Bell having a strange name for their business and an odd idea that the account number should not be the account number but instead the customer ID number. (Surprisingly confusing? Hey, this is Bell we’re talking about.)  Here’s what I did to pay the bill online.

Arranging to Pay the Bill for a New Company Online for Free from a PC Financial Chequing Account

First, you need to add the company to the list of bills you can pay online from your account. To do that, I followed these steps:

To Sign in to your PC Financial bank accounts

  1. Go to http://www.pcfinancial.ca/
  2. Make sure Online Banking is selected from the drop down list in the top right corner of the screen, then
  3. Click the Go button.
  4. In the Card Number field, type the number on your debit card.
    Do NOT type your account number. (Weird but true.)
  5. Do NOT click to select Save Bank Card. This is a terrible idea. Why give someone half the information to break into your account after they steal your computer?!
  6. In the Password field, type the password. (This is your long password, not the shorter one for telephone banking.)
  7. Click on the Sign In button.
  8. If this is the first time you’ve online banked, you will have to set up three identification questions and answers before you can proceed.

On the Account Summary screen, look for the column marked Funds Available. Do not try to pay a bill that is larger than your Funds Available! New deposits are usually placed on hold for 4 or more business days.

To Set Up a New Company to Get Paid

  1. On the left hand side list, click on Bill Payments.
  2. To set up a new company to pay, click on the Add Bills link.
  3. In the Billing Company’s Name field, type at least the first three letters of the company’s name to bring up a list of possible businesses, then click on the Search button.
    For example, I typed: Bell
  4. Based on what I learned from setting up Bell at ING Direct, I looked for BELL CANADA – ONE BILL. There are many choices for Bell, this may not be the correct choice for you!
    When I found it (the matches included anything with Belleville in the name, etc.!) I clicked to select the radio button beside BELL CANADA – ONE BILL
    then I clicked the Continue button.
  5. In the Account Number of Bill box, type the 14 digit number for online/telebanking from your last paper or online Bell bill.
    (They actually have a nice graphic of a Bell telephone bill to point out that although they want your account number, the number Bell describes as your Account Number is not what BELL wants: they actually want your Customer ID Number. Bell specializes in making things unclear on their statements.)
  6. Click the Continue button.
  7. As requested, very carefully check the number you added for mistakes.
    You don’t really want to pay money to some stranger’s bill while your own goes unpaid!
  8. If you’re sure it’s the correct number, click on the Continue button.

You will receive confirmation that the Company has been added to your Bills list.

You’re ready to pay the bill.

  1. If you are finished banking, in the top right of the screen, click on the Sign Out button.
  2. Click on the OK button.
  3. Close your browser to increase the security of your banking information.

How to Pay a Bill Online for Free from a PC Financial Chequing Account

Please be aware that it can take a long time for a bill to be paid after you enter the bill payment online. This is true of any bank or financial institution. Although it looks like the money left your account and went to the billing company immediately, it doesn’t really happen that way. It can take several business days for the transaction to be completed. Always pay bills online well ahead of the due date. If it doubt, call the company you owe money to and discuss the matter with them.

Be careful not to miss the payment due date!

UPDATE: August 2014
As a recent example of how long it can take to pay a bill, I recently wanted to pay down our credit card to open room for a big purchase.

  • I paid the CIBC credit card bill from our PC Financial account on Saturday August 16.
  • The money was deducted from my bank account immediately.
  • It only was credited to the credit card on the morning of Wednesday August 20!

 

  1. Sign in to your PC Financial accounts.
  2. On the left hand side list, click on Bill Payments.
    NOTE: PC Financial recommends you pay a bill at least 2 days before the due date. They don’t specify it, but I think they mean BUSINESS (Monday-Friday, not holiday) days.
  3. For the company you want to pay, in the Amount $ field for that business, type the amount you want to pay.
    For example, under the heading BELL CANADA – ONE BILL, in the Amount $ field, I typed $17.96.
  4. In the When section
    • From the month drop-down list, select the desired month.
    • If desired, type over the values in the Day and Year fields with the day and year on which you wish to pay the bill.
  5. If you have more than one chequing account, in the From drop-down list, select the account from which you wish to pay the bill.
  6. If the amount and date for the payment are correct, click on the Continue button.
  7. Review the information about which business will be paid what amount of money on which date from which account. If it’s all ok, click on the Pay These Bills button.
  8. Write down or copy  and save or print the Reference Number and other information including the date/time stamp. You might need this to resolve any billing disputes if there is an argument later about the bill payment.

NOTE: You cannot pay bills directly from a PC Financial savings account. You must have a PC Financial chequing account.

NOTE AGAIN: Just for fun, I tried entering a bill payment date of two days ago. Unfortunately the system is too smart for that and tells me I have to enter today’s date or a future date. No cheating allowed I guess.

  1. If you are finished banking, in the top right of the screen, click on the Sign Out button.
  2. Click on the OK button.
  3. Close your browser to increase the security of your banking information.

For businesses like Bell, it’s a good idea to check online a few business days later and make sure the bill is reported as paid.

How to Check Your Transaction History for a PC Financial Chequing Account

  1. Sign in to your PC Financial accounts.
  2. From the list on the left side of the screen, click on the Account Activities link.
  3. Click on the Transaction History link.
  4. Check whether the correct account is listed in the drop-down list, if not select your Chequing Account from the list.
  5. Check the Starting When and Ending When date fields include the dates you’re interested in.
    If not, select the month from the drop-down field and type the day and year you are interested in.
  6. Click on Search for Transactions.
  7. You should see a record of your bill payment, if you chose to pay your bill today.
  8. If you are finished banking, in the top right of the screen, click on the Sign Out button.
  9. Click on the OK button.
  10. Close your browser to increase the security of your banking information.

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How to Apply In Person for a Joint Chequing Account at PC Financial

As I admitted in my shame-faced conclusion in How to Apply Online, at the last minute, I decided to apply for our PC Financial Chequing Account in person. Here’s what we did and how it went.

Before You Trek Off to Loblaws to Apply for Your No Fee Chequing Account

Find a store that has a PC Financial booth by checking your nearest location at: http://amicus.via.infonow.net/locator/branch/?LOC=en_CA&region=ON&language=en&signinop=

You can phone to make an appointment at most locations. We just risked it with a walk in visit.

You will need to be

  • an adult
  • a resident of Canada

You may need to know your Social Insurance Number (SIN).
(Strangely although we needed to enter our SIN to apply online, we were not asked for our SINs when we applied in person.)

You will need to bring

  • a photo id like a driver’s license
  • a major credit card (not a credit card for a department store)
  • a cheque if you want to link the account electronically to a chequing account at another bank
  • patience

How Long Does It Take to Set Up a Chequing Account in Person

It took us about 45 minutes. We had a very competent cheerful employee to help us.

When Will I Get my Debit Card?

Generally, they will give you your debit card while you are there. In our case they made us login and set the PIN for the debit cards while they stood nearby.

When Will I Get my Cheques?

The first batch of cheques is ordered automatically after the account is set up. It is supposed to take 1-2 weeks for them to arrive by mail.

Will I Get Paid Good Interest on the PC Chequing Account Balance?/

Not really. Until July 15, 2013 PC Financial has a special interest rate of 2.6% on any money deposited in any type of account that takes your total amount on deposit higher than your total balance across all your accounts on April 14, 2013. But generally speaking, the account pays a very low rate of interest.

On April 23, 2013, the regular (non bonus) rates were between 0.05% and 0.5% depending on how much you had deposited in your chequing account. As an example, if you had $3,500 deposited for an entire year at those rates, you would earn $3.

So the interest isn’t likely the reason you want this no fee chequing account.

You can check the rates and how they are applied at: http://www.banking.pcfinancial.ca/a/rates/allRates.page?region=ON&language=en&signinop=

Are There Any Fees for this “No Fee” Account?

Actually, yes, there are. You don’t pay for some things.

  • For instance, you can use debit as much as you want for no fee.
  • There is no required minimum balance.
  • You can make withdrawals or deposits at CIBC or PC Financial ABMs for no fee.
  • You can write cheques and provided you have enough money in your account to cover them, there is no fee either for using the cheque or for buying the cheque. (That’s different than Tangerine, formerly ING Direct, where you get 50 cheques for free but you have to pay to order more paper cheques when you run out.)

You do pay

  • If you overdraw your account. You will have to pay an overdraft fine.
  • If you want paper statements mailed to you there is a fee.
  • There is a fee for money orders and bank drafts.
  • There is a fee for wire transfers.
  • There is a fee for stopping a cheque from being cashed.

I can’t find a link to a simple list, so if you find something else that charges a fee, please post a comment at the end of this article. Thanks!

Will PC Financial Run a Credit Check on Me?

Usually they do run a credit check. They will ask you to sign a form granting permission for the check. If you are not willing to allow the check, they do have another method to set up the account. You will be limited on how large a withdrawal you can make, etc, however.
Credit checks can have an affect on your credit rating.

What to Expect

You will be asked for basically the same information as if you applied online. This will include

  • what do you intend to use the account for?
  • how long you’ve been at your current home address
  • what is your current employment status
  • how long you’ve worked for your current employer
  • What is your co-applicant’s current employment status?
  • How long have they been working for same employer?
  • What is your Email Address?
  • They will ask to see your photo id and a major credit card.
  • whether the account will be used for the benefit of anyone other than the named account holders. (This is a requirement around the legalities of “laundering” money from illegal activities.)
  • Do you want to purchase overdraft protection?
  • Do you have a mortgage?

They will give you a booklet with the legal stuff and other information to take home and read.

Holds and Delays

You can set up a Savings Account at the same time. Be aware that you cannot withdraw money directly from a PC Financial Savings account. Instead, you have to transfer the money to your PC Financial chequing account and then withdraw it. I’m not clear whether you have to wait 4 days for a hold before you can then withdraw it or not. I’ll try to check into this later.

If you deposit money (other than a direct deposit government cheque or direct deposit pay cheque) into your chequing account, you cannot immediately withdraw it. You can withdraw $100 but then you must wait for 4 business days before you can use the rest of the money. This is a fairly standard “hold” period at most banks. You may be able to phone and discuss releasing the hold earlier, in an emergency.

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Do you have a bank account at PC Financial? Has it worked well for you? Did you save enough PC Points to get an amazing amount of lobster? Please share your experiences with a comment.