iPay FAQ’s

The Basics

• What is iPay?
  
  It’s Stark Federal Credit Union’s online bill pay program.  Pay all of your bills in minutes instead of hours while saving money on stamps, checks, envelopes and trips to the post office.
  
  
• How do I sign up for iPay?
  
  Log on to SAFE@home and click “iPay” in the top menu bar.  You may then fill out the enrollment application.  These applications are reviewed daily.  A Stark Federal Credit Union member service representative will email you as soon as your iPay account is set up.
  
  
• How much does iPay cost?
  
  iPay is free to Stark Federal Credit Union members with checking accounts.
  
  
• How are payments sent?
  
  Payments are sent two ways: electronic and paper check. On average, electronic payments are sent to more than 70 percent of payees. For payees who can only accept checks, the subscriber’s account is debited electronically and an authorized paper check is issued on behalf of the subscriber.
  
  
• What are the benefits of electronic payments?
  
  Electronic is the fastest payment method for subscribers and greatly reduces the risk of human error. Electronic payments are received by the payee within 2–3 business days.

Using iPay

• I don’t think my payee will be able to receive an electronic payment.  Will I still be able to send a payment with iPay?
  
  Yes.  If the payee is unable to receive an electronic payment, iPay will mail a physical check from your account.  With iPay, you can pay virtually anyone with a current address within the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.
  

• I just made a payment with iPay, but the money is still showing in my account!  What do I do?
  
  The funds will not instantly be deducted from your account.  You will have until 4:00 PM EST to stop or change the payment.
  
  
• Can I transfer money to my account at another financial institution?
  
  Yes.  Select “Add a transfer account” and fill in the appropriate information.  You will need to know the other financial institution’s routing number.
  

• Can I make payments from my share (savings) account?
  
  The Federal government designates savings accounts as non-transaction accounts, meaning they cannot be used for automatic deductions.  Therefore, only checking accounts may be used with iPay.
  
  
• I sent too much money to a payee.  What do I do?
  
  You have until 4:00 PM EST to change the payment on the day it’s scheduled to go out.  Otherwise, you may contact the payee about receiving a credit for the difference.
  
  
• I sent too little to a payee.  What do I do?
  
  If it is past the cut-off point of 4:00 PM EST, you can send a second payment with iPay.  You may want to contact the payee to let them know what happened.
  
  
• Are online bill payments guaranteed?
  
  Online bill payments are not guaranteed by the US Postal Service or Automated Clearing House Network (ACH). However, online bill pay off ers a payment success rate of 99.99 percent and greatly reduces the risk of human error. In the event a check payment is not received, our online bill pay support will stop and re-issue the payment, as well as provide proof of processing to the payee. Online bill pay also provides a history of your payments and payment information is integrated directly into account statements.
  
  
• When can payments be scheduled?
  
  Payments may be submitted at any time, day or night. All payments should be scheduled according to process date and not according to due date. For example, payments should be scheduled to process before the actual due date. Estimated arrival times are automatically displayed during the scheduling process. We recommend scheduling first payments in advance to ensure timely delivery. Payments are electronically debited from your account on the process date. For same-day processing, please schedule payments before 4:00 EST.

Technical Questions

• Is online bill pay secure?
  
  iPay is recommended by security experts as one of the safest ways to pay your bills.  According to research, 90 percent of identity theft doesn’t occur through the Internet.*  Identity thieves still use tried and true methods of stealing mail or discarded trash.  Combined use of online banking and iPay helps to protect consumers against identity theft and check fraud.  For additional security, iPay requires 128-bit encryption and personalized log-in information.
  
  
• Will my bills get paid faster than if I sent a check?
  
  Not necessarily.  Although iPay is more convenient and cost effective than mailing a physical check, please allow 5-7 business days for the payment to reach the payee.
  
  
• I am using your Direct Payment program to make some payments like for my cable and gas bills.  Will iPay replace this service?
  
  No, iPay will not replace Direct Payment.  There is no action required to change your automatic payments set up through Direct Payment.
  
  
• What’s with all the security questions?
  
  The security questions are another level of security in iPay beyond a username and password.  We simply want to make sure that you are you.
  
  
• The payee is saying they received the payment late.  What do I do?
  
  Call 866-812-5982 to speak to an iPay representative.  Remember, however, that payments can take up to 7 days to reach the payee.  Please leave plenty of time for the payment to arrive.
  
  
• Can I use iPay with my cell phone?
  
  iPay does not support cell phone options at this time.  Most security experts recommend not using your cell phone to transmit private account information using a cell phone.