Convenience in making payments is now more in-demand than ever in this digital age. Consumers use credit and debit cards to make payments and companies process these payments many different ways. Any business that uses the Web to take payments can use a virtual terminal to facilitate those transactions. Virtual terminals are easy-to-use, secure and verifiably compliant, so transactions can be done quickly and safely.

According to a report by the St. Louis Federal Reserve bank titled “Student Loan Delinquency: A Big Problem Getting Worse?” the Federal government has determined that of the nearly $1.3 trillion in non-bankruptcy-dischargeable student loans, the delinquency rate for students in repayment is over 27 percent.

Healthcare is one of the leading sources of consumer debt. With patients shouldering more of the financial burden due to larger deductibles and co-pays, the healthcare provider can no longer rely on an assured payment from the insurance company. Collecting on past due balances post-care becomes a problem for a healthcare provider and they will often turn to collection agencies for help in recovering delinquent funds.

When collecting debt, a challenge you’ll likely encounter is getting consumers to make on-time payments. There is a variety of reasons why they can’t pay you right away, lack of funds, you needing to track down their information, delayed invoicing, etc. However, one of the reasons is that making payments have their own set of obstacles to overcome.

By the end of 2014, nearly 8 percent of U.S. debit cards and 25 percent of credit cards were equipped with chip-enabled Europay, Mastercard and Visa (EMV) technology. Experts predict that by 2018, these numbers could approach 100 percent penetration.

How consumers make payments is changing rapidly. Roughly 10 percent of U.S. consumers do not carry cash at all and paying by paper checks is quickly going out of fashion.

This article is not legal advice. The State of California’s legislature has amended its requirements for debt collectors who receive consumer claims of identity theft. The amended law, labeled the Identity Theft Resolution Act, was signed by Governor Jerry Brown on September 16, 2016. The law becomes effective on Jan. 1, 2017.

A new study from the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) titled “Self Pay and the Benefits of Prospective Patient Engagement” found that more patients are paying their healthcare costs themselves. Based on larger co-pays and high-deductible health plans (HDHPs), patient-payment of healthcare costs has increased 10 percent over the last five years. As a result, healthcare facilities are modifying their behavior toward patients and the costs that can accrue for healthcare treatments.

Take a step into the outside world and you will see a lot of people on their mobile devices. In fact, it seems that just about everyone is staring at the screen of their smartphone. When they are not tapping the smartphone’s screen they are tapping the screen on their mobile tablet. Accessing the internet via a mobile device is not a trend; it is a reality of life. Here are some statistics:

There are many ways to accept payments from the consumer; credit cards, debit cards, and Automated Clearing House (ACH) payments. ACH payments are different than payments by credit and debit cards, so if you are considering setting up ACH billing, here are five important defining points you should know.