Don’t bank online yet? The postal strike could change that

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Elderly people dependent on dividends for income are having a tough time with the postal strike delaying the arrival of their cheques. With millions of unsorted items piled up, the letters might never actually be delivered.

The union claims that as many as 30 million letters, cheques, documents and the like are caught up in the chaos. And even those who have received their cheques are having difficulty if they live in rural areas where there isn’t a bank nearby to pay in cheques. Sending them by post is just too risky.

Businesses are struggling with unpaid bills as cheques get stuck in the post, though no doubt many cash-strapped firms are making good use of ‘your cheque is in the post’. However, the situation could be the kiss of death for some companies.

Consumers face penalty charges on their credit card bills for non-payment and the possibility of a black mark on their credit file, and late payment of utility bills could lead to some being threatened with disconnection. Motorists face incurring extra costs to parking fines and, possibly, legal action.

There is also a chance of a £100 fine from the taxman if notification that they need to fill in a tax return, due by 6 October, or the actual tax return, to be filed by 31 October don’t arrive.

And things could get worse. The Communication Workers Union will this week announce the result of a vote by 121,000 Royal Mail workers on whether to hold a national strike in protest over job security and work rules.

But there is a bright side to this. Those who have refused to convert to internet banking, paperless bills and direct transfers for payments might decide that enough is enough and opt for online transactions.

This will save utilities companies and credit card issuers a fortune. They have been trying to persuade us all to go paperless for years, offering discounts and incentives for those who do – and penalties for those who don’t.