Bill payment
 

OK, so my very first bill arrived today in the mail (Rogers cable), which brought up the question of the best method to pay it (and those to follow): cheque by mail, phone, internet - and how should one go about it?
Should I choose to use cheques, where do I buy stamps? In Boston we used to buy them off the ATM machines.

Re: Bill payment
 

Stamps for mailing? Have you tried a post office?
We have all our bills set up for automated payments from our checking account.
You can also pay your Rogers bill at your local Rogers video store - they'll take payment at the counter.
Did that help, or was I way off the mark?

Re: Bill payment
 

I haven't seen any post office in the area - hence the question. The nearest Rogers store is also pretty far, and I have no car. I was hoping it's like down in Boston, where you can buy them by dozens right from your ATM...

Re: Bill payment
 

No post office? Sometimes they're quite well hidden - our local one shares a storefront with a dry cleaners.
Nope, I've never seen an ATM where you can buy stamps.
Have you tried your local 7-11, Mac's, Safeway, etc for stamps?
Does your bank have internet banking?
TD's web based bill payment is pretty good - the money usually gets there in a couple of days.

Re: Bill payment
 

Online banking - it is way easier and you can be up to 10 days late and they don't ding you ;-)

Re: Bill payment
 

I pay all my bills online. Helps to have no fees for transactions on my accounts, so you dont have to keep count to avoid getting dinged at the end of the month. Stamps can be got in a lot of places, but no ATMs. Postal outlets are often found in Shoppers Drugmarts if that helps. Greeting Card shops are a good bet too, and many corner shops include postal counters.

Re: Bill payment
 

terminology question, "...being dinged"? eh?

translation please...

Re: Bill payment
 

Hmmmm .... haven't we been through this one already with someone else who lived in Ontario?

I got that deja vu feeling ....

Re: Bill payment
 

"Getting an unexpected charge" either from the bank for exceeding monthly transaction limit or an interest charge on an overdue bill in this context.

Re: Bill payment
 

Banks and businesses just love doing that - I'm also told it affects your credit rating down the line.

Re: Bill payment
 

so no such thing as the red paper bill!

Re: Bill payment
 

Not too many paper bills at all here if you don't want them .... you can get most of them delivered electronically and save a few trees.

Re: Bill payment
 

There is a store called MAILBOX, ETC. which I've seen in Toronto and here in Guelph. I think they sell stamps. I don't think they sell airmail stamps though.

Re: Bill payment
 

"Airmail stamps"...presumably thinner and lighter than your "regular" stamps :D

Re: Bill payment
 

Oh God!!! You are sooooooo literal......just like my 12-year old nephew....he picks me up on everything!!!!! :D

Re: Bill payment
 

This thread is getting more hillarious by the minute!! :D

Anyway, shoppers drug mart would be good for me, since I have one close by. And I'll also check out the online thingie. Not getting "dinged" sounds good to me! :D

Re: Bill payment
 

I use Quicken for bookkeeping, and pay everything online.

For anybody who has never used Quicken - I highly recommend it. Amazing to project how much cash you'll have at any given time in the future, and I have never been late paying bills in over 2 years of using it!

Re: Bill payment
 

I used to use quicken to keep track of stuff but when I started banking on line I got lazy and didnt bother to get the new version.

The only thing I found with Quicken was that I started to get loads and loads and loads of categories. If I had taken the time to get it organized it would have worked better for me.

Re: Bill payment
 

For a minute there, I thought you said chicken, then I realised you are talking about the software program :D

Anyway....OP welcome to Ontario, the sooner you realise you are no more in BOSTON ( mass ? ), the better. People are right, for some reason, the post offices seem to be hidden in little stores, and at the back of card shops, must be a canadian thing. The canadian post boss just resigned today, after some corruption stuff, may be things will get better.

You have to start paying your bills online, it's the easiest way ( I don't mean direct debit ), as I can't stand someone else dipping their claws into my account when they feel like it. See back in the UK, we have cards from cable and gas companies that you can take into off licences to pay the bill, and it goes thru' instantly.

Stamps, air mails, do people still use those?

Re: Bill payment
 

Some corruption stuff, or has he been reading this thread about hidden post offices?

Believe it or not but there are still some people out there that don't know anything about e-mail. They still use snail-mail.

Re: Bill payment
 

Thanks for the welcome, squarepants! :)
I'm starting to realize I'm not in Boston anymore...
But people are nicer here, in general, although dairy products are much worse than down in Mass.... but I like it here! :)

Re: Bill payment
 

I know what you mean about the dairy stuff, am one of those that suffer from side effects, when I take even a sip.