Banks and credit unions constantly promote electronic bill payment and presentment (EBPP), but new data show many consumers still want to receive hard copies even when they agree to view their financial statements electronically. This so-called ‘double dipping’ is most prevalent in the financial sector where consumers want access to their archived financial bills more than non-financial bills, especially if they’re not happy with their bank or credit union.

The findings are from a survey conducted by Javelin Strategy & Research on behalf of NACHA (The electronic payments association). 5,000 adults were interviewed in March about their bill paying behaviour.

Among the 4,293 employed respondents, those with business-related financial accounts had the highest rates of double dipping. Some 42% of that subgroup reported receiving both electronic and paper statements for their business accounts, with 25% getting them only online and 33% only in the mail. Among credit card holders, 38% get both paper and electronic statements while 29% receive them only electronically and 33% only in the mail. The lowest rate of double dipping in the 12 financial-account categories Javelin broke out occurred in mortgages. Some 26% of mortgage-loan holders double dipped, with 52% opting for paper bills only and just 22% receiving their mortgage bills online.

Consumer dissatisfaction with the primary financial-account provider may be playing a role. Twenty-seven percent of dissatisfied customers said paper statements would afford them easy access to records if they ever switched banks. Plus, 22% of dissatisfied customers said they tried signing up for the online process but it was too complicated, compared to only 8% of respondents overall.

Control over personal finances and access to old statements were at the top of eight reasons for consumers’ double-dipping behaviour, especially among those dissatisfied with their relationship with their primary bank or credit union. Some 44% of double dippers overall agreed that, “paper statements help me feel more in control.” Twenty-six percent of double dippers said they worried about not being able to access older statements. On a similar note, 24% of all double dippers agreed that, “I worry about not being able to access archived statements,” but agreement with that statement shot up to 39% among the dissatisfied consumers.