“USAA, a privately held bank and insurance company, plans to update its iPhone application this week to introduce the check deposit feature, which requires a customer to photograph both sides of the check with the phone’s camera,” Stellin reports.
“Customers will not have to mail the check to the bank later; the deposit will be handled entirely electronically, and the bank suggests voiding the check and filing or discarding it. But to reduce the potential for fraud, only customers who are eligible for credit and have some type of insurance through USAA will be permitted to use the deposit feature. Mr. Peacock said that about 60 percent of the bank’s customers qualify,” Stellin reports.
Full story here.
And just when I thought there was no way I could love USAA any more… Absolutely fantastic!
Awesome! When will bank of america do this?
…guess this will be the first of many like payment systems: once banks/(parking) toll systems/etc. realise that you can collect the money from people using their phones – and given the ease of use (and ease of programming) for the iPhone, guess we’ll see more apps like this:
automatic check-in for your flight / train tickets / taxi payment / parking payment / money transfer & pin/visa card-like payments… You name it.
The future looks very bright for the iPhone and its company!
been a client of USAA for over 15 years…i love their service.
Personally I wouldn’t go voiding it or destroying it until it goes into my account, but very cool otherwise. Other than perhaps the ease of making an actual app there is nothing to have stopped anyone offering this service before for people with camera phones or indeed cameras and computers, but the popularity of the iPhone and appstore has obviously made it something that is worthwhile for them. Will we be getting a Mac/iSight version? Probably not.
oh…the Virtual life….
And the purpose for using paper checks at all….
@rmongold, couldn’t agree with you more. USAA is the best! It’s amazing how a bank with only one branch can be so easy to deal with.
That’s my bank!! w00t!
I have USAA too and love their deposit-at-home feature.
USAA is a terrific company. Instead of complaining about their bank and their insurance company, most USAA members are proud to have accounts and insurance there. Doubt there is any better in the US.
> I have USAA too and love their deposit-at-home feature
Last time I checked, that feature was PC only — have they released a Mac client?
@NewsReader, Deposit at Home [scanning checks at home and sending to USAA] works with Macs.
See video demo here.
Indeed! I remember being incredulous when a friend told me that his insurance company didn’t send him a check every year if they had too few claims and made too much money.
USAA rules!
Is USAA only for the military? Please let me know. fwm2008@me.com
@M.X.N.T.4.1.
“Personally I wouldn’t go voiding it or destroying it until it goes into my account, but very cool otherwise. Other than perhaps the ease of making an actual app there is nothing to have stopped anyone offering this service before for people with camera phones or indeed cameras and computers, but the popularity of the iPhone and appstore has obviously made it something that is worthwhile for them. Will we be getting a Mac/iSight version? Probably not.”
I’ve been a USAA customer for 10 years. It’s not like other banks. Your electronic deposits and transfers are visible and effective within seconds. Canceled checks are presented as PDFs on your screen. Detailed account activity is not only available, it’s exportable into Quicken or as a csv file into Excel. There are no nickel and dime charges for any of it. As for insurance, I pay $1600 per year for full coverage on 3 vehicles and customer service is fantastic.
BTW, we use our scanner and G5 desktop to deposit checks, no problem.
Who is Eligible?
Active-duty officers and enlisted personnel.
Children whose eligible parents have or had a USAA auto or property insurance product.
National Guard and Selected Reserve officers and enlisted personnel.
Officer candidates in commissioning programs (Academy, ROTC, OCS/OTS).
Former military personnel:
Retired officers and enlisted personnel.
===================================
So my wife’s father is retired military and a member. That makes us eligible. Since I’m eligible and carry an auto policy my kids are eligible. As far as I know the chain can just keep going.
@ fwm2008, USAA has been opening up their eligibility over the past years. At one time, it was only available to military officers. That has changed. At the moment, there are only a few products that are not available to most people. Unfortunately for those who don’t qualify, auto insurance is one of those. Their auto insurance service and price (if you’re a good driver) are the best. I recommend calling them and see what you qualify for. If I’m not mistaken, it’s even possible that anyone can sign up for most banking services. (Their bank is actually separate.) Check with them.
Like everyone, USAA can mess up and make mistakes. But those times are rare compared to other companies. As you can tell even from the few posts here, people don’t just like them. They REALLY like them.
Trees all over the World are rejoicing
BC