What is a Cheque Scanner and Why Does Your Business Need One?
How mobile and plastic payments have eliminated cash transactions, cheque scanners have played an influential role in stopping the process of manually depositing cheques at banks. This is especially helpful in an age where several businesses prefer cheques for their high-value transactions over online payments.
If your business is one of the many that currently uses cheques, getting a cheque scanner can revolutionize how you deal with them. But before we dive into their benefits, let’s go over what they are and how they work.
What are Cheque Scanners?
Cheque scanners are devices designed to speed up the cheque deposit process. These are meant to be used in RDC or Remote Deposit Capture systems that allow bank customers to deposit cheques remotely with a push of a button. Some well-known cheque scanner brands include Digital Check, Panini, and Canon.
How Do They Work?
Several individual components bring a cheque scanner together. It begins with a digital scanner, which is similar to the scanner that comes with most modern printers. It uses a light and several light detectors to scan a cheque and convert it into a digital image.
Once scanned, the scanner then uses its image processing technology for the purpose of handwriting recognition. These scanners are effective enough to recognize nearly every handwriting. The software also validates the recognition of reasonable values.
Once validated, the digital cheque is then deposited at the given financial institution. Moreover, there is a constantly updated database of scanned cheques that ensures you will always have a record of deposited cheques when needed.
Benefits of Using a Cheque Scanner
There are several advantages to using a cheque scanner. These are:
1. Lower Administrative Costs
With a cheque scanner, your organization can reduce administrative costs that would otherwise be paid for the purpose of maintaining and handling cheques and their records. While the initial investment in purchasing a cheque scanner would be higher than that of hiring an employee, it would help reduce costs for your business in the long run.
2. Increased Security
Since cheque scanners are digital, they help reduce the chances of human error in the cheque deposit process. They also use digitally verified signatures, and banks have their own RDC policies to eliminate fraudulent transactions. This makes them more secure than the manual process.
3. Boosted Office Productivity
The process of manually depositing cheques is rather labour-intensive, especially for businesses that primarily transact with them. With a digital scanner, your employees would have more time for their work, boosting their overall productivity.
4. Choosing the Right Cheque Scanning Device
Choosing the right kind of cheque scanner is essential for the efficiency of your business. While small businesses that conduct one or two cheque transactions a month can get away with using a mobile device to capture the cheque’s images, we recommend getting a dedicated scanner if you’re looking for a machine that can handle a high volume of quality scans and automated verification.
A good idea is to go for a scanner that meets your requirements while also accounting for expansion. For instance, a single-feed scanner will be ideal for about 30 or fewer scans a day, whereas for a higher volume, you would require a scanner with an automatic feeder. Lastly, the scanner you opt for must be compatible with the software used by your bank, so it is important to keep that in mind.
Final Thoughts
Cheque scanners can significantly reduce the labour and costs associated with the cheque depositing process. However, it is critical to select a trustworthy cheque scanner.
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