How does Positive Pay work?
Your business can manually enter issued checks or upload a file containing issued check information into the Positive Pay system. Checks presented for payment against your account are then compared to the checks your business has issued.
To help protect against fraud, any checks that do not match the issued check list — or contain discrepancies in check number, amount, or other details — are flagged as exceptions for review. Authorized users can then log in to Business Online Banking to review exception items and decide whether to pay or return each transaction.
For additional protection, your business can also establish ACH authorization rules and filters to control which ACH transactions are permitted to post to your account.
What happens if someone tries to cash a check at a Newburyport Bank branch?
Checks presented at any Newburyport Bank branch are compared against your company’s issued check file as part of the Positive Pay process. Please refer to your Positive Pay agreement for details regarding how over-the-counter exception items are handled.
How will our business be notified if there are exceptions to review?
Businesses enrolled in Positive Pay alerts can receive email notifications whenever exception items require review. As a best practice, businesses should log in to Business Online Banking each business day to monitor for exceptions.
What is the exception processing deadline?
The daily exception processing deadline is:
– 11:00 AM for check exceptions
– 3:00 PM for ACH exceptions
What happens if exception decisions are not made before the deadline?
To help safeguard your account, any exceptions not reviewed by the processing deadline will automatically receive a “return” decision.
Can multiple users access Positive Pay?
Yes. By default, Positive Pay access is granted to the Business Online Banking administrator. Additional authorized users can be added with customizable permissions based on account access and system functionality.
What file formats are accepted for issued check uploads?
Positive Pay accepts fixed-length and delimited text files for issued check uploads.
What information is required in the issued check file?
The following information is required for each issued check:
– Check number
– Issue date
– Payee
– Amount
Additional information may also be included in the file if desired.
What if the uploaded file contains items that are not checks?
Uploaded files should contain only issued check information with the required data fields.
What if a check is issued after a file has already been submitted?
If additional checks are issued after a file upload, you may either upload a revised file or manually add checks using the “Enter Issue” feature. This allows individual checks or ranges of checks to be added without creating a new upload file.
Are there fees associated with Positive Pay?
Yes. Fees may apply for Positive Pay services. Please contact Newburyport Bank for current pricing and additional details.
