Bill Pay Kiosks Help Mitigate Impacts of the Virus
How Utilities are preparing for a fall flare up.
As states begin reopening, there remains a looming cloud of potential uptick in Covid cases for the fall. Utilities have extended moratorium on disconnects in response to the first wave of the virus, but what does this look like in the future? Are states planning to implement intermittent stay at home orders during flare-ups of the virus and how should utilities prepare for fall 2020?
Consumer Behavior
Consumer behavior is obviously experiencing a major shift to digital and self-service consumption methods. For utilities, there is a niche of customers who still prefer to pay in person, which presents challenges for accepting these customer payments. With office closures, utilities depend upon payment networks at local retailers and drive-thru transactions. There is still person to person interaction and potential transmission in these situations, as there is a tangible handoff of the payment and receipt.
Limit Person-to-Person Transactions
Bill pay kiosks are a cost effective and reliable solution that protects employees and customers. In light of the recent announcement from the CDC that the virus does not spread easily, excluding person-to-person transmission, bill payment kiosks are essential to serve in-person payers and limit opportunities for transmission. U.S. Payments has seen a ramp up in kiosk orders to prepare for the fall as utilities realize the benefit of offering a self-service option for customers to pay with cash, check, or card in-person. U.S. Payments has an array of PaySite® kiosk models to best fit your needs.
