Downloading and accessing BACS reports during coronavirus
29 June 2020
The Bankers Automated Clearing Service (BACS), part of Pay.UK, has circulated an email to remind customers of the importance of keeping up to date with their messaging reports, particularly during the uncertain times we are living in. Reports are time critical, and they must be downloaded and actioned within three working days.
Failure to access and action these reports within the stated time frame will mean that payments to accounts, or collections against them may be unsuccessful in the future, which could result in problems relating to failed payments, or unpaid Direct Debits. Both outcomes could potentially lead to increased costs for businesses or unhappy customers, suppliers, and / or employees.
As many staff are working remotely, in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus, there have been many challenges to standard working practices. The advice provided is that businesses should monitor who can access these reports to ensure that, if key staff members are unavailable, the reports can still be accessed and actioned in their absence. Businesses should also check that staff can access the reports when working remotely as well as when working in the office.
For businesses who use the services of a bureau, they should liaise with them to confirm whose responsibility it is to access and action reports.
To access reports, there are a variety of methods:
- Via Payment Services Website (PSW)
- Via Bactsel-IP software
- Via Hardware Security Module (HSM)
Regardless of which process is used to access reports, users must remember to ensure to keep their colleagues’ contact details up-to-date.
The information in this article is accurate at the time of publication. For all the latest information, news and resources on how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting payroll professions, visit our Coronavirus hub.