Payment Processing for Utility Providers

Payment Validation

Protect your business from fraud, errors and returned payments by verifying account information before processing. The CSG Forte account validation program ensures ACH payments originating accounts are valid, helping you reduce risks and improve efficiency.

Our platform offers two payment validation options to meet utilities payment processing needs:

• Forte Validate is a bank account verification service that checks if an account is open and valid using routing and account numbers. It consults proprietary databases to identify issues like blacklisted routing numbers, invalid checksums or closed accounts.
• Forte Validate+ is an optional service that provides additional verification based on the bank’s reported account status. It ensures accounts are in good standing and helps businesses make informed decisions about accepting payments.

By using our payment validation solutions, utility providers can confidently process ACH payments from any source, minimizing losses and improving cash flow. We also offer payment authentication solutions that will allow your customers to confirm account ownership, which will allow them to secure their ACH transactions.

Revenue Cycle Optimization

Nothing disrupts cash flow like a stolen, expired or replaced card, which stops a customer’s recurring payment. CSG Forte’s account updater automatically updates stored payment details, so your customers don’t have to do anything. It helps to:

• Prevent failed payments by replacing outdated card information.
• Flag closed or expired accounts so you can act before payments stop.
• Encourage customer retention by keeping transactions seamless.

With our revenue cycle optimization solutions, your utility company can turn payment processing into a revenue-generating tool while making billing easier for your business and customers.

NSF Check Recovery Services

When a customer’s payment is returned due to insufficient funds, our non-sufficient funds (NSF) returns recovery solution automatically retries the payment at a later time. NSF recovery increases the chances of a successful transaction, which helps prevent service disruptions and improve customer experience.

Our payment recovery process is compliant with standards set by the National Automated Clearing House Association (Nacha). You’ll receive 100% of the recovered payment and even get a portion of the NSF fee collected.

Secure Payment Solutions

Protecting sensitive payment information is our top priority, which is why we maintain the highest security standards to keep payment data safe at every step. You can securely accept and process payments with:

• Tokenization, which replaces card details with a secure, random code that is useless to hackers
• PCI-validated encryption, which scrambles payment data the moment it’s entered to keep it safe from threats

Electronic Bill and Payment Presentment (EBPP) Solutions

CSG Forte’s bill presentment solutions allow utility companies to send invoices electronically, eliminating printing and mailing costs for your business. In addition, customers can easily access their billing information and make payments on their own, which helps you get paid sooner and reduces the need for customer service calls.