Going Green: How Paperless Billing is Doing its Part to Save the World
4 min readTechnology impacts every aspect of our lives, making our lifestyle a whole lot easier and accessible in terms of education, documentation, or even the transactions we do on a daily basis. Its influence has become even more apparent when big corporations started shifting from printed statements to paperless billing. In order to save up resources, they started handing out monthly bills through electronic mails; therefore, maximizing the use of modern technology.
However, even though a huge part of society has gone paperless, it doesn’t mean traditional ways of doing business have been eliminated completely. Some companies still send out a vast number of papers each month to collect various payments. In a similar manner, many people are also sticking with paying their bills traditionally—receiving their statements in the mail and sending their payments back in the mail via check or debit/credit card information.
It’s fairly understandable since paper statements have tons of advantages, including tangible payment reminders and easy record keeping. But if one takes a closer look, they will be able to see the same benefits on paperless bills, even so much more.
If you’re still in doubt, then this article might change your mind. Here’s how paperless billing can benefit you and the environment at the same time:
24/7 Convenience
Convenience is perhaps the number one reason to enroll in paperless billing. If you have a 9-5 job or are busy running everyday errands, then this is definitely for you. With paperless billing, you can quickly access your monthly bills from your email inbox without taking up much of your time. There’s no need to wait for a paper bill in the mail which, although unintentional, often gets misplaced by your family members or thrown into the trash bin. Or worse, gets ripped into pieces by your little furry friends.
Society is filled with busy individuals who don’t have time to worry about these kinds of nuisance. As such, paperless billing is the perfect solution to help reduce some of your stress. More than that, flexible payment options are also a plus factor. Paperless billing customers have access to numerous payment options, including debit cards, credit cards, autopay, mobile app, and even smart home voice activation.
Enhanced Security
Traditional process or paper billing statements often require printing and mailing of sensitive account information to their customers. This crucial information makes its way through numerous postal service departments and employees before arriving in your hands. This lengthy process increases the chance of human error; meaning paper statements can easily get lost or delivered to the wrong person.
On the contrary, paperless billing makes the process short and simple, allowing businesses to communicate personal and sensitive information directly to you, which reduces the risk of mail fraud and lost statements.
Reduced Carbon Footprint
No doubt, the most essential benefit of paperless billing is reduced carbon footprint.
If you want to contribute to the betterment of the environment, a simple way to do it is by reducing paper consumption. By turning paper documents into electronic ones and eliminating paper from fax workflows, you are not only making your life easier but also effortlessly making a huge impact on the environment.
According to research, roughly 15 billion trees are cut down around the world every year for the paper industry. This means that, in the estimate, 14% of deforestation is done to satisfy the world’s need for paper goods. Now, imagine where the world would be in ten years’ time. Inconceivable, perhaps? This is why we should start looking for ways to reduce these numbers. By transitioning from paper to electronic statements, you can help the world take a step towards greater environmental sustainability.
How? It’s just simple if you think about it—fewer paper bills mean fewer trees need to be cut down to create them. Eliminating paper bills also means less ink, plastic, fuel, industrial waste, and countless other aspects of the manufacturing, delivery, disposal, and recycling processes.
As a consumer and a capable resident in the one and only planet we’re going to live in at present, you have a moral responsibility to live up to. Start by switching your monthly statement prints to a paperless one. Remember that small effort sustained over time can eventually make a huge difference.
Reduce carbon emissions and achieve net zero: HSBC’s 2030 program
By 2026, HSBC will completely switch the single-use PVC plastic they use to manufacture cards in favor of recycled PVC plastic. This change alone will help reduce carbon emissions by 161 tons a year and remove 73 tons of plastic in circulation per year.
Plus they also offer a convenient and secure way to handle your credit card billing by sending out eStatements.
So if you want to be associated with a company that puts eco-friendliness at the forefront of their business, HSBC might just be your partner on cashless transactions.