Receiving credit card payments in a law firm can ease cashflow as a simple, effective and affordable way of getting clients to pay their invoices quickly.
That said, as a Finance Director or Legal Cashier in a Law Firm, you must ask yourself a series of questions about receiving funds via a credit card payment and the possible implications of not having internal training on the dos and don’ts!
Internal Law Firm Issues to Deal With
At the Institute of Legal Finance & Management (ILFM) we understand that accounting in legal practices and law firms can easily hinder time and get a little complicated or drawn out when there’s no plan in place for credit card payment implementation.
- Will credit and debit cards be accepted?
- Are you able to group payments at the end of the month?
- How are you going to make sure these payments are properly applied in your accounting system?
- Is payment only for bills or client monies?
- If client monies, should there be a limit on the value? Will this change if a credit card is used? (Whilst adhering to their source of wealth & funds).
- Will credit cards be accepted on conveyancing matters - large payments might impact on overall loan liability and the mortgage offer.
- Can the receipts be posted and drawn against immediately? (Even if it is 2/3 days before the receipt credits the bank account).
Processing Payments Online
You will need to consider PCI-DSS requirements if they are processing payments online. For that reason, you might want to talk to someone to host a payment facility for your finance department, a company such as Key IVR (we are not affiliated). Payment hosting firms who specialise in law firm payment hosting, if you are a small to medium sized practice, these hosting providers can often give quick technical solutions beyond a firm’s IT abilities.
Communicating to your Law Firm Colleagues
Being able to take credit card payments is a great marketing and business development tool, as many consumers of law like to pay with their credit cards. Prospective clients might actually decide to go with another firm, purely on the basis of credit card payment accessibility.
Do make sure that everyone in the firm (legal secretaries, receptionists included, together with any marketing person or website developer, knows the change of law firm payments that are acceptable too).
If you are a provider of legal advice to your local community, do make sure the person overseeing your Google Business Profile updates this too (if your company shows up on a Google search and that search includes the details that that they accept credit card payments, those firms are more likely to get chosen!).
If you have any further questions relating to credit card on-boarding in your legal accounts functions, please contact me...elaine@ilfm.org.uk
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