iSeries AS/400 MICR Check Printing Made Easy!

Q. What are the pro’s and con’s of going with/without generating MICR (verse buying pre-coded check stock)? Most of the savings come from the ease of handling blank check stock. There is a lot of waste when you try to match the pre-printed check numbers with the check numbers is your check register. There is also increased risk of fraud when you have pre-printed checks. These problems are compounded when you have multiple companies and bank accounts.

Q. How do we keep track of blank check stock? One way to keep track of the blank check stock, is to serialize the blank checks with a control number. This costs very little and you'll avoid having to pre-print the check number.

Q. What kind of blank check stock should I use? There are many kinds of blank check stock to choose from. The most common is the check on the bottom with the top 2/3 stub detail or with the top 1/3 a duplicate copy. Since our software is customized for you, we can format the printed output to fit just about any blank check stock available, including pressure seal. Just be sure that the blank check stock you choose have the necessary security features and is Check 21 compliant.

Q. Do I need to use MICR toner when printing checks? Banking regulations require the use of special magnetic ink. If you do not use it and the checks cannot be processed automatically, you can be charged a service fee for each rejected check. Fortunately, magnetic (MICR) toner costs has come down significantly to around $0.012 per check.

Q. What do the letters MICR stand for? MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition, and is used to refer to all of the technology behind those funny looking numbers on the bottom of checks (the E13-B MICR font, the magnetic ink used to print MICR, paper specifications and the equipment used to read checks).

Q. Is MICR pronounced my-ker or micker? Technically, MICR is an acronym and therefore should be spelled out (M, I, C, R). However, we have it on good authority that despite it being pronounced "micker" in the movie Catch Me If You Can (starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks), industry insiders most commonly pronounce it "my- ker".

Q. There are a lot of other companies selling MICR products. How are your products different? Most companies focus on one or two products, leaving you to piece together the rest. Or, they only provide design tools, requiring you to spend countless hours mapping data field and modify programs to make it work with your check printing program. This approach can take a lot of time and often with marginal results. LASERTEC is different. All you have to do is select the blank check stock you want to use, choose an HP laser printer that fits your budget and send us the files from your application. We'll do the rest. With this approach, you'll have a superior product that typically costs much less than other marginal or incomplete products.

Q. What about manual checks? Sometimes we need to fill out and sign a blank check at an event or vendors location. Our software has an option to print a blank check or a series of blank checks using the bank account and the starting check number you specify. Once you've filled out the check you enter the manual check information as you would normally.

Q. What if we already use MICR checks but our printer is unreliable? If you switch to LASERTEC you'll won't have to use an expensive proprietary printer. We use off the shelf HP LaserJet printers, the industry standard in reliability and compatibility.

Q. How do I get started? First, please fill out the request information form, or call us at 1-800-400-3140. We will email a package with pricing and specific information regarding your requirements. We can consult with you to help you determine what products are best for you. When you're ready to move forward, we'll need you to provide us with specific files from your application, a voided copy of your existing check and any logos or signatures you want to include with your check printing. Within a short period of time, you'll receive our turnkey iSeries-AS/400 MICR Printing Software, MICR Toner and any laser printer you may require. (In most cases you can also use an laser printer you already own)

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