Postal Service (USPS) introduced money orders in 1864, at a time when Civil War soldiers in the field were having difficulty sending money to and receiving money from their homes.
According to the Federal Reserve (the central banking system of the United States), 889 million money orders were purchased in the United States in 2005 the gross value of these transactions (including processing fees) was $145 billion. Money orders are also considered more secure for the payee than personal checks because the order is prepaid by the payor and the payee is actually receiving his or her payment from the bank, postal service, or other institution. It is particularly useful for sending money through the mail because it can only be redeemed, or cashed, by the designated payee, with valid identification (such as a driver’s license or passport). Money orders may be purchased in specific amounts at banks, post offices, and other qualified institutions (many independent companies, such as Western Union, sell money orders through supermarkets, convenience stores, and other retail outlets).Ī money order is a fast, reliable, and convenient way of transferring a small sum of money (most institutions sell money orders for up to $1,000) between payor (the person making the payment) and payee (the person receiving the payment). People who do not have personal checking accounts often use money orders to pay bills and make purchases. A money order can be made out to a specific individual or institution, and the institution issuing the money order charges a fee for its services. It is much like a certified check (for a fee, a bank can certify that the funds exist in a depositor’s checking account in order to assure the person receiving payment that the check will clear the bank sets aside the funds for that particular check written on that account), except that the money for a money order is prepaid. A money order is a means of payment for a prearranged amount of money.
0 kommentar(er)
