• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Ask Liz Weston

Get smart with your money

  • About
  • Liz’s Books
  • Speaking
  • Disclosure
  • Contact

Q&A: Should I be afraid of payment apps?

June 24, 2024 By Liz Weston

Dear Liz: I pay rent via check (yes, I am aware of the risks). My landlord would prefer that I use Zelle, which has drawbacks. People have had their bank accounts drained. Also, I heard that peer-to-peer money transfer apps should only be used by friends and family, not for business, and not for large sums of money.

Answer: As you may know, Zelle payments are made instantly. If you send the money to the wrong party, you could be out of luck. Federal law protects you if your account was hacked, but not if you make a mistake or have been duped into sending money to a scam artist. (Zelle does investigate allegations of fraud, however, and may return the money if you’ve been deceived.)

Many people are comfortable using Zelle and other payment systems to send money to people and businesses they know well, while others aren’t. If you continue to use checks, make sure to mail them directly at the post office or use a shipping service that offers a tracking number, such as Fedex. Monitor your account closely and set up alerts that notify you when checks over a certain amount are cashed. Fraud related to check theft has soared, so you’ll need to be extra vigilant if you continue sending paper checks.

Related Posts

  • Old check is probably worthless

    Dear Liz: Twelve years ago I hired a moving company. I must have overpaid them,…

  • How to Pay Bills When You Can’t Pay Your Bills

    When Bruce McClary was a housing counselor, his clients regularly showed up for appointments with…

  • Should you rent in retirement?

    Some people rent in retirement because they don’t have much choice; they can’t afford to…

  • Moonjar winners: check your email!

    All 12 winners of the Moonjar Money Boxes have been notified, but I've only heard…

Filed Under: Identity Theft, Q&A, Scams Tagged With: check fraud, checks, fraud, mail theft, mobile payment apps, paper check fraud, payment apps, Zelle, Zelle scams

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Q&A: When using payment apps, confirm before hitting send - Ask Liz Weston says:
    July 12, 2024 at 5:03 pm

    […] Liz: You’ve recently written about Zelle and other payment apps. I had a neighbor pay an amount to the wrong phone number. Uh-oh. When I needed to pay someone […]

Primary Sidebar

Search

Copyright © 2025 · Ask Liz Weston 2.0 On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in