Business Online Banking FAQs

A: To access Bank Independent Online Banking you will need a personal computer that has an established and secure connection to the internet through your choice of Internet Service Provider, plus a browser that is compatible with the Online Banking service.

A: Online Banking supports Microsoft Internet Explorer 11, Microsoft Edge, Safari (for Apple/Mac users only), Google Chrome and Firefox.  The browser must support SSL 128-bit encryption.  The current version plus one previous version of these browsers may be used.

A: During each session in which you use Bank Independent Online Banking, the system will pass a “cookie” to your browser for the purpose of identifying you during that session. A “cookie” is security data that is given to an internet browser by a web server that is returned by the browser to the server on subsequent transmissions to identify the user and encryption information.  When you log in to Bank Independent Online Banking, a “cookie” enables the bank to process multiple transactions during the same communication session without you having to provide your Online Banking User ID and password for each individual transaction.

A: You must notify Customer Service immediately at (256) 386-5000 or (877) 865-5050 if you believe your User ID or password has been compromised or if an unauthorized transaction has occurred.

A: The system will monitor your accounts online for any unusual or uncharacteristic activity, such as an attempt to log in from a different location, a request for an unusually large transaction or other unusual transaction.  If something out of the ordinary is detected, Online Banking will verify your identity by asking you to answer your pre-established security questions.

A: You will almost always be prompted to choose these questions during your initial login to Online Banking and provide answers only you would know.  The system will then be ready to ask these questions if it detects any unusual activity on your account in the future.

A: No. It is usually rare that Online Banking needs to pose these questions to verify the identity of a person logging in or requesting a transaction. These questions will be posed if there is a variation in your particular pattern of use. For example, if you usually log in from your home computer in Alabama, and then you go on vacation and log in from a computer in Hawaii, the system may pose the questions to verify your identity and complete the login.

A: We are glad to hear you use virus protection, a personal firewall and spyware detection. Be sure to keep these software programs up-to-date for the best possible protection against viruses, trojans and other types of malware. In addition to your security software, our Online Banking security features provide greater protection by adding more layers of security to your online experience. These features work together with your own system security, but they do not replace them. They are used to prevent any unauthorized access.

A: Online Banking has a ten-minute time-out feature. If you are logged in for ten consecutive minutes without using Online Banking, the system will alert you that time-out is going to occur and allow you to choose to continue your session. If you don’t continue, the session will log you off.

A: We take numerous steps to keep your account information secure.  However, you must take precautions as well. We suggest the following:

• Choose a strong password. Your Online Banking password and your User ID authenticate you when you begin an Online Banking session.  You should carefully select a password that is hard to guess. You should not use personal information or a word that can be found in the dictionary.
• Keep your password safe. Even the best password is worthless if it’s written on a note attached to your computer or in your checkbook.  Memorize your password and never tell it to anyone. We do not need your password to assist you with your Online Banking account, so we will never ask for it.
• Remember to sign off properly. You may not always be at your own computer when you bank online. Therefore, it’s important to sign off when you’re finished banking. If you forget to do so, the system automatically logs you off after ten minutes of inactivity.  

A: Bank Independent Bill Pay service allows you to set up payments to just about anyone. You tell us the person or company you want to make a payment to, and we will withdraw the money from your account and send the payment to the payee. You may schedule one-time, occasional or recurring payments to be paid right away or on a date in the future.

A: Anyone who has access to a demand deposit account in Online Banking is eligible to use the Bill Pay service. You can pay virtually anyone you want using Bank Independent Bill Pay, as long as they have a valid US mailing address. There is no limit to the number of payees you can set up within Bill Pay. You cannot pay a government agency or court-ordered obligation, and payments to an address outside the US are not allowed.

A: To enroll in Bill Pay for business, please contact a Business Banking Specialist at (256) 386-5000 or (877) 865-5050.

A: You will select your primary funding account during enrollment.  When you are ready to set up your first bill in Bill Pay, simply add a payee, select your funding account, and schedule a payment.

A: When scheduling your payment, you tell us the payment amount and the due date of the payment for the payee. Your payment is sent to the payee either by check or electronically to insure the payee receives the payment on the due date you’ve designated.

A:  For electronic payments, funds will be deducted from your account on the date the payment is sent, and not on the payment due date or anticipated delivery date.  This payment date will be indicated as the "processing date" under your chosen "deliver by" date.

To ensure that your business’ payments are received by your payee in a timely manner, we recommend you use the following guidelines:

• Electronic payments can be delivered as early as the next business day if scheduled prior to 3:00 pm Central time.  For check payments, allow at least seven days for the payment to be received by your payee.
• Electronic payments scheduled for same-day processing will post to your checking account the same business day if entered into Online Banking Bill Pay prior to 3:00 pm Central time.  

A: An eBill is an electronic bill presentment process.  After you have established this service within Bill Pay, your electronic bills will pull automatically into Bill Pay each month.  Then it’s just a matter of clicking on the bill to make your payment.  No separate login is required.  Please note that you must have login credentials established with your payee in order to utilize this convenient feature.  Some electronic payees may not be available for this service.

A: Certain fees will apply to services within Bill Pay for business. Some additional options will result in minimal additional fees, such as rush payments and personalized gift and donation checks. Fees for these services will be displayed within Bill Pay.

A: This is a unique feature within Bank Independent Bill Pay that allows you to customize a Bill Pay check that you may send to anyone for many different occasions, such as birthdays and anniversaries. You may insert your own customized greeting on the check voucher and decorate the check with the appropriate image. The donation check allows you to send an email to any charity notifying them of the donation; you may also choose to send the donation in honor or in memory of an individual.

A: Yes, it is possible. Our Bill Pay service performs a periodic review of payment types. If we find that your payment type can be changed from the check to electronic type, our system will automatically make that change. If a payee no longer accepts electronic payments, your payee would then be changed to a check payment type. This is done to send payments to your payees in the fastest, most efficient and secure way possible.  If you wish to be notified of a payment type change, please click on the Bill Pay “Options” menu, and select “eNotifications” to choose the alerts you’d like to receive. 

A: Bill payments do not process on non-business days. For recurring payments, you have the option to select the payment date to be the business day before or the business day after the weekend or holiday when you set up your payment.

A: No. When you add a payee to the Online Banking payee database, the payee is immediately available to schedule a payment.

A: Bill Pay history is maintained for 18 months.

A: The status field may have one of the following entries:

• Processed: Your payment has been processed and sent
• Rejected NSF: Your payment has been rejected due to insufficient funds in the funding account
• Communication Failure: There was an error due to communication problems
• Vendor Refund: Your payment was rejected and your checking account will be refunded

A: You may set up payments in any of the following frequencies: One-time, weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. A recurring scheduled payment can be set up in advance to any date in the future. A one-time payment can be set up to be sent five years into the future.

A: If your payment has not yet been processed (as noted on your Bill Pay screen), you can cancel the payment from within Bill Pay.  If the payment was remitted electronically and has already been processed, you may not stop the payment. You can stop payment on “check” bill payments if they have not yet cleared your account. Stop payments can be initiated through Bank Independent Online Banking by selecting “Stop Payment” option. Stop payments can also be placed by calling Customer Service at (256) 386-5000 or (877) 865-5050 Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Central to speak with a Bank Independent representative. Please note that fees may apply to stop payment requests.

A: To postdate a single payment, just set the payment date for any date in the future. Single payments are actually set up into two categories, current payments and future payments, which allow you to schedule payments in the future or for the current date. Current date payment will be sent to your payee the same day if entered prior to 3:00pm Central time.

Recurring payments can also be postdated. For example, if a monthly recurring payment is set up to be paid on the 15th and the current date is November 12, a payment will be scheduled for the month of November and set up to occur the 15th of every month until the expiration date is reached.  However, if the payment is set up to be paid on the 15th and the current date is November 16, the first payment will occur on December 15.

A: You may edit a payee address for check payments, but for electronic payments, you must establish them as a new payee with the correct address and delete the old payee record. The only items you can edit on an existing electronic payee are the nickname you’ve assigned to the payee and your account number with the payee. If you’d like to change any other information about the payee, such as the mailing address, the payee must be deleted and re-entered. On check payees, however, all fields may be edited.

A: These actions must take place prior to 3:00 pm Central Time in order for processing to begin on the same day. Entries, edits and deletions made after 3:00 pm will be processed on the following business day. You may edit the dollar amount on a recurring scheduled payment as early as the next business day after the scheduled payment date.

A: Once you have set up your new payee, visit the dashboard payee listing within Bill Pay. The delivery method of your payment will be listed with the payee information.

A: Your payment will be submitted to the payee and handled in the same manner as a check written out of your checkbook against an insufficient balance.

You can connect your Bank Independent Online Banking portal to your Quicken personal financial management software and/or QuickBooks business account management software through either Web Connect or Direct Connect connectivity options.

Web Connect provides one-way communication from your Online Banking portal into your Quicken or QuickBooks accounts, allowing you to download your bank transactions into your software for reconciliation, budgeting, etc.

Direct Connect offers two-way connectivity between your software and Online Banking, which makes it possible for you to pay bills, transfer funds and more in addition to downloading transactions.

A: No, there is no charge for using either of these services.

You can initiate the connection from within your software. The software will request your Bank Independent Online Banking user name and password to authenticate and complete the connection.

First, ensure that you have correctly entered your Online Banking username and password. If you're still having trouble connecting, contact our Customer Service team at (256) 386-5000 or (877) 865-5050 Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m Central Time.