Companies are pushing customers to pay their bills electronically. Many companies claim this method has environmental benefits, but we all know they are just after cost reductions. But is electronic invoicing really more cost-effective than paper invoices?

A recent study reported on by Two Sides U.S. suggests this isn’t the case. A Danish company, Natur-Energi A/S, studied whether switching to e-billing would increase the number of invoices paid on time and reduce their overall operational costs.

Their findings were the opposite of what most companies expect from switching customers to electronic billing. The survey found that 59 percent of customers receiving an invoice via email had to be sent a reminder, compared to 29 percent of customers receiving an invoice through the mail.

After the first reminder, the company’s customer helpline activity increased 80 percent. The average cost to customer service was $9 per call. There were also more electronic non-payers after the second bill reminder, with an average cost of $9 to manage these customers. The company determined that after adding all the costs to produce and deliver a paper invoice versus an electronic invoice, the paper invoice cost $3.25 and the electronic invoice cost $5.75. They saved about 43 percent by mailing an invoice. Since postage is more costly in Denmark, the cost savings for paper invoicing would even be bigger in the U.S.

We know that electronic billing is not better for the environment. We know that charging for sending paper invoices preys on the disadvantaged, since 38 percent of low-income Americans have no internet access. And now we also know that electronic billing probably doesn’t even save companies any money. That’s what I call a triple play. You’re out!