Commercial Documentation in English. Учебное пособие

UNIT 1. Bank Accounts

5. Choose Russian equivalents to the following English expressions:

11

UNIT 2.

Cheques

1. Read and translate the text:

The cheque is an order to a bank signed by an account holder to pay out of his or her account. A cheque may change hands and still be good for payment like a banknote. A banker will carry out an order to pay a stated sum on demand to a named person or organization, or to his or her order to bearer if the Drawer’s signature matches the specimen signature held in the account– holder’s branch. If you report your cheque–book as lost the home branch will put a stop on the account, so that no payment can be made. The major difference between a banknote and a cheque is that a banknote is a promise to pay by the Bank of England itself whereas payment on a cheque depends on the amount in account of the Drawer when the Payee presents it for payment. The cheque is not legal tender but only a direction in writing to a bank. Sometimes shops are reluctant to accept them from customers.

The name of the bank–branch of the account–holder and the address are at the top of the cheque. The date is at the top of the cheque, too. The bank will pay out after the date, but not before it. But if the date is more than six months old, the bank may make enquiries about the delay and even return to the Payee unpaid. The Drawer also writes the amount payable in figures and in words to avoid misunderstanding and prevent counterfeiting. The drawer also writes the name of the Payee and instruction to the bank. The printed figures at the bottom include the code number of the bank and branch, the serial number of the account, the account number of Drawer. The information is in magnetic ink is reprinted on cheques in squareshaped letters and figures so that computer can recognize and read it.

12

UNIT 2. Cheques

If the payee wants to pass a cheque to someone else, he must endorse the cheque. That is to sign the name on the back of the cheque. Endorsement legally transfers the ownership to another party. The payee can also show the purpose of the endorsement, such as “for deposits only”.

2.Answer the questions:

1.What is the cheque?

2.What is the difference between a cheque and a banknote?

3.What kind of information is there in the cheque?

4.Who are the drawee and the drawer?

13

Commercial Documentation in English

3.Decide, whether the following statements are true, false or whether you don’t know according to the text.

1.If the named Payee wants to pass the cheque as payment to someone else he should notify his bank clerk about it.

2.A cheque like a banknote may change hands several times and still be good for payment.

3.An account–holder makes out a cheque putting carbon paper between the sheets to have two copies.

4.Cheques payable to order or to bearer allow the holder to pass the ownership of it to another party.

Making out Cheques

A cheque is simply an order form instructing bank to pay money out of your account to someone else.

The pre–printed blank cheque will show:

words – name of your bank and the branch address; your name; figures – your branch sorting code, your own account number

and the number of the particular cheque.

14

UNIT 2. Cheques

The Blank Cheque

The printed blank cheque will show:

Words: name of your bank and the branch address, your name Figures: your branch sorting code, your own account number

and the number of the particular cheque.

The Information You Fill in

On each check you will have to fill in:

1.the date on which you are making out the cheque;

2.the name of the payee (the person or organization you are paying);

3.the amount to be paid – word and in figures;

4.the cheque counterfoil.

The instruction of making out cheques

1.Read through the details you have put down then check everything is correct and clear.

2.Hand over to or post it to the person or organization you are paying.

3.Always complete the counterfoil (or the record sheet at the front of the cheque book).

4.Spot the errors in the cheques below:

15

Commercial Documentation in English

16

UNIT 2. Cheques

5.Draw up your cheque for Mr. Carter whom you owe £ 100 so that he can claim the amount instead of you.

6.Translate these sentences into English using words from

the text:

1.Чек – это поручение банку, подписанное владельцем счета, об оплате суммы с их банковского счета.

2.Банквыполняетпоручениеобоплатеуказаннойсуммы по требованию названного лица или организации.

3.Если вы сообщите в банк, что ваша чековая книжка уте- ряна, банк заблокирует ваш счет, чтобы ни один платеж с него не был совершен.

4.Банк проводит оплату после даты, казанной на счете.

5.Еслиполучательчекахочетпередатьчекдругомулицу, ондолженсделатьначекепередаточнуюзапись(индоссамент).

7. Choose Russian equivalents to the following English expressions:

17

Unit 3.

Debit and Сredit Сards

1. Read and translate the text:

A debit card (also known as a bank card or check card) is a plastic card that provides an alternative payment method to cash when making purchases. Functionally, it can be called an electronic cheque, as the funds are withdrawn directly from either the bank account, or from the remaining balance on the card. In some cases, the cards are designed exclusively for use on the Internet, and so there is no physical card. The money that you are withdrawing from the cash dispenser is going to be deducted ‘instantly’ from the balance in your account. It’s not a way of getting free money – nor is it a way of borrowing money. A cash dispenser is a money machine usually set into the wall outside the bank. Some dispensers will also issue a printed slip recording the transaction.

Personal debit cards provide you instant access to the funds in your current account up to the amount of the current account balance. With debit cards, you can pay for goods and services in stores or withdraw cash from ATMs or at bank cash desks at home and abroad.The use of debit cards has become widespread in many countries and has overtaken the cheque, and in some instances cash transactions by volume. Like credit cards, debit cards are used widely for telephone and Internet purchases, and unlike credit cards the funds are transferred from the bearer‘s bank account instead of having the bearer to pay back on a later date.

Credit cards enable you to pay for your purchases even if your current account does not show a credit balance. Having a credit card allows you currently to draw a loan and to repay it either by instalments or a single payment of the entire drawn amount. A credit card gives you certainty by creating a financial reserve for

18

Unit 3. Debit and Сredit Сards

unexpected expenses. You can pay for goods and services with your credit card or withdraw cash from ATMs and at cash desks in banks.

For consumers, the difference between a „debit card“ and a „credit card“ is that the debit card deducts the balance from a deposit account, like a checking account, whereas the credit card allows the consumer to spend money on credit to the issuing bank. In other words, a debit card uses the money you have and a credit card uses the money you don‘t have. „Debit cards“, which are linked directly to a checking account, are sometimes dual–purpose, so that they can be used as a credit card, and can be charged by merchants using the traditional credit networks. A merchant will ask for “credit or debit” if the card is a combined credit+debit card. If the payee chooses “credit”, the credit balance will be debited the amount of the purchase which is then withdrawn at a later date; if the payee chooses “debit”, the bank account balance will be debited the amount of the purchase and the money will be withdrawn from the bank account immediately.

The “debit” networks usually require that a personal identification number (PIN) be supplied. The “credit” networks typically require that purchases be made in person and often allow cards to be charged with only a signature, and/or picture ID. However, most merchant agreements in the United States forbid picture ID as a requirement to use a Credit Card.

Although many debit cards are of the Visa or MasterCard brand, there are many other types of debit card, each accepted only within a particular country or region, for example Switch and Solo in the United Kingdom, Interac in Canada, Carte Bleue in France, Laser in Ireland, “EC electronic cash” (formerly Eurocheque) in Germany and EFTPOS cards in Australia and New Zealand. The need for cross–border compatibility and the advent of the euro recently led to many of these card networks (such as Switzerland’s “EC direkt”, Austria’s “Bankomatkasse” and Switch in the United Kingdom) being re–branded with the internationally recognised Maestro logo, which is part of the MasterCard brand. Some debit cards are dual branded with the logo of the (former) national card as well as Maestro (e.g. EC cards in Germany, Laser cards in Ireland, Switch and Solo in the UK, Pinpas cards in the Netherlands, Bancontact cards in Belgium, etc.).

19

Commercial Documentation in English

There are currently three ways that debit card transactions are processed: online debit (also known as PIN debit), offline debit (also known as signature debit) and Electronic Purse Card.

Online debit cards require electronic authorization of every transaction and the debits are reflected in the user’s account immediately. The transaction may be additionally secured with the personal identification number (PIN) authentication system and some online cards require such authentication for every transaction, essentially becoming enhanced automatic teller machine (ATM) cards. One difficulty in using online debit cards is the necessity of an electronic authorization device at the point of sale (POS) and sometimes also a separate PINpad to enter the PIN, although this is becoming commonplace for all card transactions in many countries. Overall, the online debit card is generally viewed as superior to the offline debit card because of its more secure authentication system and live status, which alleviates problems with processing lag on transactions that may have been forgotten or not authorized by the owner of the card.

Offline debit cards have the logos of major credit cards (e.g. Visa or MasterCard) or major debit cards (e.g. Maestro in the United Kingdom and other countries, but not the United States) and are used at the point of sale like a credit card (with payer’s signature). This type of debit card may be subject to a daily limit, and/or a maximum limit equal to the current/checking account balance from which it draws funds. Transactions conducted with offline debit cards require 2–3 days to be reflected on users’ account balances. In some countries and with some banks and merchant service organizations, a “credit” or offline debit transaction is without cost to the purchaser beyond the face value of the transaction, while a small fee may be charged for a “debit” or online debit transaction (although it is often absorbed by the retailer). Other differences are that online debit purchasers may opt to withdraw cash in addition to the amount of the debit purchase (if the merchant supports that functionality); also, from the merchant’s standpoint, the merchant pays lower fees on online debit transaction as compared to “credit” (offline) debit transaction.

Electronic Purse Card. Smart–card–based electronic purse systems (in which value is stored on the card chip, not in an

20