More Baby Boomers Prefer Digital Tax Refunds Compared to Millennials
March 04 2020 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Majority of Americans prefer digital methods of
payment for taxes owed including debit, credit and electronic funds
withdrawal, according to a new ACI Worldwide study
Although a majority of U.S. adults (74%) opt for direct deposit
when receiving tax refunds, more Millennials (17%) and Gen Xers
(17%) prefer to receive a check in the mail compared with Baby
Boomers (14%), per new research from ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW),
a leading global provider of real-time electronic payment and
banking solutions. When it comes to paying potential taxes owed,
digital methods such as debit, credit and electronic funds
withdrawal are most popular (50%), while only 32 percent prefer
non-digital methods (cash or check), based on the survey data from
1,215 taxpayers.
Other key findings and trends
include:
Preference for electronic payments continues to grow
- More U.S. adults filed or plan to file their taxes
electronically through self-service tools this year (45%), compared
to last year (40%)
- Only 8.5 percent filed or plan to file their taxes by
mail/paper without professional assistance this year, compared to
10.3 percent last year
- Preference for electronic methods of paying taxes (if owed)
versus mailing in a check increased in 2020, compared to last year:
- Electronic funds withdrawal – increased 13 percent (26% from
23%)
- Debit card – increased 17 percent (14% from 12%)
- Check – decreased 10 percent (26% from 29%)
- Although the percentage of U.S. adults who opted to pay their
taxes (if owed) with cash are low (below 10%), more Millennials
(8%) and Gen Xers (7%) than Baby Boomers (3%) opted for cash
payment of taxes
For some, the tax refund check exceeds their average
paycheck
- For 33 percent of U.S. adults who file taxes, the tax refund
check is typically larger than their average paycheck
- More Millennial tax filers (43%) found that their average tax
refund is typically larger than their average paycheck, compared to
Gen Xers (39%) and Baby Boomers (22%)
Tax scams continue to plague some, particularly by phone and
email
- Phone scams (21%) and email scams (12%) are the most common tax
scams experienced by taxpayers surveyed, while illegal tax
preparers (2%) and ghost preparers (2%) are less frequent
- More U.S. adults in 2020 (67%) have never experienced fraud or
tax scams, compared to last year (62%)
Millennials are less aware of tax scams compared to older
generations
- More U.S. adults are aware of phone scams (65%), email scams
(61%) and identity theft (65%) than they are of illegal tax
preparers (38%) or ghost preparers (20%)
- Close to 3 in 10 Millennials (27%) are unaware of tax scams,
compared to 17 percent of Gen Xers and 11 percent of Baby
Boomers
“During tax season, any consumer can be an easy target for
fraudsters as they share personal financial data with tax
preparers, or send and receive paper documents by mail,” said
Sanjay Gupta, executive vice president, ACI Worldwide. “Digital
methods of tax payment are convenient, faster and more secure. In
fact, the growing preference for digital payment methods aligns
with the growing number of taxpayers who have never experienced
fraud. However, awareness around tax scams is still necessary, even
for Millennials.”
ACI recommends the following top tips for
taxpayers this season:
- Digital payments: Digital payments are a safer (and
faster) choice for consumers, compared to checks, which can get
lost in the mail and typically include social security numbers that
can be easily stolen.
- Cash Payments: Paying taxes with cash can take
approximately 5-7 business days to process; consumers can avoid
late payment penalties by filing early.
- Tax Scams: Although phone and email scams are more
popular among fraudsters, consumers must be aware of other scams
such as “ghost preparers” and illegal tax preparers. Checking the
tax preparer’s PTIN will ensure they are legitimate.
For more than 20 years, ACI has been supporting the billing and
payment needs of federal, state and local government entities.
Learn more here.
Methodology All figures, unless otherwise stated, are
from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,215 adults. Fieldwork was
undertaken between February 11-12, 2020. The survey was carried out
online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of
all U.S. adults (aged 18+). Generations were defined as follows:
Millennial (born 1982-1999, 390 total), Gen X (born 1965-1981, 311
total), and Baby Boomer (born 1946-1964, 399 total).
About ACI Worldwide ACI Worldwide, the Universal Payments
(UP) company, powers electronic payments for more than 5,100
organizations around the world. More than 1,000 of the largest
financial institutions and intermediaries, as well as thousands of
global merchants, rely on ACI to execute $14 trillion each day in
payments and securities. In addition, myriad organizations utilize
our electronic bill presentment and payment services. Through our
comprehensive suite of software solutions delivered on customers’
premises or through ACI’s private cloud, we provide real-time,
immediate payments capabilities and enable the industry’s most
complete omni-channel payments experience. To learn more about ACI,
please visit www.aciworldwide.com. You can also find us on Twitter
@ACI_Worldwide.
© Copyright ACI Worldwide, Inc. 2020 ACI, ACI Worldwide, the ACI
logo, ACI Universal Payments, UP, the UP logo and all ACI
product/solution names are trademarks or registered trademarks of
ACI Worldwide, Inc., or one of its subsidiaries, in the United
States, other countries or both. Other parties' trademarks
referenced are the property of their respective owners.
Product roadmaps are for informational purposes only and may not
be incorporated into a contract or agreement. The development
release and timing of future product releases remains at ACI’s sole
discretion. ACI is providing the following information in
accordance with ACI's standard product communication policies. Any
resulting features, functionality, and enhancements or timing of
release of such features, functionality, and enhancements are at
the sole discretion of ACI and may be modified without notice. All
product roadmap or other similar information does not represent a
commitment to deliver any material, code, or functionality, and
should not be relied upon in making a purchasing decision.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200304005041/en/
Dan Ring E-mail: dan.ring@aciworldwide.com Phone:
781-370-3600
Nidhi Alberti E-mail: nidhi.alberti@aciworldwide.com Phone:
781-370-3600
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