Fewer retailers, grocery stores and even mom-and-pop businesses accept personal checks.Many landlords and mortgage companies now prefer or require electronic payment instead of by paper check.Over the past two decades the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank reports the number of checks written dropped by 75%. We listened to shoppers who had to think hard about when they last used a paper check to pay a bill or when shopping in a store even though each one said they have one or more checking accounts.As Jackson Schilling put his groceries in his car, he said, "I have a checking account. I've never written a personal check.""I can't even remember the last time I wrote a check to a retailer," said Teri Beane. She just finished shopping at Target. It stopped taking personal checks in July. When asked how they pay their bills and for shopping if they don't write checks, Schilling said, "Just gotta use your debit card and apps like CashApp and Venmo.""My bills are on auto-pay," said Beane. "Everyone that I can get on auto-pay is on auto-pay." According to Walden University, writing personal checks may be passe because: it's easier and quicker to swipe a debit card or use a payment app on your phone online or auto bill-pay is quicker and cheaper than mailing in a check electronic checking has a lower risk of theft or fraud The personal check for consumers is becoming more passe, I think what you will see is that the majority of checks that are being issued are by commercial businesses. As forms of payment. And yes, even some of those commercial businesses are switching to electronic payments simply because those electronic payments are safer for both parties, the sender and the receiver. The difference really is, paper checks as a form of payment can be returned. If there are insufficient funds in the account or the accounts closed, or it's a forgery or an alteration, something of that nature, whereas electronic payments are less likely to be returned. Especially on a debit card. There's an instant communication between the issuer of that card and the store accepting the payment by that card that says whether that transaction will go through or not, and on checks you don't have that.So despite the big drop in the number of paper checks written, and number of businesses willing to accept them, Sharon Lewis with the Oklahoma Bankers Association believes it is too soon to consider the paper check a thing of the past.Contact the Problem Solvers: 918-748-1502 [email protected] in touch with us anytime, anywhere -- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices. Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you Like us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram Follow us on Twitter