Hello, I just found out that I cannot pay overdue bills at Family Mart and 7-Eleven. Unfortunately, I failed to pay my Sept-Oct bills
Does anyone know where I can pay overdue bills for electricity and gas (post office, bank, etc.)?
And for the mobile phone, does it have to be paid in Chunghwa or can I also pay in Senao?
Also just wondering: if you really cannot pay for the month, can you just wait for the next bill to arrive and pay the cumulative amount? Or do they cut off the service?
Actually, now you CAN pay overdue bills at the convenience store. Look for their iBon and Famiport touchscreens. They have the ability to reprint bills, so you can pay them there after the due date (small service charge involved). A savvy 7-11 clerk taught me how one time. If you canāt read Chinese (the interface language), ask the clerk for assistance.
To be honest, it was the 7-11 where I was able to reprint my bills. I just assumed Familymart had the same features in their own competing touchscreen service portals. They probably do.
Hi Battery9, thank you! Iām scared my landlord will find out I forgot to pay the bills and sully his good name. I hope the gas/electricity offices are open during the weekend because I canāt go during weekdays (work 9am-6.30pm with only a lunch hour break).
Hi Mr. Toast, Iāve just been to 7 Eleven and they said āmei banfaā for my overdue bills, even with the ibonā¦ they laughed at me, too Maybe you got lucky!
Iāve paid at the post office before, but donāt remember which one. Also, I rang them up and asked them to send me a new bill one time. Arrived in 2 days, then off to 7-11 as usual.
[quote=ābigbeautiesā]Hi Battery9, thank you! Iām scared my landlord will find out I forgot to pay the bills and sully his good name. I hope the gas/electricity offices are open during the weekend because I canāt go during weekdays (work 9am-6.30pm with only a lunch hour break).
Hi Mr. Toast, Iāve just been to 7 Eleven and they said āmei banfaā for my overdue bills, even with the ibonā¦ they laughed at me, too Maybe you got lucky![/quote]
Are you at all able to read Chinese yourself? They probably just donāt know itās possible.
I canāt recall exactly what bill I reprinted there. Screw it, Iām going out to check ibon now.
Edit: Indeed, it doesnāt appear that itās all. My quick check saw internet and cable, credit cards, parking fees cellular bills. Sorry.
For the others, you may have to go to their office (addy is usually on the bill).
Why is it in his name? Naa, they donāt mindā¦I felt bad the first timeā¦but then nobody even looked up when I paidā¦I still said sorry and the lady laughed and asked me why. Then I was likeā¦yeahhhhh if I didnāt forget my bill you wouldnāt have a job hahahahha.
You can pay your electricity and mobile and landline phone bills using a China Trust ATM machine, which are in 7-11ās. It works for overdue bills. There are separate buttons to push for landlines and cellphones. Your customer number is the telephone number on the bill. You donāt even need to take the bill with you. You can also pay your electricity bill at any Taipower office. Not sure about the gas bill.
There should be an option for ATM transfer with an account number specific to you. You can pay it there anytime, overdue or not, and as long as itās done by 3.30pm, itāll be instantly registered, otherwise itāll be the next working day. CHT bills can be paid overdue in Senao at any time.
whitetiger, i can try at the post office since itās near where i work! thanks for that
Mr. Toasty, sorry for the troubleā¦ i hope the 7-11 wasnāt that far from your place! i can read a little chinese but not good enough to use ibon by myselfā¦ and the 7-11 guys werenāt in the mood to help me lol
Battery9, i feel so irresponsible and hope my landlord doesnāt find outā¦ the bills are in his name so i hope they havenāt been harassing himā¦ zhonghua has been calling everydayā¦ although i never answer (bad!)
asiababy, wow thanks!!! iāll try paying via chinatrust atm after this postā¦ i hope it works
greenmark, thanks for this infoā¦ thereās a nan hwa bank near where i work as well!
cfimages, trying it after this postā¦ thanks so much! the account number is āé»čā in the electric bill, right? and also good to know i can pay in senaoā¦ that one should be all over the place!
Thanks everyone for the replies!!! I hope Iāll be able to settle some of the bills by tomorrow lesson learned: pay bills on or before the due date
Just go to your favorite bank with your bills and sign up for automatic transfer. It doesnĀ“t matter if the bills are under your name or not. One thing less to do, one worry less, more time for important stuff.
Thanks to everyone for the replies! Iāve more or less solved the problem and they havenāt cut off the power yetā¦
RJF - I tried but the post office in my area wonāt accept any of the overdue bills
Icon - I only have my salary ATM and no bank account so I donāt know if that would work? And Iām also concerned if that is safe like what whitetiger posted, they have access to what little money I have in this country :s
StuartCa - My Chinese is really no good over the phone (and in person actually) so Iād probably just wait for the next bill
whitetiger - yeahā¦ I only have one bank account and all my money are in it (stupid, I knowā¦)
Just an update:
Post office (at least the branch I went to) does not accept overdue bills.
ChinaTrust ATM - the English menu does not have the Utility Payment option.
Other ATMs - Utility does not include Electricity and gas
I was able to pay my cellphone bill in Senao (yay!!)
According to my local friend (a lawyer), I can skip paying the gas bill this month because they will add the outstanding balance on the next monthās bill (yay!)
Asked a student friend to settle my electricity bill tomorrow (Taipower, Roosevelt Rd.) because apparently, I received 3 notices that they will cut off my electricity if I donāt settle it this month (scared ).
Geez, guys, I have had that service since I got here -over a decade- no problems. The ācorporationsā are state enterprises, and may I remind you, the Gāment already has access to your bank accounts -when you go to pay taxes, they can see them right on the screen.
I suppose the ATM account is linked to a bank, or at least the post office. If you feel uneasy about having the salary account, open another account in teh bank of your choice and set up a fixed amount. Fill up as necessary. This is a good idea as per my Taiwanese friends, who logically and through bad experiences have extreme distrust of banks folding up, so they advise not to have all your money in a single account.
^I guess Iām paranoidā¦ but it does sound so convenient. I will try to get a local friend to help me set up a small bank account for bills. Thanks, Icon!
Update: All overdue bills have been paid!
Gas bill came in and had the previous monthās balance.
Paid electric bill in the Taipower office (Keelung Rd.)
Maybe you got lucky!
zhonghua has been calling everydayā¦ although i never answer (bad!)
lesson learned: pay bills on or before the due date 
).