LexisNexis Risk Solutions today released the results of its True Impact of Failed Payments Report, a snapshot of cross-border payments performance on a global scale. The report assesses insights collected from 400 payment executives representing leading corporations and financial institutions across the APAC, EMEA, LATAM and North America regions. 

More than 70% of respondents are unsatisfied with their payment failure rate. Almost two-thirds of respondents (64%) indicated broken or failed payments negatively impacts staff workload. The costs associated with failure or delay only compounds these issues, with an average per payment fee of U.S. $12.10 for rejected or repaired payments. This cost is partially due to higher fees for large companies and the involvement of more expensive banks or more advanced solutions.

Problems with bank beneficiary name and address details are the most common source of payment delay or failure (21%). These details are also the single largest data payment element to be manually checked by humans, with 72% of respondents still confirming this data in that fashion.

Businesses and financial institutions rely on exceptional rates of Straight-Through Processing (STP), an automated electronic payment process that does not require human intervention. STP protects the integrity of critical supply chains and delivers a smoother experience for customers. Rapid digital acceleration in the payments space raises customer and supplier expectations for payments experiences so balancing speed, accuracy and safety at every touchpoint is essential.

"Customers expect a smooth payments journey and they will quickly abandon a transaction if they encounter too much friction," said Dalbir Sahota, senior director, payments, LexisNexis Risk Solutions. "Our report shows that failed payments are detrimental to customer retention, increase staff workloads and create additional costs. Businesses must keep up with the competition at a time when technology and real time payment initiatives are rapidly changing the marketplace.

"STP offers an automated way for companies to offer customers a smooth payments process and the report illustrates the value of investing in this area. Free tools may sound attractive, but the financial reality is unappealing, with our report showing low STP rates among those that use the most basic of searches. Sophisticated payment data solutions enhance service levels and reduce costs associated with failed and repaired payments," said Sahota.