MADISON, Wis. -- LaserTech, the electronic statement printing company that provided statement printing services to numerous credit unions shut down unexpectedly on April 4.
The company posted a notice on its Web site (www.lasertechinc.com) stating, "due to a series of unexpected and unfortunate financial circumstances, LaserTech is ceasing operations."
Jobs in the pipeline will not be completed, and LaserTech said clients should find another vendor. "We understand this puts our customers in a very difficult situation. This also puts our employees and their families in very difficult circumstances as well. We are very sorry for this and apologize," the site said.
Several Wisconsin credit unions, including Fox Communities and Prospera have been affected by the shutdown. And it is likely many more with fell the impact, a source told Credit Union Times. Stepping in to assist some credit unions left in the lurch was the Grand Rapids-based CU*Answers, said Melinda Haehnel, market relations manager. CU*Answers has built a network of five individual business partners they call cu.asterisk.com. Four are CUSOs: CU*Answers, CU*NorthWest, CU*South, eDOC Innovations and Xtend, Inc. While CU*NorthWest and CU*South are data processing providers, the others provide electronic data archival and imaging products, financial and mortgage origination services, loan collection, bookkeeping and back-office functions.
Dave Hancock of Xpress Data, Inc. (www.xdi.com) San Diego, which specializes in the printing and mailing of daily notices to CU members, said the company can provide immediate help with the printing and mailing of daily member notices. "Notices of past-due payments and maturing CDs are important because they are timely," said Hancock. The company is offering a "three days to production" guarantee, ensuring that disruption of delivery of daily notices is minimized. Furthermore, Xpress Data is offering free setup for all former LaserTech customers.
"Unfortunately, even when a vendor is unable to fulfill its obligations to its credit union clients, those credit unions must still fulfill their obligations to their members," said Mike Cooper, president/CEO of Xpress Data. "One of those obligations is delivering daily notices in a timely fashion." According to Cooper, credit unions that fail to deliver their daily notices may be subject to regulatory issues, as well as a loss of member goodwill. "We've designed this program to turn what could be a real nightmare into a minor speed bump," added Cooper.
While there are any number of statement printers that CUs may now send that business to, it may take longer, Hancock said, owing to the need to convert from various DP platforms.
--cburger@cutimes.com
