Herndon, VA
January 22, 2001

CheckAGAIN, a leading provider of NSF check recovery solutions, will be teaming with the National Grocers Association to bring ELECTRONIC CHECK RE-PRESENTMENT and CENTRALIZED RETURNS to its member grocers. Electronic Re-presentment and Centralized Return processing dramatically reduce the time and effort involved in recovering funds from NSF checks.

"CheckAGAIN has had proven success in saving significant time and money for grocery operators by using electronic transactions to handle returned checks. By using electronic re-presentment technology, CheckAGAIN offers retailers a new and better option for recovering funds, simplifying accounting and dramatically reducing bank fees associated with returned checks," says Stuart Zlotnikoff, President, NGA Service Corporation.

According to banking industry statistics, approximately 1.4 million bad checks are written daily. These checks can take up to 10-14 days to be processed by the banking system, causing accounting delays and headaches for merchants. CheckAGAIN's CENTRALIZED RETURNS, however, catches NSF checks early on in the processing cycle and cuts the grocer's time to know about check returns down to as little as 72 hours.

CheckAGAIN's ELECTRONIC RE-PRESENTMENT technology returns the full face value of the NSF check to the merchant upon successful re-presentment. Check principal and fees are presented directly to the consumer's account electronically, providing a much more efficient and cost-effective method of collection than traditional phone calls or letters. As a result, grocers can increase their recovery rate of NSF checks, decrease their internal costs in loss prevention, and save their customers the hassle and embarrassment of making good on bounced checks in person.

"As the voice for the independent grocers, the National Grocers Association knows how technology can improve its members' businesses," says Tim Robinson, CheckAGAIN's President. "NGA members can now access this technology and put outdated returned check processing practices behind them. Our electronic check processing system will work faster, recover more, and greatly reduce the costs involved in dealing with NSF checks."

Grocers using the CheckAGAIN system also gain access to 24-hour electronic reporting, which provides complete details on all checks processed through the system, including digital images of the front and back of each check.

Electronic Re-presentment and Centralized Returns are ideal solutions for retail and account-based operations (such as utility, cable, and cellular companies), municipalities and local governments, as well as ANY industry that experiences a high volume of NSF checks.

About the National Grocers Association

NGASC was founded in 1995 as the operational subsidiary of the National Grocers Association. NGA is the national trade association representing the retail and wholesale grocers that comprise the independent sector of the food distribution industry. An independent retailer is a privately owned or controlled food retail company operating in a variety of formats. Some are publicly traded but with controlling shares held by the family. Most independent operators are serviced by wholesale distributors, while others may be partially or fully self-distributing. Independents are the true 'entrepreneurs' of the grocery industry and dedicated to their customers, associates, and communities. NGA members include retail and wholesale grocers and their state associations, as well as manufacturers and service suppliers. For more information about N.G.A. and the independent sector of the industry, see the NGA website: www.NationalGrocers.org.

For more information about the National Grocers Association, call Stu Zlotnikoff at (703) 437-5300.

About CheckAGAIN

Established in 1998, CheckAGAIN uses innovative technology to simplify and improve the recovery process on returned checks for merchants. The widely used system helps businesses nationwide increase their recovery on return checks, while lowering associated transaction fees. CheckAGAIN assists consumers by significantly reducing inconveniences normally associated with resolving misunderstandings due to returned checks. For additional information please visit www.checkagain.com or call 800/666-5222.