What is Assembly Bill 2991?
AB-2991 Summary
This legislative bill was introduced February 16, 2024, and, as filed, will require electronic payments for the wholesale delivery of beer/wine/spirits to licensed retailers.
As of September 22, 2024, Assembly Bill 2991 has been signed by Governor Newsom. This bill requires all alcohol invoice payments to be made using an electronic funds transfer (EFT).
What does this mean for you? It means that all California distributors and their retailers must
transition to EFT payment for alcohol deliveries of beer, wine, and distilled spirits before January
1, 2026. Cash, checks, money orders, and other forms of payment will be replaced by EFT.
Where can I learn more?
California Distributor Support Tools
Fintech offers free support to its distributor partners including our Distributor Autopay E-Vite mobile app, Customer
List Analysis, Fintech Training for your organization, and a Co-op 50/50 Incentive Program.
E-Vite Mobile App
This is a free app for distributors to accelerate and increase retailer adoption of EFT payments.
Gone are the days of paper enrollment forms! This tool provides distributor employees the ability to invite their customers, via text or email, to enroll in EFT payments.
Customer List Analysis
We can identify customers who are paying your competitors electronically, but not you.
Send us an Excel list of customers with addresses, including customer IDs. Fintech runs an analysis and identifies target customers. Fintech shares results and options for sending connection requests.
Optional: Fintech sends requests to approved customers.
750+ distributors have provided customer lists in the last 2.5 years!
Free Fintech Training
Invite your team to a 30-minute interactive Zoom training to learn about the benefits of Fintech for the distributor and customer, and skill building around empathy, listening, and overcoming customer objections.
Ask us about our on-site training.
Co-op 50/50 Incentive Program
Fintech has partnered with 200+ distributors on this program over the last 3 years.
Together, we define targets, payouts, and timelines. Fintech offers a 50/50 co-op.
E-Vite Mobile App
Download our mobile app and start inviting your retailers today!
Reduce Operational and Administrative Costs
Fintech’s mobile app enrollment solution was designed to assist distributor teams in providing a secure, touch-free method to enroll independent retailers on Distributor Autopay. This tool allows you to invite retailers via text or email to register for electronic invoice payments. Teams can also use this tool to track progress and measure success.
How it Works
Register for an E-Vite Account
Send Invites to Your Retailers
Track the Activity of Sent Invitations
View Your Team's Leaderboards
Follow Up with Invited Customers
Home Dashboard
Sending Invites
- Toggle between text or email.
- Custom note is pre-populated but the user is free to edit and send a personal message.
- Once invitation is sent, it will show up in the activities section
- Reminder messages are sent 3 times if the retailer does not complete registration.
How the text will appear to invited retailers.
How the email invite will appear to invited retailers.
Activity Page
By viewing the status of invited accounts on the Activity Page, users can see where the account is in the setup process.
Invited
- An invitation has been sent, but the retailer has not completed account registration.
Registered
- The retailer has registered for an account, including entering bank information, choosing distributors, and signing T&Cs.
Active
- Bank testing is complete and the relationship between the distributor and retailer is live.
Processed
- An invoice has been paid via Fintech.
Distributor to Retailer Email Template
Email Template
Below is an example email template you can copy and paste to send to your retailers explaining the benefits of paying alcohol invoices through Fintech.
Dear Valued Customer,
We are reaching out to inform you that a new bill has been signed by Governor Newsom. Assembly Bill 2991 will require electronic payment for your wholesale deliveries of beer, wine, and spirits.
In a continued effort to bring you best-in-class service, we have partnered with Fintech, the industry leader in electronic payments. Fintech has processed electronic invoice payments for alcohol deliveries for over 33 years. They offer a FREE autopay service that allows you to process payments with all your distributors, not just us. With Fintech, your existing payment terms will remain unchanged, and your invoice payment will be made per the due date on the invoice, never sooner.
Not only does Fintech offer a free payment service with all your distributors, they offer other great benefits you may find helpful, like:
• Receive credits electronically, deposited directly into your account (included in FREE autopay)
• Access Fintech’s portal, giving you up to 15 months of rolling invoice history*
• Request invoice credits through the Fintech portal*
• Download copies of all your invoices from any distributor*
• Capture invoice data electronically instead of manually entering invoices*
*Subscription features. Small monthly fee may apply
We have provided you with a secure link (here) to easily join our Fintech account so you can begin
automating your alcohol invoice payments with us and your other distributor partners when you are ready.
It is important to us that this process is seamless for you, so if you have any questions or concerns,
please reach out to us at (DST to ENTER CONTACT INFORMATION email, or phone number, or both).
Sincerely,
(Distributor Name)
Best Practices For Getting Retailers on Fintech
Requesting a Custom Flyer or Business Cards
If you want a custom flyer with a direct link for your retailers to sign up with you directly, Fintech can create that for you. Please contact your account manager and include a high-resolution copy of your logo to get started.
We also have Autopay Business cards you can request to give your retailers with a QR Code to the EZenroll page.
How to Add Fintech Link to Signature Line on Emails
If you would like to add the Fintech EZenroll link to your email signature, follow these steps:
- Navigate to the signature settings in your email account.
- Add the image below to your signature by uploading or copy & paste it:
- Link our EZenroll registration page to the button: https://app.fintech.com/welcome
Fintech EZenroll Page
Here is the link to Fintech’s EZEnroll page: https://app.fintech.com/welcome
Many distributors add this link to their website to easily onboard customers to pay through Fintech.
Add our Logo to Your Website
Here is the link to Fintech’s logo page where you can download a version of our logo that fits your website best: https://fintech.com/brand-logos
Many distributors add a Fintech logo to their site with the EZenroll page linked so their customers can easily sign up for autopay, as shown below.
Benefits of Posting on Social and Instructions
Post on Your Social Media
Social media is a great platform to help raise awareness and educate your followers about the benefits of
paying all alcohol invoices through EFT. We’ve created five individual options for you to post across your
own channels. Each post explains a benefit of paying invoices through EFT and can be a stand alone post, or
posted together. Follow the steps below to use our media to post on your social channels.
Step 1: Download social images provided below by clicking on them.
Step 2: Upload image to your social media channel.
Step 3: Copy & insert provided captions.
Step 4: Tag @FintechBevAlc.
Step 5: Add a link to the EZEnroll page in the caption https://app.fintech.com/welcome
Step 6: Include hashtags #FintechBevalc #MoreThanPayments #ReThinkYourDrink.
Step 7: Post & Share to your network!
Post Copy:
Eliminate human error in your manual data entry processes. It’s time to automate your alcohol invoice entry, saving you time and money!
Post Copy:
PaymentSource will automate your manual alcohol invoice processes, giving you time to focus on taking care of your customers and growing profits.
Post Copy:
Not only does Fintech automate your alcohol distributor payments. But with PaymentSource, you can also efficiently manage your distributor credit requests.
Post Copy:
Have you heard about the newest alcohol payments bill passed in California? Assembly Bill 2991 will now require all alcohol payments to be made via electronic funds transfer (EFT). You will need to make your alcohol payments to your distributors electronically – cash, checks, money orders, credit cards, etc. will no longer be accepted. For more information on this bill, please visit https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient. xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB2991
Post Copy:
With the passing of Assembly Bill 2991, California will now require all alcohol payments to be made via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). As a trusted partner in the industry, @fintechbevalc provides automated alcohol invoice EFT payments per the terms of your invoice. We encourage all our accounts to enroll with Fintech for seamless payments and deliveries. C lick the link below to join Fintech and automate your alcohol invoice payments today: https://app.fintech.com/ welcome
Distributor Case Study - Petitpren
Checklist for Transitioning to 100% EFT
Deadline to transition all retailers to electronic payments is December 31, 2025
11/01/24
Distributor meets with Fintech account manager to discuss communication and transition strategy. Dates for potential customer list analysis and E-Vite training can be confirmed.
11/10/24
Distributor provides email addresses to Fintech for non-Fintech retailers
11/17/24
FIRST SEND - Distributor letter to retailers goes out (print and/or email)
11/17/24
FIRST SEND - Fintech letter/one-sheeter to retailers (print or email) --- based on distributor providing email address (Fintech to ship one-sheeters to distributor if necessary)
12/17/24
SECOND SEND - Distributor letter to retailers goes out (print and/or email)
12/17/24
SECOND SEND - Fintech letter/one-sheeter to retailers (print or email) --- based on distributor providing email address (Fintech to ship one-sheeters to distributor if necessary)
01/15/25
Distributor launches eVites or Fintech launches invites (based in distributor providing customer list)
02/15/25
Fintech sends business cards to requesting distributors (so that distributors can “leave behind” as a nudge)
Resources To Give Your Retailers
New Fintech Portal
Take Advantage of All the New Portal Has to Offer
There are more benefits your business can take advantage of beyond just automated alcohol
payments. We’ve recently upgraded our portal to give our clients an even better experience!
Managing Your Distributors in the New Fintech Portal
It is now easier than ever to add new vendors to your account. In just a few clicks, you can add a new distributor, select which locations to associate with that distributor and confirm.
