Official CHECKS information thread

[KotOD]

Many of you are treating the banking process and the handling of checks as if banking is fire and poker players are cavemen, so here ya go:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheque

"A cheque or check, is a negotiable instrument[1] instructing a financial institution to pay a specific amount of a specific currency from a specific demand account held in the maker/depositor's name with that institution."

"An order check – the most common form in the United States – is payable only to the named payee or his or her endorsee, as it usually contains the language "Pay to the order of (name).""

"A payee that accepts a cheque will typically deposit it in an account at the payee's bank, and have the bank process the cheque. In some cases, the payee will take the cheque to a branch of the drawee bank, and cash the cheque there. If a cheque is refused at the drawee bank (or the drawee bank returns the cheque to the bank that it was deposited at) because there are insufficient funds for the cheque to clear, it is said that the cheque has bounced. Once a cheque is approved and all appropriate accounts involved have been credited, the cheque is stamped with some kind of cancellation mark, such as a "paid" stamp. The cheque is now a cancelled cheque. Cancelled cheques are placed in the account holder's file. The account holder can request a copy of a cancelled cheque as proof of a payment."



http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...age=0&vc=1

"HOW TO CASH A CHECK

a. If you have a bank account somewhere, take it there to cash it. You can go through the drive-thru or inside. Signing the back is called "endorsing", so endorse the check and give it to the teller along with your picture I.D.

b. If you don't have a bank account anywhere, you can take it to the bank that issued the check. Look on the check, you'll see the logo or name of the bank somewhere. They will also take it. Do the same procedure: endorse the back and give it to the teller with your I.D."


http://www.cdnpay.ca/faqs/cheques.asp#1

"How long does it take for a cheque to clear?

First, it is important to clarify the definition of "clearing": it is the process through which financial institutions (FIs) exchange cheques and other payment items that they have accepted.

In most cases, when a cheque is deposited at an FI, it is sent that evening to the nearest processing centre serving that FI. There, cheques are sorted according to the financial institution that holds the account of the cheque writer (i.e. the payor’s account). The cheques are then delivered to the processing centre serving the payor’s FI. This exchange, or "clearing", usually occurs the evening of the day the cheque was deposited. However, in some situations, such as deposits made late in the day, on the weekend or through an Automated Banking Machine, clearing may not occur until the evening of the next business day.

After clearing, the cheque must still be returned to the branch that holds the cheque writer’s account (or the unit of the FI that acts on behalf of the branch) to confirm that it can be honoured. Within Canada, this process generally takes from one to three business days. If the cheque cannot be honoured - for example, due to insufficient funds, a stop payment order or a forged signature - it will be returned to the branch that accepted it. The return voyage will also generally take from one to three days but could take longer in some circumstances. "


http://banking.about.com/od/checkingaccounts/a/hold.htm

"How Long are Holds?

Holding times will vary due to several factors. The main factor is the source of the check. For example, checks written by the US government might have a shorter hold – or none at all – because the bank assumes that the check will actually be paid. Personal checks and out-of-state checks can have longer hold periods.

Even though technology has given banks the ability to verify funds more easily, hold times still hover around 5-10 business days. "

[KotOD]

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...BG7&show=7

"How long can you hold on to a cheque before any bank refuses to accept it?"

"In theory a cheque would stay valid until you presented it for payment. When a cheque is issued the person writing it is obliged to have the funds in their bank account to cover it and, therefore, if you do not cash the cheque the funds should still be there to cover it. In practice banks normally honour cheques up to 6 months old after which they may be rejected and stamped 'Refer to Drawer'. Moral? Pay in a cheque as soon as possible!"

[FernTheBrute]

Hillarious post! And so true!

[KotOD]

"Why did the teller ask if my check was a payroll check?"

Banks will often waive any sort of a hold on a check if the depositor is a customer in good standing.

[cardcounter0]

[ QUOTE ]
"Why did the teller ask if my check was a payroll check?"

Banks will often waive any sort of a hold on a check if the depositor is a customer in good standing.

[/ QUOTE ]

When you hand a check to the bank, the first and about the only though in their mind is -- Will this check bounce?
Typically, Payroll Checks have a much lower percentage of being returned than other checks. So asking "What is this check for?" or "Is this for work?" is the teller's clumsy attempt to determine if it is a payroll check.

If it is an International Check (a check from a different country) it needs to be sent to [que scary music] "collections" [/que scary music]. This does not mean that Vinny and Vito are going to appear at your door to break your legs. International checks require special handling since only American banks participate in the Federal ACH system. So some extra steps are required for the bank to get it's money for an international check. As a result, a hold of longer duration is usually placed on an international check, unless the bank has a good history of these checks clearing with you.

[KotOD]

BUMP

[KotOD]

What if my check is lost in the mail?

http://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/ind...14152723AA0cOPX

Call the pokersite, ask them to put a stop payment on the check and issue a new one.

[KotOD]

Question: Stale Dated Check. Our bank was presented with a $700.00 check that we paid one month ago, that was over 6 months old at the time of payment. Can this item be returned or, as I suspect, is it considered a "late return" at this time?

The second half of the question is, what liability does the bank of first deposit have for accepting this item and are we, as the paying bank, responsible, in any way, for having paid a stale dated item?


Answer by Ken Golliher:
Obviously, a physical inspection of the item would have made it apparent to your bank that it was post dated. You had until midnight of the banking day following the banking day of presentment to return the item. After then, it is finally paid and would definitely be a "late return" in the time frame you mention.

The paying bank's only risk in accepting a stale dated item for deposit is if the paying bank returns the item in a timely fashion.

Finally, under the current version of the UCC (check your state's version) the paying bank may pay or return a stale dated check; i.e. it is your option and paying the item imposes no automatic liability on your bank. For the iscussion to go further, your customer would have to have been damaged in some way by the payment and be able to make some allegation that your institution had some demonstrable responsibility to reject the item due to the stale date.

SOURCE: Bankersonline.com

[KotOD]

"What do I do if I don't want to use a teller because I'm nervous to meet real-life people, and my bank doesn't have ATM deposit?"

Simple. Fill out your deposit forms, endorse your check "FOR DEPOSIT ONLY" with your signature and drop both the form and the check into an envelope. Label the envelope as "Deposit" and place the envelope into your bank's Night Drop Box. The Night Drop Box is normally located near one of the entrance doors on the outer wall of your bank. Pull down the lever that allows access to the night drop chute and drop the envelope into the chute.

[KotOD]

*sigh*
I can't believe the inept overall behavior displayed by you people when it comes to checks and banking. For as much as you all make fun of old people that are completely baffled by new technology, you all are equally as brain damaged when it comes to dealing with six hundred year old processes.

If you fear talking to the big bad tellers, if you are afraid of answering questions from the mean old branch managers, if you are afraid of depositing into the ATM -- every bank branch has a night deposit drop to allow businesses to drop their nightly take. The slot isn't limited to business transactions as the tellers will process whatever is in the overnights. It's a slot built into the side of the building with a metal covering on it. The metal covering has a handle. Pull that handle and drop your deposit into the overnight slot. The tellers will process it the next morning.

Before you mental midgets run off and just randomly throw checks into the slot: prepare your night deposit by filling out your deposit slips properly with the correct account numbers, check numbers, and other figures; endorse the back of the check properly so as not to create confusion or generate a phone call from the scary head teller the next morning; place both the endorsed check and the deposit form into an envelope and seal the envelope. For those of you that are afraid of dropping an endorsed check into a mysterious new-fangled dropbox, endorse the check as follows:

"FOR DEPOSIT INTO ACCOUNT # xxx-xxx-xxxx ONLY" (where xxx-xxx-xxxx is YOUR account number) above your signature on the endorsement line.

That way, if the check is stolen, any cashier or check-cashing place will immediately alerted to the problem.

To further expedite the deposit process for the tellers in the morning, label your envelope "DEPOSIT ONLY PLEASE" so that the tellers know immediately that your envelope contains a deposit and not a car loan payment, mortgage payment or some other type of loan payment.

The next morning, you should only have to wait for about forty-five minutes to an hour before you can retreat to the happiness of your lonely internet existence, login to your online banking account and see that the check has been deposited. The check may have a hold on it after deposit. For more information on holds, please see here:

The Checks information thread