Customer calls

[rjb]

...I don't see how my bank has anything to do with the money someone agreed to pay me.
...If the voucher system doesn't work then it needs to be fixed.

Did you know that when you "endorse" a check, you are legally "endorsing" the payer to the bank- in other words, telling the bank that you know the guy is good for the money?

Typically, if the check bounces, you not only get screwed out of the payment but have to pay a penalty to the bank.
I don't know any bank that will cash a check for someone who doesn't have an account with them.

[Chuck H]

That's all well and good. So when someone goes to the bank with what is supposed to be a legal voucher for cash, look in the friggin account and, if the money is in there, honor it. What's so risky or complicated about that. Of course they may charge a fee for handling the transaction. That's understood.

[Leo_Gnardo]

I don't know any bank that will cash a check for someone who doesn't have an account with them.

Time was, and not too long ago, banks would cash a check FROM THAT BANK even if you didn't have an account there. Might take a little longer but no biggie. If I had any question as to whether a check was good, I'd take it to the bank it was written on & either cash it or find "insufficient funds" without penalty, even Bank of America.

Couple of years ago I tried this with the Communist Chinese bank HSBC and got a hostile reponse. Not only would not cash the check, but refused to let me know whether there were sufficient funds in the account. Also threatened to call the cops. All for a stinkin' $30 check. (Anybody notice they disappeared after it was found out HSBC allowed Mexican narco-terrorists to launder billions of $ ? Around here HSBC branches all closed down, stayed closed for a year, and reopened with a new name "Niagara". Rhymes with viagra.)

In the present day banks want to force you to deposit that maybe-bad paper so they can yank another couple of twenties out of your pocket.

[rjb]

...look in the friggin account and, if the money is in there, honor it. What's so risky or complicated about that.

Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I'm just telling you what I've read.
I'm guessing the problem is that the laws were written back when it was impossible to instantaneously check account balances and transfer funds.
The banks take advantage of the laws and "play the float".
My credit union still puts a 3 day(? haven't checked lately) hold on out-of-state checks- I can't use the funds, even though I know the CU has received them.

[Steve A.]

Did you know that when you "endorse" a check, you are legally "endorsing" the payer to the bank- in other words, telling the bank that you know the guy is good for the money?

And I thought that I was endorsing myself as the payee. How am I to know whether the guy is good for the money- isn't that the bank's job? But yes if I deposit a check that bounces I am charged a fee by my bank.

That's all well and good. So when someone goes to the bank with what is supposed to be a legal voucher for cash, look in the friggin account and, if the money is in there, honor it. What's so risky or complicated about that. Of course they may charge a fee for handling the transaction. That's understood.

It used to be that you could walk into the bank branch upon which the check was drawn and they would cash it for you after looking up the signature card and confirming that they were the same. However with all of the changes in banking I'm not sure how it works. I'm a Wells Fargo customer but I don't really have a home branch anymore- all of the branches treat me the same and I have no idea where the signature card I signed over 25 years might be. (Yes, it would make a lot of sense if there was a digital copy of my signature that could be viewed at any branch.)

At least in the past I was able to cash checks for someone else (like my son) as long as I had enough money in my account to cover the check. (I don't know if they placed a hold on that money or not.) But yes if you deposit a check that bounces you get charged as well as the person who wrote the check.

I liked it better when we were paid with wampum!

Steve Ahola

[eschertron]

I liked it better when we were paid with wampum!

Steve Ahola

A little before my time, Steve

[Enzo]

How am I to know whether the guy is good for the money- isn't that the bank's job?

Actually , no. If you go to HIS bank, they can check his balance, but your bank cashing another bank's check has no way to easily check if it is good tight this instant. I could write you a check, then turn around and pay my bills online, draining my account. The balance is still in my account until the authorized transactions are completed, but the funds are held for that. SO my "balance" is not the same as available money. You endorse a check it means you take responsibility for it. You are giving them a piece of paper, declaring it worth X amount. If it winds up not worth X amount, they come back to you to make it good.


How does one get along without a checking account? How do you pay bills? I write VERY few checks, I do it all online. But I have to have an account to draw FROM to send it TO Visa or Sears, or the propane company or the whatever. My credit union doesn't charge a transaction fee. It all flows smoothly. And I have accounts with the factories, like Fender, Peavey, Loud, Samson, whatever, and they expect a check in the mail. I surely won't be buying a money order to send.

I TAKE checks, yes I have had bad ones, but most of them are good. I don't take credit cards, and they are safer than checks. Go figger.


yeah Steve, no one goes to a drawer and pulls out an actual signature card to look at. Everything is imaged. I get my bank statement monthly, but I usually look at it online before paying bills to make sure I have the balance I expect, and to transfer in funds for the checks I am about to "write." On the accounting is each debit on a line, and next to all actual checks, when they are cashed at the other end, an image or the actual check is right there on the page. So if I forgot to enter Fender as the payee in my register, I can just look at the image of the check and see. Ever see someplace like a grocery store deposit your check right on the spot, electronically, and hand you back the now cancelled check? You write a check, they scan it into the cash register, it reads the check, and spits it back out, transfer completed, check now cancelled. You keep it for your records.

[Steve A.]

How does one get along without a checking account? How do you pay bills? I write VERY few checks, I do it all online.

Me, too. I will mail in a check for my property tax because they charge a fee if you do it electronically- plus that is one cancelled check I would like to keep. I was questioning the meaning of "check endorsement" so I thought I better look it up on-line.

Check Endorsement:

Signature included on the front or back of a check acknowledging that both parties have agreed to exchange the specified amount on the document. The signature or account information included on the back of a check acknowledges that the intended recipient received the document and deposited it. To cash a check, the issuer and the recipient must endorse the document.

Read more: What is check endorsement? definition and meaning

[plec.22]

I get's a text message asking..'do you fix effect's pedals? reply..yes... great will b round in ten mins,...so 2 hours later, soz can't make it, followed by can I call them back as there phone cred has run out and tell them how to fix it!! I did not waste any more time....

[Richard]

I don't do repairs for a living. Any that I do are for friends and acquaintance. I usually only charge for parts. It's just something I do that most others can't so I enjoy the kudos. Ok... Story:

As a painting contractor I did maintenance on an elderly living apartment complex. I got to know many residents by name in my coming and going. One night (I often did this work at night as an aside from day work) the lady that played organ for the choir (Laura) told me that her old Baldwin had been acting up and the tremolo wasn't working anymore. She mentioned it to me because she thought I was a handy guy and hoped I knew something about it. As it happened I did! So I took a look and found a couple of dead tubes and bulging ORIGINAL filter caps. I told her I needed to order parts and would see her again in a couple of weeks. I ordered all new power supply caps and brought my "basic components" organizer when I returned. I was lucky to have the tubes she needed on hand. Having acquired them from cardboard boxes from a salvage house for a couple of bucks each. I rebuilt the power supply, replaced the bad tubes and a couple of badly drifted resistors on site in about an hour and fifteen minutes. She was so happy. Said it hadn't worked right in a long time (which could have meant a decade or more in this case!). She asked me what it cost and I said "Don't worry about it. I had the stuff on hand and I'm glad I could help." And she said "Wait here". She went into the back room and emerged with a small, leather bound maroon box. She said "I hope you'll accept this. My husband collected coins. They don't mean much to me but maybe they're worth something," She was so sincere that I had to accept. I was honestly just glad to help. I saw her perform with the choir a few times afterwards (I was always invited ) It turned out that there were two "commemorative" coins in the box. Minted by our own government and worth about $55. U.S. each at this time. Of course I still have them. Laura was a good lady and I knew her for many years. I don't know if the coins have continued to go up in value. It really doesn't matter as to whether I'll unload them. They're fine right where they are, with me. Laura is gone now. I don't know where all her collective "stuff" ended up. Other than her bitchin' Baldwin organ. Which she donated to the group and now sits in the Great room where the current (and ever rotating) choir practices. This was my favorite repair.

It feels good to restore something uncommon to working condition and help someone out. That's worth more than money (unless the rent is late).