Why was my stale-dated cheque cashed? Scotiabank Help Centre

14 Jul Why was my stale-dated cheque cashed? Scotiabank Help Centre

A bank may not be liable for a stop payment if you fail to provide enough information to identify the check or if you do implement the stop payment order early enough. If somebody fails to deposit or cash a check you wrote, they may have difficulty negotiating the check after six months. However, you still owe the money, and banks can choose to process the payment. Justin Pritchard, CFP, is a fee-only advisor and an expert on personal finance. He covers banking, loans, investing, mortgages, and more for The Balance.

Personal checks are usually good for six months from the date written on the check. However, banks may fail to detect the date or may choose to handle stale-dated checks for customers. Ensure that your bank accounts are balanced on a monthly basis and that you contact owners if needed.

What is a ‘check hold’ and how can it…

This is to protect you if a teller misses the stale date on the check and cashes it. Verify with the bank that they will not honor a check that’s older than 6 months. If you want a basic checking account with no monthly maintenance fee, or an interest-earning checking account, we’ve got the options that are right for you. Banks don’t have to accept checks that are more than 6 months old. That’s according to the Uniform Commercial Code , a set of laws governing commercial exchanges, including checks. If you have an issue with a stale or expired check, you should contact a financial lawyer who can advise you on the best course of action.

• Any checks you receive should be cashed or deposited as soon as possible.
• Traveler’s checks might not ever expire, and can always be refunded if lost or stolen.
• After 60 days the checks become “stale” and a replacement check must be issued.
• And as mentioned, a cheque gets considered stale-dated after six months.
• Of course, that may require an explanation of why you let the original cheque go stale, to begin with.

This means that they know that you are going to have enough funds in your account to cover the overall cost of the cheque that’s getting sent. Banks and financial institutions consider a cheque to be stale-dated when it becomes too old, which is usually after six months.

Stale Checks

Dishonoured cheques happen when the cheque doesn’t go through and ultimately can’t get paid. If a cheque is dishonoured, it will get returned back to your bank or financial institution and there are few reasons for this. You might have non-sufficient funds in your bank account or the signature might be incorrect. Statement Cycle means the period of time for which our credit union provides a summary of the financial activities and transactions that post and settle to the accountholder’s account. See our website at or contact one of our branch service representatives for specific Statement Cycle dates. Your state will act as a custodian for your property and will return your money upon showing proof that you are the owner or that you have the right to claim the property. If you don’t have any luck contacting the check issuer, consider working with your bank.

• There’s no set or specified expiration date for cashier’s checks.
• Let’s take a closer look into what a stale-dated cheque is and how they work.
• Please note that it’s always possible that Western Union or U.S.P.S. have changed their rules.
• Read our article about What’s a Cashier’s Check if you’d like more information about cashier’s checks themselves.
• Although banks, credit unions or other financial institutions might let you cash or deposit an outdated check into your account, the law doesn’t require them to do so.
• If you discover an old cashier’s check, contact the issuing bank and ask them what they need from you to handle the transaction.

Banks are still allowed to process an old check as long as the institution believes the funds are good. A Federal Reserve regulation says a bank does not have to deposit a check if it has reason to doubt that it https://www.bookstime.com/ will be able to collect the money from the paying bank. Bankrate’s editorial team writes on behalf of YOU – the reader. Our goal is to give you the best advice to help you make smart personal finance decisions.

Services & Guides

BankersOnline is a free service made possible by the generous support of our advertisers and sponsors. Please help us keep BankersOnline FREE to all banking professionals. Support our advertisers and sponsors by clicking through to learn more about their products and services. If you write a replacement or substitute check, it’s wise to request a stop payment on the original check so you don’t pay twice. A post-dated cheque cannot be accepted or honoured earlier than the date mentioned on the cheque, whereas a stale cheque is not honoured at all.

Checks from the state or local government agencies will expire according to state law. So, how long a state tax refund check is good for will vary from state to state, but generally it’s 6 months to a year. If you have an expired state tax refund check, you should contact the state and request a new check. Just like with the federal checks, you’re still entitled to what the government owes you. Understanding state legislation is the first step in developing a practical company policy for stale-dated checks. Read up on the rules for your home state as well as any other states where your company conducts business.

Checks You Write

A bank will, in good faith, do all it can to stop payment on a check, but a bank will not guarantee that the check will not be processed. If a bank is unable to stop payment on a check, your funds may be debited and you may be responsible for any fees including the fee your bank charges for stop payments. Let’s say the opposite happens, and you are on the receiving end of a check that has expired. The company may be willing to reissue the check, even if it’s stale. If there are no further instructions on the check, then the bank can choose not to honor it if it’s older than six months. However, many businesses tend to put a length of time on the check for accounting purposes.

We advise all taxpayers to consult a professional tax advisor regarding their own specific needs. Inception Date means in respect of a Fund, the first date on which the Fund issued shares. A lawyer can help you understand your rights and what actions you can take to protect yourself. If you have any questions or concerns, it’s always what is a stale dated check best to speak with a lawyer before taking any action. It may be tempting to merely reverse the expense and add the cash back into your general fund. Banks will not do so because of the accounting ramifications it can have. When hiring accounting staff, there are a number of specific characteristics to look for in your candidates.