Bad Check Collection

I had a garage sale recently and one of my neighbors wanted to buy my washer and dryer and pay for it with a personal check. I didn’t actually know the couple, but their address was on the check, as was their phone number, and so I decided to accept the check. Neighborhoods are so large today, unlike years ago. My Tucson neighborhood is not even considered one of the big ones, and I have thousands of "neighbors."

Boy, was I surprised one month later when I received the check back for insufficient funds along with a fee that my bank charged for trying to cash the check. I was somewhat at a loss, I had never had anyone give me a bad check before and I didn’t have any idea how to collect on it. And since Tucson is my home, and these people were my neighbors, I didn't want to create any real problems – I was sure it was just an error.

My first inclination was to call the people who had written the check. I did, and their answering machine picked up and the sweet voice of a very young girl told me they weren’t home. I left my name and number and explained the situation, thinking maybe they had made an error and they were just a little short that month – it does happen to all of us. I waited a week for them to call me back. They didn’t. I called again and once again heard that sweet young voice on the answering machine. I waited another week. I knew I was going to get nowhere with these people. I guess I could have gone to their home to personally ask them about the check, but the man was much larger than I and I thought better of it. At this point I sort of lost my pride in the 'Tucson neighborhood' concept I'd held onto so tightly.

I asked a friend about it, a man whose opinion I respect. He suggested that I go to the bank on which the check was written around payday, usually the 15th or 1st of each month and check to see if I could cash the check then. Since the 15th fell on a holiday, I went on the 14th, thinking maybe an automatic deposit might come in early. The first teller I spoke to was no help. But as I explained my predicament to him he called over another teller. She said she couldn’t tell me much but gave me a different day of the month that I might want to try. She also gave me the phone number for the bad check unit of our local police department. In Tucson, which is located in Pima County, it is illegal to write bad checks. She said I could go that route, but I would probably get my money faster by returning to the bank. I was there bright and early the morning the cash was supposed to be in their bank account, but there were still insufficient funds in the bank to cash my check. I again asked the teller what she would do if she were in my place. It was a different teller this time, and she said check back every day if I had to. On my third attempt, there was some conversation between the tellers but they finally decided that they could release enough of what was left in the account to pay me the check I had for $125.

So, what did I learn from this? First and foremost, even at a garage sale, unless you know the person well, cash is king. Secondly, it’s good to have knowledgeable friends. Third, if you do take a check, don’t just deposit it in your account. There is no way I will be refunded for the fees my bank charged for the other check having insufficient funds. Cash it at the bank upon which it was written. Fourth, be really nice to the tellers at the bank where you are cashing the check. They can make all the difference in the world in whether or not you will get your money.