depositing a personal check, waiting for it to clear

So you sell an item (I have not sold here on CPF, so this pertains to other forum sales) and offer payment options of usps money order or personal check, with the stipulation that the item will be sent when the check clears if paying by personal check.

I fully realize that when I deposit a personal check I will see the funds there in my savings, where I put it, almost that very same day. But I also know that this is a credit, which will be deducted immediately if it bounces.

What does that really mean, when the check clears? I always drive to my bank and personally deposit it, and I always ask the teller, when do I know that the funds will not be taken out if the check bounces? Then I get the usual voodoo answer 3 business days this, 5 business days that w a g (wild *** guess). I get a different answer every time. Sometimes they tell me to call the bank that is on the check, and that they may or may not comment on if the funds will be available.

Am I asking the wrong question? Worst case scenario, I wait 5 business days, ship the item (in this case we're talking $1000), then there's a - $1000 in my savings as the check bounces.

Is there a way to truly know that it will not bounce?

I did this (http://bfy.tw/Yev) to be snarky, then reviewed the results it provided, and realized that the answers provided were inconclusive, at best. So I present this link as fun to play with, but I am not able to provide you a better answer than what you have found so far.

5S8Zh5 said:

Is there a way to truly know that it will not bounce?

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Yes, don't accept personal checks. It's risky and really not that necessary with all the other ways to pay.

nbp said:

Yes, don't accept personal checks. It's risky and really not that necessary with all the other ways to pay.

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Agreeded. $1,000 is a lot of money to be done out of. Is it too late to request a more secure form of payment. At the very least ask to speak with someone in management at your bank. Ask them how best to go about protecting yourself in such matters. Don't trust people you've never met and aren't likely to in the future.

~ Chance

I will abide by the original conditions stated in my ad as that would be the right thing to do. Changing the rules mid-transaction wouldn't be cool. I'm maybe 1 percent worried, if that, and the buyer in question has a long and stellar 100 percent positive reputation, as documented in his profile, and readily visualized and evidenced by the dozens of successful transactions as buyer and seller listed right below his avatar at the forum where I made the sale.

I'm still on a quest to find answers to my personal check deposit questions though. _ _ _

I used to work at a bank and I've had multiple conversations with managers at other banks to verify what I knew when I worked at a bank...basically, the check could "bounce" at any time. The buyer could put a "stop payment" on it basically whenever they want. There is no "magic number" of days (e.g. 3 days...5 days...14 days...) to have to wait for it to "clear"...no one can provide a definitive number of days to wait to be safe.

So...I no longer accept personal checks unless it is from someone I know in real life.

One thing you could do...if the check you received is drawn on a nationwide bank like Bank of America, Wells Fargo...some place like that with branches in many towns...you should be able to take the check to *that* branch (their bank...not your own) and they should be able to cash it for you there...then you can take the cash to your bank and deposit it. It's a pain to do that, but that way you know you have the cash in hand.

I do the same and wait 14 days for it to fully clear. This also works incase they have passed a Counterfeit Cashiers Check. That is a common scam. Seen it happen to folks plenty of times.

^ Good info guys. I did find out from FEDEX, who I have an account with, that I can stop my shipment and turn it around back to me as long as I initiate before delivery day.

Jumpmaster said:

I used to work at a bank and I've had multiple conversations with managers at other banks to verify what I knew when I worked at a bank...basically, the check could "bounce" at any time. The buyer could put a "stop payment" on it basically whenever they want. There is no "magic number" of days (e.g. 3 days...5 days...14 days...) to have to wait for it to "clear"...no one can provide a definitive number of days to wait to be safe.

So...I no longer accept personal checks unless it is from someone I know in real life.

One thing you could do...if the check you received is drawn on a nationwide bank like Bank of America, Wells Fargo...some place like that with branches in many towns...you should be able to take the check to *that* branch (their bank...not your own) and they should be able to cash it for you there...then you can take the cash to your bank and deposit it. It's a pain to do that, but that way you know you have the cash in hand.

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Good advice Jump. I would not take any check but a cashiers check, that is the same as cash.

However in my business I have dealt with people who own casinos! and I take the checks to the bank manager who takes care of me getting the money, they have the same bank as I do, and I am friends with all the bankers in town. My bank manager told me the people with the casino spend every last cent, every month and bounce a bunch of checks, so we stopped working for them years ago. You never know who is passing you a check, but get to know your bank manager, they can be a big help in many ways.

A USPS Money order is a good thing too.

Jumpmaster said:

I used to work at a bank and I've had multiple conversations with managers at other banks to verify what I knew when I worked at a bank...basically, the check could "bounce" at any time. The buyer could put a "stop payment" on it basically whenever they want. There is no "magic number" of days (e.g. 3 days...5 days...14 days...) to have to wait for it to "clear"...no one can provide a definitive number of days to wait to be safe.

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I think you are talking about a dispute from the check writer's end. With the conclusion of a mutually agreed upon sale where both buyer and seller end up happy, it's money in the bank.

5S8Zh5 said:

I think you are talking about a dispute from the check writer's end. With the conclusion of a mutually agreed upon sale where both buyer and seller end up happy, it's money in the bank.

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Well...I was talking about in the case of the check-writer being a crook. Obviously, it isn't a problem if the two in the transaction are good, honest people...but if that were the case, you could take a personal check.

I was talking about a buyer that's a crook or had "buyer's remorse" (pretty much at any length of time after the transaction) or something like that and puts a stop-payment on the cashier's check.

Jumpmaster said:

Well...I was talking about in the case of the check-writer being a crook. Obviously, it isn't a problem if the two in the transaction are good, honest people...but if that were the case, you could take a personal check.

I was talking about a buyer that's a crook or had "buyer's remorse" (pretty much at any length of time after the transaction) or something like that and puts a stop-payment on the cashier's check.

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When I referred to a dispute, I'm talking about the buyer / check writer having to submit what in my mind would be a lengthy process with an uncertain outcome. I don't think (in other words I don't know) that the check writer can simply, days or weeks (or montyhs) after said check has been deposited in seller's account, call the bank and say reverse it and give me my money back.

5S8Zh5 said:

When I referred to a dispute, I'm talking about the buyer / check writer having to submit what in my mind would be a lengthy process with an uncertain outcome. I don't think (in other words I don't know) that the check writer can simply, days or weeks (or montyhs) after said check has been deposited in seller's account, call the bank and say reverse it and give me my money back.

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Yes, they can. That was the entire point of my post when I posted that previously.

But you go on ahead and keep treating cashier's checks like cash if you want...if you're not worried, then it's all great. (I won't take them though. )

AFAIK, a personal check has up to 90 days for stop payment. The only upside to the guy who took the check is that there is now a record of the other guy stopping the payment. Might be handy with the legals. Hope it never gets that far.

Jumpmaster said:

Yes, they can. That was the entire point of my post when I posted that previously.

But you go on ahead and keep treating cashier's checks like cash if you want...if you're not worried, then it's all great. (I won't take them though. )

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I don't think I've ever gotten a cashier's check. All were personal checks. In my 50 + years, I've never had a check that I've deposited reversed so that the funds were taken back out.

Has anyone had this happen to them? And are living in the U.S.A., Earth?

5S8Zh5 said:

I don't think I've ever gotten a cashier's check. All were personal checks. In my 50 + years, I've never had a check that I've deposited reversed so that the funds were taken back out.

Has anyone had this happen to them? And are living in the U.S.A., Earth?

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Yes. Stop pay check and credit card chargebacks. I'm a vet of this.

more_vampires said:

Yes. Stop pay check and credit card chargebacks. I'm a vet of this.

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A company reversing a payroll check already deposited, and getting their money back is a whole nother matter, compared to a personal check deposit from a transaction and trying to stop that weeks or months later. Apples and automobiles.

90 days. Been taken on this before.

90 days! I had no idea. It's probably a good idea to request the check be written on a national bank as previously stated. Then go to a local branch and have them cash it before mailing the item.

A woman I know had a check from someone she had done business with. Every time she tried to cash the check she was informed there wasn't enough money in the account to cover the check. She requested a deposit slip from the teller and wrote a check for about $10. After depositing the $10 in her business acquaintances account she was able to cash his check. A day later the guy called her ......... He was furious. I've always loved that story.

~ Chance

Someone owed me money and offered to wire the money to my account. By mistake he hit the wrong button and the bank mailed a check to me in New York, New York. No street address and no zip code. The bank actually mailed it.