Personal Finance

Bank cashed a post-dated cheque on me early.. What now?

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  • Feb 16th, 2012 3:18 pm
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Deal Addict
Jun 11, 2010
1195 posts
95 upvotes

Bank cashed a post-dated cheque on me early.. What now?

I haven't called them yet because they're not open today, but I just found out looking at my account, that on Friday they bounced a cheque that was post-dated for next Friday.

When I call them Monday, what should I say and how can I be compensated?

Right now I'm looking at $80 in NSF charges and a lot of time, hassle and embarrassment to sort this out. What is a fair amount to ask for in return?
36 replies
Deal Addict
User avatar
May 17, 2007
3639 posts
755 upvotes
Burnaby
Depending on what bank you deal with, they may reverse all the charges as long as they can get an image or the actual cheque back. BMO is helpful with that. Go into your branch and explain what happened. Might be helpful to remember for future though that you write P/D's at your own risk. If someone deposits it into an ATM, no one ever actually looks at the date. It's only when done in-branch that it is usually scrutinized.

Gl.
Deal Fanatic
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Jan 27, 2007
5116 posts
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T.
The bank MUST reverse all charges related to the actual NSF.

I'd also ask them to waive some monthly fees (if you have any) in addition to any actual costs, be reasonable about it though. Most likely it was some automated clearing house that cleared the cheque, it happens all the time.

I would go into the branch to deal with it, better than dealing with the peons on the phone.
[QUOTE]I know you are, but what am I.... ;) [/QUOTE]
Banned
Nov 27, 2006
2200 posts
445 upvotes
Toronto
Hello


if you write a post dated cheque to a friend/business asscoiate, land lord, wahtever, it does not MATTER.

They can go deposit it at an ATM and when they do, the clearing house doesn't give a **** they cash it.

There is nothing anyone can do for you. Dont write post dated cheques to people you dont trust.
Deal Fanatic
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Jan 27, 2007
5116 posts
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T.
sirex wrote: Hello


if you write a post dated cheque to a friend/business asscoiate, land lord, wahtever, it does not MATTER.

They can go deposit it at an ATM and when they do, the clearing house doesn't give a **** they cash it.

There is nothing anyone can do for you. Dont write post dated cheques to people you dont trust.
You have no idea what you are talking about. Do some research before you post, don't post opinion, post facts.

OP here are the CPA regualtions on post dated cheques:

http://www.cdnpay.ca/imis15/eng/FAQs/Ch ... .aspx#bm06
[QUOTE]I know you are, but what am I.... ;) [/QUOTE]
Newbie
Jul 23, 2011
31 posts
28 upvotes
LONDON
dutchca wrote: You have no idea what you are talking about. Do some research before you post, don't post opinion, post facts.

OP here are the CPA regualtions on post dated cheques:

http://www.cdnpay.ca/imis15/eng/FAQs/Ch ... .aspx#bm06

Actually, he's right, UNLESS the bank or person/business who cashed the cheque belongs to the CPA. Not every bank or business is a member.

Accepting a post dated cheque is an agreement between the writer and the place accepting it.
Deal Fanatic
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Mar 20, 2009
8862 posts
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Vancouver
It has been posted here in this forum many times before, the banks offer no guarantees about honoring the date on post-dated cheques. Their position is that their staff may refuse to accept a post-dated cheque if it is presented early, if they notice it. But if they don't notice and accept it early, they will not do anything about it. By the time they could process your request to investigate, the due date would have passed anyway. They definitely won't offer you any compensation for problems it may have caused. At most you might talk them into waiving the NSF fee. Learn the lesson, and don't depend on post-dating except in specific circumstances covered by a legal agreement (such as post-dated rent cheques).
Deal Addict
Jun 11, 2010
1195 posts
95 upvotes
sirex wrote: Hello


if you write a post dated cheque to a friend/business asscoiate, land lord, wahtever, it does not MATTER.

They can go deposit it at an ATM and when they do, the clearing house doesn't give a **** they cash it.

There is nothing anyone can do for you. Dont write post dated cheques to people you dont trust.

This is nonsense. Sure, an ATM will float you some of the money until the cheque clears, but the actual process of clearing a cheque is done by a human being.. I mean, obviously because human error is to blame here, otherwise there wouldn't be any problem in the first place.

RBC refunded me the NSF fee, and credited my chequing account $40 for the NSF fee I have to pay the other guy. It was a major hassle though, and I had to talk to like 5 people.. In the end, they probably spent just as much screwing me around about the other $40.

And people complain that the public sector is inefficient.
Banned
Nov 27, 2006
2200 posts
445 upvotes
Toronto
Hi

I am not sure where you guys get your miss information from.

The bank is no obligated to hold a post dated cheque for you until it comes due. The reason is due to liability. The bank cannot be held accountable for holding your cheque until you can cash it. The bank DOES NOT CARE to do this. The liability is that(for those not smart enough to understand what liability is) if they miss the "cash date" on the cheque because someone forgot to do it, then they could be sued.

If you go to the teller and the teller spots it they can REFUSE to do it.HOWEVER if they dont spot it, or dont care, it gets cashed just the same.

If you go to the ATM the clearing house does not give a ****. They cannot hold the funds for you until the date on the cheque.

IF you had your funds/NSF fees reversed it was because you cried like a little baby to the manager because you didn't understand the rules. a one time reversal does not mean it is non-sense. you just dont understand.
Banned
Nov 27, 2006
2200 posts
445 upvotes
Toronto
dutchca wrote: You have no idea what you are talking about. Do some research before you post, don't post opinion, post facts.

OP here are the CPA regualtions on post dated cheques:

http://www.cdnpay.ca/imis15/eng/FAQs/Ch ... .aspx#bm06

also please learn to read your own links which you clearly dont understand lol.






What happens if a post-dated cheque is accepted and processed to my account before the due date?

Under CPA Rules, a post-dated cheque is not eligible for clearing and therefore should not be deposited before the due date. However, given the large volume of cheques and the degree of automated processing, some post-dated items may inadvertently slip through.

Under Rule A4, Section 6(b), a payment item may be returned through the clearing by a CPA member financial institution for the reason "post-dated" up to and including the day prior to the due date. Once the due date is reached, the payment item cannot be returned for the reason "post-dated".

A customer with concerns about a post-dated cheque being processed to his or her account should raise them with his or her financial institution. If the institution is notified within the timeframe described above, the cheque can be returned through the clearing. Questions about overdrafts as a result of the early processing of post-dated items should also be addressed to the financial institution.
Deal Addict
Jun 11, 2010
1195 posts
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sirex wrote:The bank DOES NOT CARE to do this.
Boo, hoo, banks have to do something for their customers. Cry more.

Well, too bad. The bank screwed up and they owed me money. I made sure I got paid. One of the CSRs tried to spout this crap about it not being their fault, so I immediately escalated the call. If they want to float the money to the guy cashing it, then that's their choice, but the money won't clear on my end until the date specified. I put the date on there for a reason, not for it to be ignored.

That's how post-dating works. It requires cooperation from all parties involved.

So mark this date on your calender, folks. It's the day the banks actually paid for one of their mistakes. Businesses think they can forfeit all liability these days by adding it to some obscure page on their website. Today, they had to reckon with someone who wouldn't take, "b-but it's not our fault" for an answer.
Deal Addict
Jun 11, 2010
1195 posts
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sirex wrote: also please learn to read your own links which you clearly dont understand lol.






What happens if a post-dated cheque is accepted and processed to my account before the due date?

Under CPA Rules, a post-dated cheque is not eligible for clearing and therefore should not be deposited before the due date. However, given the large volume of cheques and the degree of automated processing, some post-dated items may inadvertently slip through.

Under Rule A4, Section 6(b), a payment item may be returned through the clearing by a CPA member financial institution for the reason "post-dated" up to and including the day prior to the due date. Once the due date is reached, the payment item cannot be returned for the reason "post-dated".

A customer with concerns about a post-dated cheque being processed to his or her account should raise them with his or her financial institution. If the institution is notified within the timeframe described above, the cheque can be returned through the clearing. Questions about overdrafts as a result of the early processing of post-dated items should also be addressed to the financial institution.

Fail. This doesn't even address the issue of NSF fees.
Deal Addict
Jan 19, 2011
3208 posts
1526 upvotes
vaportrails wrote: This is nonsense. Sure, an ATM will float you some of the money until the cheque clears, but the actual process of clearing a cheque is done by a human being...
Are you sure about that? you might want to 'check' your sources.

The CPA rules quoted give no indication whatsoever about redress if a post dated cheques is returned NSF.

A bank is not obligated to refund any fees or costs to a client who has a post dated cheque returned NSF. If the OP or anyone here had that happen, either they are making it up, or were quite fortunate.

I have had cheques clear post dated, with incorrect figures, and even without signatures, all hit my account, and all processed without being caught by the bank (individual cheques are not inspected from what I have been told), a few went NSF, and the bank sometimes refunded any fees.
"The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is."
Just a guy who dabbles in lots of stuff learning along the way. I do have opinions, and readily share them!
Deal Addict
Jun 11, 2010
1195 posts
95 upvotes
fieldhousehandyman wrote: Are you sure about that? you might want to 'check' your sources.

The CPA rules quoted give no indication whatsoever about redress if a post dated cheques is returned NSF.
It's bad enough that businesses seem to avoid liability with lazy catch-all clauses posted seemingly wherever they feel like it, but you're now telling me that failing to stipulate liability is another way banks can avoid redress? Oh boy.. They sure have it good.
A bank is not obligated to refund any fees or costs to a client who has a post dated cheque returned NSF. If the OP or anyone here had that happen, either they are making it up, or were quite fortunate.
How are they not obligated? Ok, better question.. Why do you feel that they should not be obligated?

Wouldn't an automated system also check the date on the cheque?
Deal Addict
Jan 19, 2011
3208 posts
1526 upvotes
There is nothing in the rules quoted that indicate a bank is obliged to ensure a post dated cheque does not go NSF.

here is another somewhat more useful link

http://www.cba.ca/en/consumer-informati ... ed-to-know

Cheques are not individually manually inspected for clearing in Canada, they are batch inspected. Several samples in a batch (generally 3 or 4 out of 1000) are inspected, if they pass all tests, the entire batch clears.

I wrote well over twenty unsigned cheques in a row about 10 years ago to test the system, and all cleared my account.

http://www.fcac-acfc.gc.ca/eng/consumer ... ed-eng.asp

Here is the federal governmnent take on it, which once again clearly does not state a bank is responsible for refunding NSF and other fees on post dated cheques, just that the client is able to make a complaint about it.

After getting this issue resolved, I would suggest that you are careful about writing post dated cheques, especially who you give them to, and if you do so, ensure that the recipient is aware it is a pdc. Then you don't have problems like this!
"The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is."
Just a guy who dabbles in lots of stuff learning along the way. I do have opinions, and readily share them!
Deal Addict
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Dec 28, 2004
2057 posts
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Burlington
You will also be able to take it up with whoever cashed the cheque when they come for their money.

Hopefully the cheque was for more than your NSF fees.
Deal Expert
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Nov 2, 2003
17118 posts
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GTA
wtf cheques? cuz internet banking is too mainstream??

cheques are so 1980s...
Deal Fanatic
Apr 16, 2007
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Financial District B…
actng wrote: wtf cheques? cuz internet banking is too mainstream??

cheques are so 1980s...

There are hundreds of thousands of Landlords that get cheques every month. Go tell them cheques are out of date :facepalm:
Deal Addict
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Dec 28, 2011
2587 posts
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Calgary
Lively discussion above. So why even write post dated cheques ? And another question; why put dates on? Or anything else like names addresses, signature? . ONLY $ amount and Account number should be sufficient.
Sr. Member
Dec 9, 2007
541 posts
16 upvotes
Vancouver
Use post dated email money transfers that will help prevent this from happening.

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