I like Monica very much, too, and feel bad for her.
My general advice is.....
1)IF you are going to accept a check, make sure it is a check drawn on a national bank if at ALL possible
2) Make a copy of their driver's license, or at least their full name, city, and zip code.
3) Either call their bank or go to a nearby branch of their bank and ask to verify it BEFORE cashing it. Then have THE BANK cash it in front of you and voila. You must be willing to provide either your fingerprint on the check or your signature, if asked.
4) Have the person who is writing your check make it out to "cash" (or your registered business name/dba)or have them leave it blank in the " pay to the order of" portion of the check. They can also write in the memo of the check, " Not to exceed _$_______" for their own peace of mind.
I have accepted checks for payment, predominantly from people/companies I've seen or worked with many times who have usually paid cash in similar amounts first. I have, albeit rarely, taken a check from someone who I've only just started to work with, but I made sure to do all of the above and have been transparent in telling them the steps I intend to take. I have even called their bank in front of them and asked to verify their account as a "merchant check verification".
The one time I have had a problem (yet it did not affect my account at all) was on a $40 check after a guy had already paid a bunch in cash for dances and thought he'd be able to pull money out of the ATM at the club and couldn't. I went to a branch of his bank, gave them the check, they said it would NOT clear. So I called him, told him, and he went to his branch, deposited more money, and I called the bank to let them know, went back to the branch, and was able to cash it out.
Another instance, where plenty of money was there but it was for $1,000..they needed to call him on his HOME phone between THEIR business hours...and he WORKED during their business hours, so he couldn't accept their phone call when he wasn't there, obviously. I let him know, he called the bank from work to have them change the (home) number that was on file with his bank to his work number and added a special note to always accept and cash out checks he wrote out to me, specifically. Never had a problem after that.
All in all, it can be frustrating and infuriating when you have to WAIT for your money when you expect to get it at the point of sale. But if you have a set working relationship with a person/client/ customer..you CAN come out of the situation WITH your money and WITH your own account in the clear.
Had I deposited the last guy's check into my account, it would have gone through and cleared...but probably within 3-5 business days. I was able to cash his check the very next day, in full, and take that cash-in-hand to my bank. Now, I can cash-out any checks written from him to me, no questions asked, just showing id.
(Oh, and his bank was the only one I dealt with that had to call him first, and it was because it was a regional credit union, so their regulations were more iron-clad and stringent. The others were simply a matter of going to a branch of their national bank.)
Hope that was clear, but if anyone needs me to further clarify anything, just let me know!
london
p.s.: But, yes, cash is KING!
p.p.s.: If the amount you are being paid is a 'high amount' of money, according to your own yardstick for what constitutes a high amount, then try to get it in cash first and foremost; if not, try to get at least a decent percentage of the amount in cash and a check for the rest if you HAVE to; or please, please, please take the above advice as a very, very strong recommendation!





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