Ok to Accept Certified Check as Payment?

[toysareforboys]

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Certified checks are a completely safe form of payment.

LOL! ROFL!!!

I'm too lazy to read the rest of the thread but here is the deal:

If the certified cheque is drawn from a local bank you can take it to the exact bank printed on the cheque and SOMETIMES they will authenticate it even if you don't have an account with them.

The counterfit certified cheques will usually be drawn from strange banks. One of my customers sells commercial water heaters. He had a person purchase two water heaters (about $14,000 all in). Customer brought him two certified cheques for $7,000 each, stamped, the works, looked good. Was from an HSBC bank in Hamilton. The seller didn't have any accounts with HSBC. He took the cheque to his bank (CIBC) but they said they couldn't authenticate it because it wasn't drawn on their bank. He took it to the local HSBC bank here in Whitby but they said because he didn't have an account and/or because it wasn't drawn from that exact branch, they couldn't authenticate it. They looked at the cheque and physically they said everything looked good.

He deposited it in his CIBC account and everything was peachy. Two months later TD made him a super awesome deal so he moved all of his accounts over to TD. A month after that the police come to his door and tell him he has to pay CIBC back the $14,000 within 48 hours or they'll charge him with fraud over 5k.

Turns out the cheque was counterfeit. It took CIBC 3 months to confirm it. Seller had to pay back the $14,000, water heaters and/or thieves were never found.

Use caution, go to the bank the cheques are drawn on, if that's not possible tell the buyer to bring cash.

-Jamie M.

 

[OpenGambit]

Someone tried to pull a cert cheque scam on me once via kijiji. It was on obvious scam but I played along to see what would happen. Dude sent me a fake cheque (not a bad forgery) via fedex for about 600% of my selling price. He asked me to deposit it and then pay his shipping agent $X dollars for his services and told me to keep the rest "for my trouble" (woohoo). The goal was to get me to withdraw funds from my account before the phony cheque gets flagged by the bank. When I told him I had no intention of following through he threatened to call the cops lol.

Btw, when it comes to declaring the price paid, cash is harder to trace

Seems like a completely different situation to me

 

[EC2010]

From a banker's perspective: Certified cheques, money orders, bank drafts just like regular dollar bills can be forged/fake.

Certified cheque: Buyer uses own cheque with your name on it with the amount, go to his bank, "certified" means the bank debited his account for the amount. He cannot "certify" the cheque if funds are not available.
Bank Draft: Uses the Bank's monetary instrument instead of buyer's own cheque. Same as above, he has to pay in full with available funds from the start.
Money Order: These are usually down with the likes of Money Mart, and not the big 5 financial institutions. Less security features, but he also has to pay in full with cash.

As a banker selling my bike, will I accept a certified cheque, or bank draft or money order? Hell NO! I've seen too many forgeries over the years. Cash is something that I can verify right on the spot whether I am getting fakes or not. I will not do money transfer also.... there's always lag time (not instantaneous, unless you both bank with the same bank).

As mentioned before, deal only in cash, and if it makes the seller feel more comfortable, do the deal in a police station lobby.

 

[SkyRider]

From a banker's perspective: Certified cheques, money orders, bank drafts just like regular dollar bills can be forged/fake.

those new polymer bills must be hard/impossible to forge. right?

 

[rome]

This is incorrect. A certified cheque only indicates one thing; that the person had the money in his account, at the time the cheque was certified. The funds are not frozen until the cheque is cashed, so there is no guarantee that the funds are present after the cheque is created.

There have also been a goodly number of fake certified cheques, that have been used in vehicle purchases.

i stand corrected, i thought they took my money as soon as i have the cheque certified.

 

[bgfa]

This is incorrect. A certified cheque only indicates one thing; that the person had the money in his account, at the time the cheque was certified. The funds are not frozen until the cheque is cashed, so there is no guarantee that the funds are present after the cheque is created.

There have also been a goodly number of fake certified cheques, that have been used in vehicle purchases.

Huh? I admit it has been a while since I worked in the bank but certified means that the money was removed from the account it was drawn on and placed in a separate account accessible only by the bank it was drawn on to be honoured in the future. The bank is obliged to honour payment. That being said the safest form of payments in order IMO are:

cash- yes there are counterfeits but usually poor fakes and easily recognized by anyone paying attention. Feel the bill
bank draft-Not as easy to fake as a certified cheque as the amount is embossed by the branch but can easily be verified. Call the issuing branch.
money order- used to only be a maximum of $1000. Again embossed. Used to be drafted by a bank too. Not sure anymore
certified cheque- can be verified by going to the branch but a monkey can fake one with a rubber stamp and punch out the transit #. I wouldn't sign over anything until it was verified. We would always hold the amount in the depositors account when presented one (unless the balance far exceeded the cheque) and only release it if we called the branch and verified. Why wouldn't a seller?

Personally if I am buying something for say $4000 then I would take a draft for $3000 in the name of the seller and $1000 in $50 bills. Whatever we agree on I pay him the draft and cash. If he wants to wait for the draft to clear (never had that happen) then I would get a receipt saying the item was sold for $x and check his ownership and ID.

When I am selling something I can't think of a time where the buyer hasn't just given me cash but it usually has been under $6000. If someone insisted on giving me a draft or certified cheque, I would phone or go to the branch and if it was closed, I wouldn't sign over the item until the cheque was verified.

 

[Rob MacLennan]

Huh? I admit it has been a while since I worked in the bank but certified means that the money was removed from the account it was drawn on and placed in a separate account accessible only by the bank it was drawn on to be honoured in the future. The bank is obliged to honour payment.

You're thinking of bank drafts, money orders, cashier's cheques, etc.. Certified cheques merely guarantee that the money is in the account, at the time of certification.

cash- yes there are counterfeits but usually poor fakes and easily recognized by anyone paying attention. Feel the bill
bank draft-Not as easy to fake as a certified cheque as the amount is embossed by the branch but can easily be verified. Call the issuing branch.
money order- used to only be a maximum of $1000. Again embossed. Used to be drafted by a bank too. Not sure anymore
certified cheque- can be verified by going to the branch but a monkey can fake one with a rubber stamp and punch out the transit #. I wouldn't sign over anything until it was verified. We would always hold the amount in the depositors account when presented one (unless the balance far exceeded the cheque) and only release it if we called the branch and verified. Why wouldn't a seller?

You don't think that people have the same machines used for certification stamps and such, outside of banks?

 

[bgfa]

You're thinking of bank drafts, money orders, cashier's cheques, etc.. Certified cheques merely guarantee that the money is in the account, at the time of certification.



You don't think that people have the same machines used for certification stamps and such, outside of banks?

True the money is there in the account at the time of certification. Certifying the cheque means the funds are then to an internal account of the bank that can no longer be accessed by the account holder. Don't take my word for it Google it. Of what value would a certified cheque be if it were as you suggest merely an indication that the issuer had a legitimate account and once had the funds to cover the amount? Why are they considered safer than any regular cheque then? After all, writing a cheque knowingly without the funds to cover it is fraud.

Of course people can forge anything. Some things are easier than others. A certified cheque only needs a rubber teller stamp and a round authorization stamp to be replicated. Then punch out the transit number with a hole punch and sign it twice. Done. A draft is definitely harder to forge. Yes some people may have embossing machines and can produce the draft like format but any monkey can use a pre-existing cheque. It's a matter of likelihood and risk.

 

[redlinerush]

at least you can call the bank to stop the withdrawl, smarty pants, provided you're beat to a bloody pulp

Sooo whats stopping people from jacking the 10g certified cheque?

 

[RedDogDarren]

I took 10 chickens, 2 goats, and 1 yak as payment for a Harley Fat Boy once. Boy, did I rip off that guy!

 

[handlegrip]

If in doubt don.t take it. The acquisition of a bike is in most cases is not that time sensitive, the bike won't spoil. Take Red's advice and together
go to your bank to have the matter secured there. Don't forget, get other ID. eg: drivers lenience, if a motor vehicle is there get the plate
number, as much as possible. There are people that will try to screw you! Those people have not succeeded. The ones that do are usually good at there job and have done it.

 

[Red695]

Well, looks like you're **** out of luck. Besides livestock, there is no safe form of payment

 

[cbcanada]

Well, looks like you're **** out of luck. Besides livestock, there is no safe form of payment

Well You can always ask to hold some one in his family as ransom till the check clears......

 

[Red695]

How do you know it is a real family member and not a counterfeit??? Need some DNA tests done first.

Also there is the issue of a meteor potentially falling from the sky and destroying your bank where you put the money!!! Be sure to check all NASA reports prior to doing any transaction

 

[Rob MacLennan]

How do you know it is a real family member and not a counterfeit??? Need some DNA tests done first.

Ever heard of the Grandson Scam?

Also there is the issue of a meteor potentially falling from the sky and destroying your bank where you put the money!!! Be sure to check all NASA reports prior to doing any transaction

NASA has fallen down on the job, so the Russians are taking care of that.

Just because something doesn't happen FREQUENTLY, that doesn't imply you shouldn't be at least somewhat wary of it.

 

[Red695]

Ever heard of the Grandson Scam?



NASA has fallen down on the job, so the Russians are taking care of that.

Just because something doesn't happen FREQUENTLY, that doesn't imply you shouldn't be at least somewhat wary of it.

Certainly. But it does seem some what ironic how cautious all of these bad *** bikers on here are. Also makes for some good sarcasm and I am sporting a hang over so look out

 

[nakkers]

Let's move this to trash talk and let the games begin. lol


I'm getting some popcorn.....

 

[C-Note]

Certified checks aren't what they used to be. I'd accept an email money transfer from a recognized bank before a certified check. You can do it over your smart phone. Also if he can get a Check, he can get the cash. So just get cash

 

[FullThrottleR6]

Certified Cheques and Bank Drafts can be forged. I have seen quite a few when I worked in the Financial Industry. One way to verify if authentic would be to contact the branch of issue and speak directly to the person who issued the item (usually will need a 2 signatures for 2k) Ask for a photocopy of the cheques in advance and try and contact the branch ahaead of time. If convenient, visit the branch in person with the copies. From someone that you do not know and if you have any doubts....Cash is best!

 

[vkhamphi]

You're thinking of bank drafts, money orders, cashier's cheques, etc.. Certified cheques merely guarantee that the money is in the account, at the time of certification.



You don't think that people have the same machines used for certification stamps and such, outside of banks?

I'm pretty sure when you certify a cheque that amount is withdrawn from your account and held by the bank. I can't certify a cheque for $5,000 then take that $5,000 out the next day. I certified a cheque last month and the amount was immediately deducted from my balance.

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