To expect bank to refund fees?

[StickItUpYaJumpa]

I wrote a cheque 6 years ago. The person has now decided to cash it and it has taken me into an unauthorised overdraft. I got charged for that and get charged for every day I'm in it. I'm going to struggle to pay it off until pay day and then I'll be left short for that month.

The bank have told me, it's up to them whether they cash it. Although they give 6 months as a guide, they can honour the cheque at any time.

They are being extremely unhelpful and are saying the only possible solutions arw to either get a formal overdraft but the type of account I have doesn't allow overdrafts, hence the high fees or to credit my account although

Do you really think they would qualify for an account with an overdraft if they can't get one on their existing account?

The bank shouldn't have accepted a cheque that took you into an unauthorised overdraft, they should have returned it "Refer to Drawer, Please Represent" and informed you.

That's good practice but nothing more, sadly.

OP Was it written over six years ago? Had you put your cheque guarantee number on it? How much money are we talking, you don't need to say exactly, but hundreds, thousands?

Those are the only pertinent points with the bank - your recourse really is with the person who cashed the cheque and gave you no warning. I expect they were either aware the cheque was going to soon be older than six years, or they cashed it on the off chance that it still worked.

Out of interest, what bank is it?

Uk cheque guarantee card scheme ended in 2011 so is not relevant here.

It's unusual for a bank to cash such an old cheque but it is at their discretion. 6 months is the usual time frame.

@dojo a "debt" is created when a cheque is written. Debt refers to an amount of money owed to another party. In this case by writing the cheque they "owe" the money. Whether it is a gift/loan etc. is irrelevant the word debt means a sum of money that the person owes the other party. By signing that cheque they have agreed to that.

Writing the cheque creates a debt that you sign to say you will pay.

Is that really how a court would see it? If I failed to cash a birthday cheque, could I take someone to court for the sum 'owed'? Because, to me, a debt isn't a debt unless it is legally enforceable.

It's just over £100 but by the time fees are paid, it will be closer to £200 I think.

I'm no longer in contact with the recipiant of the cheque and even if I was, I wouldn't want to tell them what impact they have had.

So the general consensus is that it is my own fault and although the bank maybe didn't act very well, they didn't do anything they shouldn't have done.

I'm still going to complain and ask for a regund of fees but now I know not to expect anything.

Thanks.

There's no harm in asking tbh. If you don't ask you don't get

what a horrible thing for that person to do Op

Do you have any others from that time period which were not cashed?

I think the focus of your complaint should be that they're the ones that have cashed the cheque when you have an account that doesn't have an overdraft.

Yes, they have the right to accept any cheque, no matter how old it is, but their systems shouldn't allow a cheque to clear on an account with insufficient funds and no overdraft facility.

Unfortunately, knowing the banks, they'll probably just point you towards a tiny bit of small print in their terms and conditions which allows them to do it. In that case, you'd be relying on them refunding it as a gesture of goodwill, which will no doubt depend on how you plead your case and the empathy of the person reading it.

Can't believe someone that you're no longer in contact with cashed a cheque - what an arsehole!

I would ask the bank to check the date on the cheque has not been altered from 2013 to 2018. That might be the problem. Normally banks reject cheques over 6 months old.

Write a formal letter of complaint to the bank, making it clear that if their final decision is to leave the charges in place you will refer the matter to the financial ombudsman. Point out that they should not have honoured the cheque in any case as there were no funds in the account. It should have bounced. Lay it on thick about the hardship it has caused you and the fact that you can't put the account in credit until payday. They will almost certainly refund the charges, as it costs them money when you go to the ombudsman. (it doesn't cost you) Bet you the charges will be refunded as a gesture of goodwill.

Depending on who the cheque was made out to, you could also point out to them that their thoughtlessness has cost you.

OP, is it more or less than six years old? That's quite important.

Ariela has a good point there - get them to check that the date on the cheque hasn't been altered in any way. Or even make an appointment to go into the bank and check for yourself.

Banks used to have a system whereby every cheque was visually scrutinised by a member of staff, but it's all digital now.

I always thought if there were not enough funds or overdraft the cheque would bounce. You would get charged an admin fee but that was about £25? So I would be saying that to them. Unless you did have funds but then direct debits or other pending card payments took you over your credit?