Cashing a Strange Check
 

Yesterday in the mail I recieved a Cashier's Check for $500. It was not only unexpected but from a name I did not recognize. I have attempted to google his name, have contacted a couple of people who I thought might know about it, and in general have come up empty.

So do I go ahead and cash it? Or do I try and find out what it's for before I do it?

I just consulted with Common Sense, and he says "Hell no."

Seems to me this is one of 2 situations:
1) The check is some sort of scam; you should not cash it.
2) The check was sent to you in error; it's is not your money and you should not cash it.

I can rule #1 out as the bank verified that it was a legitimate cashier's check.

I would have to think #2 is possible if not likely though with them having my unpublished address and name it makes for a strange coincidence.

The bank doesn't have contact info connected to the check?

Not that they could give to me.

If it has his name on it, it's probably not in error, though.

...and there's no little fine print anywhere about "by cashing this check, you agree to.....blah...blah...blah"?

Well I'm the only person to have voted to cash the cheque - but I stand by my vote :D

Personally if someone wants to send me money then I'll happily spend it - simple as that, you don't have to know me to send me money all donations gratefully recieved ... plus a cashiers cheque isn't something people generally would make a mistake with not to the extent of both the name AND the address its sent to being wrong, surely? ...

As such if its an anonymous donation then take it as a gift, perhaps one of your family has won the lottery and decided to help you out but doesn't want the hassle of you feeling indebted to them ? ....

The check looks very similar to other Cahsier's Checks I've seen.

My concern would be that the cashier's check really is counterfeit. I know that the bank claimed that it was legitimate, but you don't know that for sure until it actually clears. If you can take the thing someplace and cash it immediately, then I guess it's relatively OK. If you deposit it at your bank, don't dare spend the money for at least a couple of weeks.

If it is cunterfeit though then what could happen? - worst case is it bouncing surely? ... after all you can't arrest every business that accidentally attempts to bank a forged $10 note they recieve ... same situation really.

If he deposits the check into his bank account and it turns out to be counterfeit, the bank will take the money back out when they discover it. Until the check actually clears, that bank could take that money out at any time. Exercise great caution.

He can take it to the bank it was actually drawn from (the address printed on the check) and cash it there without an acccount. Assuming it's local enough, that is the route I'd go.

And a general FYI to anyone, you can always cash a check at the exact bank branch it was drawn from without having an account there. You run no risk of the check bouncing at that point, etc.

That's something I'd forgotten and never thought about. Good suggestion as it is indeed close enough for me to do that.

You live in Nigeria?

:D

Nice



Barkeep,

Send it to me, It's probably a forgery. I'll dispose of it for you.

Yeah that goes without saying really - but that isn't a reason not to pay the cheque into the account, just a note of caution over going crazy and buying that Xbox360 you really wanted just yet ;)

Keep in mind that these bad checks are also used to scam your checking account number. I don't remember the details, but there are ways of using the cancelled check to get your checking account number and then use that to clean you out. So I'd be REAL careful about cashing a check that I don't know the origins of.

Double the reason to try to cash it at the bank it was drawn from. You don't need anything but an ID to walk out of there with cash.

cthomer's suggestion of going to the originating bank, though, pretty much takes any scare out of this whole proposition there might be. The only people that will be seeing his personal info. are the bank employees... nothing of his will get transferred to the check, aside from his signature.

My one summer as bank teller taught me a lot about the ins and outs of banking. I even got beat with an amazingly good fake $100 bill at one point.

this is my thought as well.

EDIT: if it was me, I would probably turn it in to the authorities. you don't really know what this is all about. it would sure suck to end up getting charged with accepting stolen property or mail fraud or something just for 500 measley bucks.

I want to know what happens!

I'm not trying that stunt, though it is a favorite read of mine.

Well, for starters, you can call the bank the check is drawn on to determine if the check is legit.

From what my wife says (she works in a bank), theoretically, the check that was sent out could be pulled by the sender after being cashed so, whatever information that bank put on it (including your signature) could be obtained and they now have your information.

Unless you find some compelling reason to cash it, I wouldn't. There is no cashiers check fairy that goes around depositing checks in mailboxes so, this definitely stinks of something.

The check is legitimate according to a person I spoke with at the bank.

Any way to find out who sent it to you?

I don't know.... something just isn't right.

Best case, you cash it and have $500.

Worst case, you cash it and someone uses whatever information from the check to commit identity theft and you are creating threads with the subject line of 'How do I combat Identity theft' and we all call you a dumbass. :D

My only concern on top of the others is that in a legal sense, cashing a check like this can imply some kind of consideration. Essentially, if this guy comes to you later with some fake documentation claiming, or making some claim, that the two of you agreed to something (whatever that may be), the fact that you cashed a check from him makes his story quite believable no matter how many times you say, "I didn't agree to anything, I just got this check." (Doesn't that sound like a lame response?) If you're serious about going forward with this, I'd send a number of emails to friends and family that you could produce later to at least back up the fact that you don't know where this came from. I would also try to somehow document your diligence to contact this person and/or ascertain their identity and reasoning for sending this check.

I think that cashing it would be a very big mistake, at least until this person contacts you.

good point. Hell, guess it is possible to lift the signature from the cashiers check and create some fake contract. I agree to purchase X item for $500...

Even more of a reason to say - Pass.

It seems odd that they would use a 500 dollar check where a 10-20 dollar check could be used for the same purpose.

It's a cashiers check, this means the check is actually from the bank, not the person. Therefore the person who obtained the cashiers check will never receive the old check with your signature on it.

I understand it is a cashiers check. I believe the sender would still be able to get a copy of it especially if he came back to the back and told them he needed a copy to prove payment.

Ask the bank to send it for collection first. Then you aren't risking having a bounced/returned check charge/fee and you will have peace of mind if/when it comes back good.


edit to correct spelling

The check won't bounce. A cashier's check is already paid for by whoever wrote it and guaranteed by their bank.

if it's a fake it sure will.

if it's real. bank tellers get fooled by them all the time.

I spent 9 years in the banking industry I've seen some good fakes

Snopes take on a similar scam

Just becase a teller says it's real, doesn't mean it is.

Whether or not you can get the money right away doesn't change the fact that you could be cashing a counterfeit check.

What was the return address on the envelope the check came in? You can get a phone number from an address.

Maybe God sent it to you to buy some cocaine and hookers.

But even if someone did counterfeit it, why would they counterfeit it and send it to a stranger? There's got to be some reason he got it that doesn't involve fraud, I think... something that maybe Barkeep is just forgetting.

I thought the SAME thing...I searched to find the story...glad I skimmed the thread first before posting it. That is a LONG, but hilarious story.

This would be my worry too. You know they saying 'If something seems too good to be true, it usually is'?

This is not true if you take it to the bank it was drawn from. Cashier's checks are FROM the bank itself. They would have the records right there in that building to match the check to a carbon copy of that check.

And has been stated a number of times, he's already confirmed the realness of the check with the bank.

Again... if it's taken to the branch it was drawn from, they can verify it right there. They have some form of copies (in my branch it was a carbon copy) of all cashier's checks cut there.