Bounced check- awkward position

ClaRivka

Fri, Aug 14 2009, 8:53 am

I went to a lot of effort to get somebody exactly what they wanted. I ordered specialty items and brought them to show her at her home. she didnt like it, so I reordered. I went back to her house to show her some new things and finally she bought something. This whole process took weeks for her to get happy.
Finally, she gave me a check for my efforts...I believe 25 dollars. Then she insisted on putting an extra dollar in there to make it 26 bc she likes sixes...(some kind of family thing, apparently tons of ppl in the fam were born on the 6th of many months..) O and she post dated it! Well my husband goes to cash the check and of course it bounces. now I have to call her up and tell her that she owes me not only the original 25 but another ten for the fee of the bounced check...
I just got a call that her daughter is engaged (I went to camp with her) and there will b a lchaim on sunday...
When and how should I let her know that she owes me more money and only in cash?

Strudel

Fri, Aug 14 2009, 9:07 am

This is such a tough problem. I'm sure she didn't mean for the check to bounce, but perhaps with all the pre-wedding expenses, she lost track of how much money was in her account and so this happened.
I'd wait a few days until after the vort, call her up, and explain what happened. Maybe offer for her to pay it in 2 lots, rather than all at once.

mommalah

Fri, Aug 14 2009, 9:17 am

ClaRivka wrote:

these ppl are known to not have any money. they bounce checks all the time...my shver says that she comes to my mil to get her sheitels done and the check always bounces...and my mil's washes and sets for $6!!!

knowing this about her you probably should have requested cash to begin with.
I would just call her up right now and ask for cash now!! What does her daughter getting have to do w anything? Presumably she is used to bouncing checks and receiving these types of calls...oh, wait, you are not allowed to accept the l'h you were told abt her. Either way I'd give her a call sooner than later.

amother

Fri, Aug 14 2009, 3:28 pm

why didnt she grab the item out of your hand and shut the door without paying you instead of giving a check she knew she would bounce? Either way its called stealing but here the chances of getting back the additional $10 your bank charged you now is rather slim.

amother

Fri, Aug 14 2009, 4:17 pm

I will tell u that bouncing checks is very emabarrsing. I have bounced so many checks it is not that I dont have the money I always count on the money comming in and the check taking a few days to clear and then BINGO everything starts bouncing. Its not that I wanted it to bounce but it does. Ten its the domino effect..I get chatged 25 dollars for a bounced check the people I wrote it to is chatged and then Im in really big trouble. Now I will share real troubl with u..my bank would cover overdrawn checks up to 500 dollars. If they covered the check they chatged u 25 dollars. Then when u got paid the first thing they did was take their money back. It seemed wonderful.. Every pay period my check was allways 500 dollars less because I always owed. I was always broke, Then I finally sat down with a bank person and we figured out that in both our accounts I spent over ten thousand in bank money now fees. We stopped the money now and Im paying off the 500 dollars in installments. every month. Im sick about the money I gave to the bank. Sick because I cant go into some stores because I owe them money for bouncing checks and it is embarrasing. Even my kids dont wasnt me to write a check in their school because they know it bounces. It is a terrible feeling and causes shalom byais problems

bubby

Sun, Aug 16 2009, 4:35 pm

I had the same problem. It was for $100 that the guy had owed me for a long time. I tracked him down, told him I was on my way to collect the cash + the bounced fee. He paid.

I wouldn't let her pay in 2 payments. It's only $26 (knock of the $ if it makes you feel better!) But she must pay in cash. And never accept a check again from her again. Tell her you value her custom, but you are a small business & from now on you can only accept cash from her. If she doesn't have cash you will be happy to hold the item for a week. And insist on the bank fee. You can tell her that you are legally allowed to charge whatever you like & most places charge a minimum of $25 for bounced checks, but you are nice & don't do that.

Chutzpah! Rolling Eyes

bubby

Sun, Aug 16 2009, 4:41 pm

To bouncing amother...please don't beat yourself up. Look at it as what chas v'sholom you may have had to pay in medical bills. If it makes you feel any better I recently had to give the bank $9,000 because a frum Jew said he could lower our mortgage. We also ended up paying an even higher mortgage than before! But I told DH the same thing. Yes, it was $$ we literally didn't have, but it's over. We had to move on.

Hug

Fox

Sun, Aug 16 2009, 5:57 pm

I second everything that's been said about being firm but non-accusatory.

I've dealt with three separate banks here in WRP over the years, and while they're all as nice as the day is long, they do some things that make it very, very hard for anyone living even slightly on the edge.

For example, several years ago the Federal Reserve made a ruling that banks had to clear in-state checks within one banking day (e.g., if you deposited a check on Monday before 10 a.m., the funds would be available by Tuesday -- assuming the check was good.) However, banks seem to disregard this rule pretty blatantly. Not only do they hold in-state funds for up to 3-5 days, they hold checks to commercial accounts for up to 6 banking days -- more if the check is from out of state.

If you protest, the manager will "override" the system and allow you to take some money, but they never address the fact that they're actually violating Fed policy. A few years ago, all the banks were very good about not bouncing checks on uncollected funds, but there is now only one neighborhood bank that follows that practice.

Anyway, unless you have very deep cash reserves, it can be surprisingly difficult to avoid bouncing checks. And if, like some of us, your DH isn't the world's best bookkeeper . . . well, just keep your apology ready!

So definitely let her know; ask for cash; etc. But as Bubby suggests, don't take too judgmental a line. We all have our financial foibles.