Will you take a bad check?

[Luna Baby]

Our office doesn't allow us to take a check on a new patient (nor any check numbered less than 200-another rant of mine for a later time) so when scheduling a new patient, I always include in my speil about arriving a few minutes early that should also be prepared to pay with either cash or debit/credit card. Most people get it. There are, however, a few that don't. They'll give me a debit card and it gets declined. They wonder why. "Ms/Sir, I don't have that answer. You'll have to take it up with your bank." Their response is, "Well, I don't have cash. You'll have to take a check." [Like they can give me an ultimatum!] "Sorry, no can do. The computer declined your card. It's cash only or another card. Your choice." We are a small town of about 1700 people and 15 banks! "We'll hold your chart and make time to see you when you return from the bank!" Most people will suddenly find that $20 cash or make a trip to the bank. I'm not about to get in trouble over taking a check on an account that has already been previously denied the charge.

[bloodrose]

Do...do these people understand how checking accounts even work?!

Heh, when I was a teenager, I had a really good job and had a checking account long before my peers. We're out and about and I say I can buy x because I don't have the funds to which on of the people with me replied, "Can't you just use your magic checks?" I then replied, "The magic checking account has to have money in it" and proceeded to explain how checking accounts work. This girl also didn't know what the three branches of government were but wanted out of high school early because she knew everything.

[taxguykarl]

Aren't there a lot of counterfiet money orders and cashier checks being used in scams these days?

That's not new. Frank Abangale, the forger in Catch Me if You Can forged cashier's checks and money orders as well. It's touched on in the move and the book has almost a whole chapter on that.

[Dips]

Our company was taken by a fake money order once.

It was back when we had a Mac version and we were listed in the Apple catalog. The thief apparently bought one of everything in the catalog, including our software.

We were out the shipping charge, but what they were going to do with a program that does only one thing that over 99% of people don't want or need is a mystery. Nobody has ever contacted us about that license. I guess we paid UPS to ship them a free set of coasters (it was on several 3 1/2 in. floppies) and a nice 3-ring binder with our company logo on it.

[bankworking]

so was it a check or money order? cos i thought money order's were treated almost like cash (hence most companies will take money orders, but not personal checks)

It was a money order, which does not mean zero risk (counterfeit being what it is), but it is lower risk.

Still, one of the main reasons banks cash checks easier (without the fees) than, say, your local Cashland, is because the bank cashes the check "off" of your account. that way, if the check bounces, the bank has an account that it can pull the funds back out of. Even if the account doesn't have those funds, it's still lower risk than check-cashing places because a person is more likely to cover a small negative at a bank in order to be able to use their bank's services.

But if your account is ALREADY negative, then no, we won't simply cash a check for you. Since it was a money order and of a small amount, my coworker was willing to give cash back AFTER covering the negative balance (as opposed to putting the check on hold so that no money would be available right away).

The SC objected to us requiring that he pay the money he owed the bank before we would do a service like check cashing for him.