Anyone ever have a check denied?

[MoniqueU]

But the thing is that it is the RETAILER, not your bank, that refuses your check. Telecheck fills a need for the RETAILER... it is very risky for them to accept checks because if the check bounces, they don't get their money, they have to track down the person who didn't pay them, and they normally get hit with a hefty fee from their bank for daring to have deposited a check that is no good.

Retailers would really prefer to have nothing to do with checks, because it is so much riskier than other forms of payment. They accept it only as a courtesy. So when Telecheck says "this check is risky because of X, Y, Z factors," they decline it based on risk, not because they know you don't have enough in your account. It's just business, not personal!

I can understand all that, I will never write a check again while shopping.

Do you have any clue as to why my atm transaction was denied as both a visa purchase and a pin code transaction at Shell but I went to my own banks atm and got the cash right out of their Atm?? That just happened to me about a week ago. Seriously nothing is easy for me right now LOL.

 

[Northstar]

I can understand all that, I will never write a check again while shopping.

Do you have any clue as to why my atm transaction was denied as both a visa purchase and a pin code transaction at Shell but I went to my own banks atm and got the cash right out of their Atm?? That just happened to me about a week ago. Seriously nothing is easy for me right now LOL.

I have no idea why this happened, but keep a close eye on your account... one reason I can think of is that maybe someone was "card skimming" at Shell? No, I'm just really paranoid about things like that.

 

[kwelch10377]

I work at the corporate office of a retailer and we get complaints alot about checks being declined. Recently the company we use that approves our checks changed their "criteria" for approving checks without notifying us and we got flooded with calls from customers about it. The check company was denying business customers who spent tens of thousands of dollars with us each year and always wrote checks that had been previously approved.

It stinks for the retailer because to the customer they are the ones denying the check, but in reality we have no control over it since we have no say in the criteria the check company puts in place.

 

[tasha99]

I can understand all that, I will never write a check again while shopping.

Do you have any clue as to why my atm transaction was denied as both a visa purchase and a pin code transaction at Shell but I went to my own banks atm and got the cash right out of their Atm?? That just happened to me about a week ago. Seriously nothing is easy for me right now LOL.

This happened to me a few years ago. I got my financial aid for school (several thousand dollars) and decided to take my kids out to McGrath's Fishhouse to celebrate the start of a new term. Then, my debit card didn't work. It was mortifying, but the manager took my check. He said it happens all the time because the system they use updates on a nightly basis. I was able to get money from an ATM the same day, but to retailers, I was still broke.

 

[Disneyglobegirl]

But the thing is that it is the RETAILER, not your bank, that refuses your check. Telecheck fills a need for the RETAILER... it is very risky for them to accept checks because if the check bounces, they don't get their money, they have to track down the person who didn't pay them, and they normally get hit with a hefty fee from their bank for daring to have deposited a check that is no good.

Retailers would really prefer to have nothing to do with checks, because it is so much riskier than other forms of payment. They accept it only as a courtesy. So when Telecheck says "this check is risky because of X, Y, Z factors," they decline it based on risk, not because they know you don't have enough in your account. It's just business, not personal!

I do understand this as I use to work in retail and in banking. The thing that upset me is that I had written checks to Sears prior to this incident to pay my credit card and never had a problem with them accepting my checks but then when I tried to write a check for the glasses I was ordering telecheck denied it saying I didn't have a history through them then they offered to sell me their VIP service so that it wouldn't happen again - I told them "No Thanks" and I also told Sears I would take my business else where and cancelled the glasses order. My checks were good enough to take to pay my Sears credit card bill but not when trying to make a purchase. As a retailer they have a right to use what ever check company they want to use and as a customer I have a right to take my business else when they decline my check because of X, Y or Z.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

My guess is that with more and more people using credit cards and debit cards, a higher percentage of checks written at merchants bounce than in the past. If that is the case, I'm betting that merchants are more cautious about who they take checks from. In any system, you will have false positives and bad checks that get through. You have to trade one against the other. It sounds like at least some companies are making the trade-off pretty strongly on the side of false positives.

The easy solution would be to just use a debit card. Personally, I hate it when someone in front of my whips out an old fashioned check book. It seems to take much longer. I'd be perfectly happy if merchants would quit taking checks entirely.

 

[Feralpeg]

I did once at Borders. It was a check for a $5.95 book. The stupid part is that I had $170k in my checking account at the time because I had just sold my house. Crazy!

 

[runwad]

Yep it happened to me black friday...I left the house w/o my wallet so I had to write a check at Target. It was denied because it's not my usual habit to write checks at stores (ya right I use my credit card to earn points)..wow it was embarrassing. I had to take my purchases and wait for my husband to come up with my wallet. I told myself I would start writing one check a month at the grocery store, but I've not done it yet. I pay all my bills online and only write checks for school lunches and such. I have to start using a few checks a month to prevent this from happening.

 

[crazyme5kids]

That happened to me once at Target. I was told my check was denied to protect me from fraud. I understand that, but at some point, the store should be able to verify a customer's ID so that the customer can make their purchase.

 

[MoniqueU]

Oh this also reminds me of my mom paying my limited 2 bill for me in the store. i had the card and don't drive and had had the card for a couple of years and she would just drop my payment off for me. Then same store out of the blue wants me to personally come down there and show my id to take my payment. it was just out of the blue. My mom who is a bit more outgoing or something then me got pissy with them. So she gets me and takes me to another limited 2 and t i hand them my bill and they just take it and run it through. I told her about the other store asking for id, she said that was weird. Now if i mail them a check they just cash it with no id but now want it in a store for a payment to a CC. And I don't think you can pay one credit card with another can you? So paying the bill with my Visa debit card wouldn't of worked.

 

[Goofyzgurl]

It happened to me a couple of years ago at Hibbetts Sports. I was only buying a pair of shows for under $100. It was so embarrassing. The cashier was a young guy and he was really nice about it, he said there was nothing negative about my check being declined. They just couldn't take it and gave me the number for telecheck. I called telecheck when I got home and they told me that since I didn't write a lot of checks, it was declined. Then they tried to sell me a service that would make sure my checks was accepted...sounds a little like extortion...I probably write 3 checks a month still.

 

[daughtersrus]

I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one that had this problem. It was quite embarrassing!

 

[maxiesmom]

I still go to Sears Optical for my eye exams since they are the closest place to take my insurance however I always ask for a copy of my prescription to take with me elsewhere and I tell Sears why each and everytime that they lost all of my future shopping business because of Telecheck denying my check for that past transaction.

And how does venting to a clerk at Sears help solve the problem? Maybe it makes you feel better, but it probably makes the clerk feel bad, and it doesn't solve anything.

If you want to complain to someone who can actually maybe solve the problem, you need to write a letter to their corporate office. Complaining to someone at a big chain store who has no say at all in how checks are accepted or looked at, solves nothing. It just makes you look like a crab, to be honest. Complain to those who can help! Don't just take out your anger on some poor person trying to do their job.

 

[Disneyglobegirl]

And how does venting to a clerk at Sears help solve the problem? Maybe it makes you feel better, but it probably makes the clerk feel bad, and it doesn't solve anything.

If you want to complain to someone who can actually maybe solve the problem, you need to write a letter to their corporate office. Complaining to someone at a big chain store who has no say at all in how checks are accepted or looked at, solves nothing. It just makes you look like a crab, to be honest. Complain to those who can help! Don't just take out your anger on some poor person trying to do their job.

Did I say I took it out on the sales person? I'm sorry if you got that impression from my post, having worked in retail I have been on the recieving end of some not so happy customers and I know how it feels so I always make sure to remain calm with a sales associate when I have a complaint.

Yes, I was angry about what happened and I did write a letter to the corporate office. I did NOT take my anger out on the sales clerk as I know what it is like to work in retail however I also know that when a customer makes a complaint to a sales clerk in turn that person can give their management feedback on the experience. As a former retail worker I know how to complain to a sales clerk without placing blame on them. I ALWAYS say in a nice calm manner "I know this is not your fault and I am not angry at you but I am not happy with the way this retailer is handling this situation" Bad feedback can be given this way as to not make that sales person feel like it is their fault but so they can in turn report it to their higher ups so that the retailer can try to fix the problem so it does not continue. I would think a retailer would want to know why a customer is taking their business elsewhere. Also I always make sure to give good feedback whenever I can too. Retailers want to know the good and bad and as long as the complaints are given respectfully I see nothing wrong with complaining to a clerk.

 

[Mermaid02]

Sometimes I write 5 checks a DAY! I have never had one denied though. I have noticed Equifax on some of the registers- must be a service like Telecheck, but maybe more reasonable.

 

[manning]

I tried to pay for a meal with my Diners Club and it came back denied. I called the 800 number on the card and that is when the restaurant found out they were the one's being denied by Diners.

 

[2DisPrincesses]

Yes- SO embarassing!! I never write checks, but my debit card had just expired so I wrote a check for some stupid video game my husband wanted. The kids that working there seemed to find it amusing. DH found it mildly amusing too- there was more than enough money in our checking account.

 

[Abbie]

Oh this also reminds me of my mom paying my limited 2 bill for me in the store. i had the card and don't drive and had had the card for a couple of years and she would just drop my payment off for me. Then same store out of the blue wants me to personally come down there and show my id to take my payment. it was just out of the blue. My mom who is a bit more outgoing or something then me got pissy with them. So she gets me and takes me to another limited 2 and t i hand them my bill and they just take it and run it through. I told her about the other store asking for id, she said that was weird. Now if i mail them a check they just cash it with no id but now want it in a store for a payment to a CC. And I don't think you can pay one credit card with another can you? So paying the bill with my Visa debit card wouldn't of worked.

That's really weird. But in the future, you can absolutely pay the limited2 bill online with your Visa debit if you want and skip the trip with the check altogether!

 

[maxiesmom]

I work retail now, and I can tell you that complaining to sales associates repeatedly about the same thing is not doing any good. As I stated, when you work for a major retail company, at store level we have absolutely no control over how our registers function. We cannot reset programs. The only people who can listen and maybe change things are at the corporate offices. The only thing complaing to a clerk time and time again is doing is making yourself feel better. It is not fixing anything, and if you are making the same complaint, they are not even bothering to pass it on anymore.

Want a change in how checks are handled? Contact corporate. They are the only ones with the power to change things. Stop complaing to people who cannot help you. It may be making you feel empowered, but it comes off as petty.

 

[DVC-Don]

My wife wrote to JC Penney about her run in but, it's been a couple of months now and no response.