Dealing with banks, investment companies and "financial institutions" for more years than I will number in public:
There really is no such thing as "cashing" a check at a bank anymore. A check is deposited into YOUR bank account. You need to go to a bank where you have an account that matches the payee on the check or, most often if the payee is a little off (my name sometimes isn't 100% correct as payee) go to your local branch where you opened your account. If you want "cash," what happens is the check is deposited BUT THE CASH is deducted from the funds you already have in your account. If you don't have enough "cleared cash" to cover the "cash" you want, you may not be able to get that much "cash."
Reminder: X number of business days before a check "clears," and then X number of business days before it may "bounce" or discovered a fraud. Had a situation where a $XX,XXXX certified bank check turned out to be an "almost perfect forgery," it took almost a month before it was discovered, fortunately, the money was held in escrow and it was discovered "sooner" because the fake check was a check from the same bank but a different out of state branch; i.e., California certified check being deposited in Connecticut. So ladies & gentlemen, behind the scenes even a "certified bank check" takes X number of days before it clears. Good forgeries even longer; that check was such a good fake it went through many hands before being determined it was bogus. A reason I, and companies I work with, keep a daily watch on checking accounts and don't spend deposited money for a minimum of 8 business days, which still may not be "safe" for an out-of-state check - i.e., that check may go through 2-3 fed clearing houses before it hits its issuer's account for withdrawal. |