I have a client that pays me by check, this month his $135.00 check he maile dme bounce, losing my the original money, plus tacking on a 15.00 feww for causing my account to be overdrawn with 3 charges with Not Suffiant Funds charge of 29.00 each, so Im out the original 135.00 plus 97 more dollars.

What kind of recourse do I have as a small indiviual person?

What can I do in the future to prevent this, is electronic check payment systems better to collect this? Ive tried to make the guy pay paypal but he wont.

How can fight the bank charges and protect myself later, and if the guy doesnt repay me, do I have recourse?

Thanks

With e-check services, I believe they also charge a service fee for all bounced/NSF checks. Accepting checks are a real hassle. Ask your customer if he/she is willing to pay by money order instead. They are far more secure.

There is nothing you can do about the bank fees. As a business, you should keep more money in the bank. That is the difference between the strong stable companies and the "others". You might rethink posting here saying you only have that much money!!! At that level, no one can seriously think of you as very viable.

As for collecting the money, you should put that client on cash prepaid and also send a 10-day demand letter via certified mail. This is the legal recourse you have - depending on your state- you send the 10 day demand letter which allows you to swear out a warrant (criminal) for the client's arrest if they don't pay in the 10 days. Then you are entitled, again depending on the state, twice the face value of the bounced check up to usually a $500 limit. BUT, if you have waited too long - usually 60 days past the date of the check - the matter will no longer be considered "criminal" but reverts to a civil situation where you will have to file in civil court. It is much easier to immediately send out a 10 day demand letter IMMEDIATELY after receiving notice of a nsf check. (applies to personal & business checks)

Good luck.

Also note that, if it's a client that you want to keep and that they want to stay, communicating with them in as friendly a manner as possible and simply saying "let's get this resolved" is usually the best way.

On the other hand, if it's a client that's jumped ship or has been a regular problem, bringing a collections agency on board often is enough to jump-start a payment. Although I can't post results (as I've only just started using them), there was a great write-up at http://isp-planet.com/business/2003/olddebts.html about OldDebts.com, an online collections company that is both inexpensive and professional. As I said, I've used them for a few things and the process went smoothly, but it hasn't been long enough to see how their results are.

Good luck,

Jason

Sending a check out with Insufficient funds is a criminal offense, not just a civil matter. I would contact your client, allow him the opportunity to pay you for the bad check and the one $15.00 fee. (You're on your own for the rest of that). If he does not pay within the timeframe call the police in his area and see what they want you to do in order to sign a complaint against him.

While using the Police may or may not get your money, back it is powerful leverage when dealing with bad paper. Many times the Judge will let them off with a warning if they have made restitution on the bad check priior to a Court Date.

I'd be willing to bet he pays you....

This happened to my cousin, with one bounced check. He bitched out the manager and threatened to switch banks and they reversed the charges.

Originally posted by jmb1881
I have a client that pays me by check, this month his $135.00 check he maile dme bounce, losing my the original money, plus tacking on a 15.00 feww for causing my account to be overdrawn with 3 charges with Not Suffiant Funds charge of 29.00 each, so Im out the original 135.00 plus 97 more dollars.

What kind of recourse do I have as a small indiviual person?

What can I do in the future to prevent this, is electronic check payment systems better to collect this? Ive tried to make the guy pay paypal but he wont.

How can fight the bank charges and protect myself later, and if the guy doesnt repay me, do I have recourse?

Thanks

Contact the county attorneys office of the city he is in. They are the ones who will handle it for you. THey will give him the opportunity to pay in a time period if they dont they will take him to court.

In order to do anything you must first send a letter from your company (certified mail) requesting the payment in full within 10 days of date sent,then tell him if amount is paid then you will send him his check back.If nothing happens then,you will need to contact his local police station and submit a complaint with the constable and provide all the proof,after that they will issue a warrant for his arrest,although you will probably not get your money back but he will learn his lesson.


But as long as you have proof from the bank and the check they will take action.A few years back when when i used to work at a electronics store we had this person come in who was from out of state and purchase $600.00 worth off stuff and the steps above are what we had to do.(We were curious about not accepting the check but we took a risk and never did it again)

I doubt they will arrest him or a State or City would even press charges over a $135 check. If this was a pattern for this guy then they might do something. You could get a collection agency to get your money but you will probabally spend more than $135 to do that. Cut your losses, learn a lesson, and move on.

Originally posted by daveman
I doubt they will arrest him or a State or City would even press charges over a $135 check. If this was a pattern for this guy then they might do something. You could get a collection agency to get your money but you will probabally spend more than $135 to do that. Cut your losses, learn a lesson, and move on. Absolutely false. You can be prosecuted for a writing a bad check for as little as $5.00 in most States in the US. It's a criminal action not a civil one. That's like saying you can't be prosecuted for robbing a bank if all you get is $135.00.

Right, bad checks in any amount are criminal. Most states follow the 10-day demand letter route - send the letter via certified mail demanding payment in 10 days. After 10 days, if it isn't paid, swear out the warrant and the person who signed the check gets arrested.

If you wait too long though - in Georgia I think it is 60 or 90 days, then the 10-day demand isn't applicable. It reverts to a civil matter. Check with your state.

Also, to the poster who talks about bitching out a bank manager, why would you do that? It isn't the bank manager's fault! The bank didn't tell you to do business with that person or decide to accept his/her checks!

Originally posted by kathystover
There is nothing you can do about the bank fees. As a business, you should keep more money in the bank. It's also a good idea to check with your bank to see whether they offer "overdraft protection." It's just a line of credit that covers you if you overdraw your account. In most cases it doesn't cost anything to have it at the ready; you just pay interest if you actually use it. And that interest will be much less than the overdraft fees.

Originally posted by kathystover
Right, bad checks in any amount are criminal. Most states follow the 10-day demand letter route - send the letter via certified mail demanding payment in 10 days. After 10 days, if it isn't paid, swear out the warrant and the person who signed the check gets arrested. The laws vary a lot by state. Here's one list of some of the differences: http://www.tfc-associates.com/news/bad_check_laws.shtm

But it's not the case that writing a bad check is always a crime.

Originally posted by Watcher_TVI
Absolutely false. You can be prosecuted for a writing a bad check for as little as $5.00 in most States in the US. It's a criminal action not a civil one. That's like saying you can't be prosecuted for robbing a bank if all you get is $135.00. Bank robbery is a felony under any circumstances, and a federal offense. In most states passing a bad check under a certain limit is a misdemeanor. Even when it's a felony, it's not usually the same class of felony. It's not at all the same type of crime under the law.

In New York, where I live and where I'm most familiar with the law, it's a misdemeanor no matter what the amount of the check.

In most states check fraud involves both criminal and civil penalties. There are civil penalties written into the law regarding such things as how much restitution must be paid, and criminal penalties involving fines and possible jail time.

In many states a smaller check would involve at worst a misdemeanor charge, and it many localities there'd be little chance of anyone actually being arrested on a misdemeanor bad check charge because they bounced one check.

I would think It would only be a criminal act if there was intent to defraud.

If you wrote a cheque in good faith on the erroneous assumption that there was enough in the account and there wasn't (since a bank could bounce a $135 cheque with only $130 in the account) then it only becomes criminal if the person subsequently refuses to pay their bill.

It is only criminal if you are actually convicted. The scenerio you describe would be a common defense AFTER you were arrested on misdemeanor charges and went to court.

Misdemeanor or felony both are prosecuted under criminal law.

The point with the bank robbery remark was that the amount of the check has nothing to do with the fact that writing a bad check is a criminal offense, not merely a civil one.

As Kathy pointed out, what you present as a defense may keep you from being convicted of passing bad checks but you are still charged with a criminal complaint and have to go to court.
In many states a smaller check would involve at worst a misdemeanor charge, and it many localities there'd be little chance of anyone actually being arrested on a misdemeanor bad check charge because they bounced one check. I disagree; the State is compelled to follow through on ANY complaint issued within their jurisdiction. It's up to a Court to decide guilt or innocence not the Police Depts. From the source you posted JayC;

"In all states the maker of a check, who tenders a check knowing there is insufficient funds or credit behind the check, may be guilty of a crime and may be subject to civil penalties."

Bad checks are criminal offenses and it is much easier to get restitution, if it's approached in that fashion.