cheque not out of date for 6 years

thistleboon · 13 November 2008 at 1:30PM

A cheque I had written dated January 2006, was presented and paid last week.
I thought a cheque was valid for 6 months, but was informed by LLoyds TSB it is valid for 6 years.

If I had known I would have put a stop on it years ago.

sutton111 · 13 November 2008 at 2:13PM

i thought it was 6 months as well.

JayZed · 13 November 2008 at 2:20PM

From APACS:

Is it true that cheques are only valid for six months?

It is common banking practice to reject cheques that are over six months old to protect the payer, on the basis that payment may already have been made by some other means or the cheque may have been lost or stolen. However, this is at the discretion of individual banks. It should not be assumed that cheques in excess of six months old would automatically be rejected — the only certain way to cancel a cheque is to request that a stop be placed on it (although cheques backed by a Cheque Guarantee Card cannot be stopped). It is recommended that, if possible, customers in possession of cheques that are over six months old obtain a replacement. A cheque remains legally valid for six years.

moneypooh · 13 November 2008 at 3:04PM

Thanks !

Why is 6 years so special ?? Tax etc all have 6 year limits..

MissPop · 13 November 2008 at 6:44PM

It's such a pain when people cash cheques months (or years!) after they were written - someone did it to me, three months after I wrote it, and I wasn't expecting it, so I was left with an empty bank account for a fortnight!

Mikeyorks · 13 November 2008 at 8:48PM

moneypooh wrote: »

Thanks !

Why is 6 years so special ?? Tax etc all have 6 year limits..

The Limitation Act 1980 .... sets a period beyond which, if no contact, debts cannot be enforced / pursued. It applies to most, but not all debt, and equally provides a statutory period, as above, for the legal life of an o/s cheque.

But if a bank notices the date ... all will decline to accept it after 6 months. The TSB response is only because it wasn't spotted!

davey9998 · 14 November 2008 at 1:02PM

thanks for telling us - they must need the money now!

ShelfStacker_3 · 14 November 2008 at 7:54PM

The cashier should really reject anything 6 months old or older, but they aren't obliged to - they can (and usually do) quite easily leave it up to the mercy of the drawee's bank.

(I found this out the hard way at work... I usually check them all, and was swiftly told I don't need to...)

Scousebird_2 · 14 November 2008 at 10:45PM

6 years i'm afraid dears!!

danechip · 16 November 2008 at 8:52PM

Wow, well i never knew that one !!

I thought for years it was 6 months....

JayZed wrote: »

From APACS:

Is it true that cheques are only valid for six months?

It is common banking practice to reject cheques that are over six months old to protect the payer, on the basis that payment may already have been made by some other means or the cheque may have been lost or stolen. However, this is at the discretion of individual banks. It should not be assumed that cheques in excess of six months old would automatically be rejected — the only certain way to cancel a cheque is to request that a stop be placed on it (although cheques backed by a Cheque Guarantee Card cannot be stopped). It is recommended that, if possible, customers in possession of cheques that are over six months old obtain a replacement. A cheque remains legally valid for six years.

[Deleted User] · 19 November 2008 at 1:12AM

I have a cheque for £5 and a few pence from HMRC dated 2004. Will I be OK trying to pay this into my account or should I contact HMRC about it for a replacement? I too thought the limit was strictly 6 months.

cheque not out of date for 6 years

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