Lloyds TSB & Pre-Signed Cheques

dwight-van-man

Just paid my wifes salary cheque into Lloyds TSB to be told that they are now sending back cheques where the text handwriting and the signature handwriting differ! In my OH's case, her wages are paid by a business cheque which is signed by two company directors which immediately means the handwriting will differ, and the accounts manager actually fills the cheque in. One of the signatures is in blue ink, the rest black, but apparently even if they were all in black ink, this could be enough to cause the cheque processing people to send the cheque back! I know banks are pretty anal at the best of times, but this seems way over the top....

bargains83

Pretty sure this can't be true. How could they possibly know if the cheque is written by two people (one writer, one signer) but with the same pen?. I personally fill cheques in with capital letters, therefore there would be no way anyone would know if it was someone different writing the cheque to the signee.

Yes they'd probably notice if it was in different colours like you say but what about pre-printed cheques printed by a computer and then signed?. Would this silly rule apply to these too?

Bossyboots

I hope this is not true. My company bank with Lloyds. Our salary cheques are written in the accounts department and then signed by any one of three signatories to the account none of which is the person who writes the cheques.

I have to ring our business account manager tomorrow so I will ask her about this.

jonesMUFCforever

Load of rubbish!!
Cashier would have facility to check signature if it was drawn on LTSB.
Only when bank does not/cannot find mandate would a cheque be returned.
This happens frequently with club/society type of accounts where the old written mandate never quite made it to the scanning of signatures process.

dwight-van-man

Thanks for the replies - as an update, I just tried to pay this weeks cheque in - same branch, same cashier and she immediately refused to accept it, refered to her manager who told me that they would not accept a cheque where the handwriting and the signature were in different handwriting. I've just been to a second branch who did accept the cheque but gave me the same warning, all in the name of fraud prevention. This is the same bank who, until recently offered to advance me cash from the cheque because it was 'open' every time I paid one in, despite the cheque being payable to 'Nicola' when I am quite obviously a bloke!

M_Thomson

dwight-van-man wrote:

This is the same bank who, until recently offered to advance me cash from the cheque because it was 'open' every time I paid one in, despite the cheque being payable to 'Nicola' when I am quite obviously a bloke!

Could you explain what you mean by the cheque being 'Open'?

oldwiring

M_Thomson wrote:

Could you explain what you mean by the cheque being 'Open'?

I think he meant this- Definition of open cheqye

A cheque which has not been crossed or marked 'not negotiable', which can be cashed at the bank on which it is drawn and does not have to be paid into an account.

regularsaver1

I have seen printed cheques from councils ect - different writing, would this count too? or just hand-written ones?
i did a bit of work for a college once - the accounts department wrote the cheque but then was signed by the manager who had the authority - i suppose this would not be accepted, but surely this is how cheques are written in a lot of businesses

Mikeyorks

dwight-van-man wrote:

I've just been to a second branch who did accept the cheque but gave me the same warning, all in the name of fraud prevention.

All the fraudulent cheques I've ever seen, have been written by the same hand. Or, even where it's been intercepted in the mailstream and the payee changed - it's been done so expertly that it needs a handwriting expert to pick it up. So a cashier isn't going to stand much of a chance. And as 'cheque fraud' is at a very low level - in favour of the more lucrative 'plastic' fraud - it all sounds more than a bit ludicrous?

Suspect a couple of local branches have made this up or mis-interpreted something from on high. As it's totally unworkable, and APACS / Ombudsman will blow them out of the water if anyone complains formally. Most corporate cheques are still written in 'Accounts' with the signature coming from the FD or whoever. A lot do this functional separation to inhibit fraud - so won't take kindly to Lloyds re-inventing the wheel?

Ask for something in writing if it happens again? (and signed by the same person who wrote it!):rolleyes:

dwight-van-man

Mikeyorks wrote:

Ask for something in writing if it happens again? (and signed by the same person who wrote it!):rolleyes:

Lol, I guess they would probably want to charge for this.... TBH, this is the latest in a long line of Lloyds being genuinely unhelpful, from their total inability to set the OH up on phone or internet banking, their cancellation of our nursery fees standing order because the amount 'looked unusual' (after the same aount going out for over a year) to them asking for more info and documents for a £800 overdraft after 20 years of being in credit than we had to provide to get our mortgage.... A swift changing of banks is on the cards!