cheque fraud - Do we need to worry?

dach

As I have several postal accounts do I need to worry?


http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8214-2382434,00.html

masonic

You need to worry if you make cheques payable to your bank rather than yourself when you open an account. I've never been asked to do that.

Mikeyorks

Basically - no. It's another example of media hype and exaggerating a relatively small loophole (responsible for 0.6% of cheque fraud last year) that Banks are seeking to close, after ignoring it for many years.

The height of cheque fraud for this reason (interception in the Mail stream - and fraudulent conversion by paying the cheque into a different account) was in the late '80s and early '90s. And directly led to the Cheques Act 1992 - whereby crossed cheques could no longer be paid into an account other than that named in the payee line by, for example, writing 'per pro John Smith' on the back and then paying into a newly opened account for John Smith.

So, it is a bit astonishing that the new requirements (adding an account number onto the payee line for all cheques payable to a financial institution) -mimic exactly such a requirement introduced by the Inland Revenue ... at least 14 years ago. See the 3rd para under 'Cheques'.

Good to see the Banks etc getting there eventually.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/baagmanual/BAAG60020.htm#4