Bounced Cheque Re-Presented (Please Help)

samharry2

Can someone please advise.
I have a natwest account and wrote a cheque which bounced (totally my fault, a dd was taken and I went £50 into red) and got charged £35 for it.
The next day I had money which cleared into my account (minus the charge) which covered the cheque so I was about to send a new cheque to cover the old cheque that bounced.

BUT - I just checked my balance and am £9 overdrawn :mad: as they have re-presented the original cheque without informing me!
This is a week later and no letter or anything, so I rang Natwest and they say this is perfectly alright for them to do!
Apparently it depends on who I have written the cheque to, as last year I had one bounce but they never re-presented it again, so I thought this would be the case here.

Now I've got another £35 and am at my wits end as I see this spiralling as I now have other dd due!
Basically my question is, can they do this without informing me and randomly?

Thanks in advance,

aaroncaz

This happened to many years ago, someone paid the bounced check back in, so, it looks like its still allowed!!

Willman_Rodders

Hi samharry2,

A banker when faced with a cheque or direct debit that takes an account overdrawn has two initial options; pay the item or not pay it. They assess the risk of paying it and it they think they (the Bank) are at risk in so doing will return the cheque unpaid.

The next decision is what answer do they put on the cheque. They could have chosen 'Refer to drawer', which indicates that in the Banks opinion you will not be able to pay the cheque in the immediate future. This answer is deemed a bad answer - and usually results in the supplier chasing you for cash, possible adding his fees to the costs.

A less damaging answer is 'Refer to Drawer, please represent' which says to the payee of the cheque this person does not have the money now, but we believe they will have shortly, therefore please represent the cheque for payment.

You will recognise that the second choice is the choice your bankers took. And yes, they can do it. In my day we used to send out letters to our customers advising them of what was happening; these days that does not happen - another indication of falling standards?

My recommendation:
1. Visit your bank, explain your circumstances, and how in the past the events that happened on this occassion did not happen in the past. Ask for a refund; and
2. Monitor your finances more carefully in the future.

aaroncaz

I agree with William, go see your manager, say you didnt know, and how the extra £35 in charges, will cause you hardship, and hopefully, they will refund you!! This has happened to me, when i have asked!

tosca5

This happened to me also but when i explained to the manager he refunded my charge. I had to pay a charge of £7.50 to the person who the cheque bounced on:eek:

samharry2

Thanks for your replies and advice. I will try to speak to a Natwest Manager and see what they can do.

louise_edwards81

Hi,

Can anyone help - my cheque bounced for my travel card. The train company referred the cheque to a collection agency and they are trying to charge me £48.50, although the cheque was represented and it cleared. I have asked them to outline their costs, but they have said they don't have to, and unless I pay the charge then I will have problems having cheques accepted. Does anyone know if £48.50 is a true reflection of their admin costs, and whether or not they have to tell me the true costs? Thanks

kevster1009

Nat West bounced 2 Cheques for me when I paid the money in on the same day - 15May. Too late tho. They charged me £38 each - total of £76.

I read this thread and just rang them, and they refunded one £38 back to me.

Thanks for that.

Kevster