Phasing out of cheques

Mr_Mean_2

I am a little concerned about the phasing out of cheques by both the banks and companies.

With a cheque if you specify a specific term on the back of the cheque that can be enforced in a court of law. A payment by any type of card does not allow for this and an important safeguard for people is lost. Some examples of the use of a cheque: -

1. Purchase of Ford Focus registration T123ABC is made on the understanding it has not been a total loss or uneconomic repair and that the mileage is true and correct.

2. Deposit payment for building work at xxxxx xxxxx is made on the understanding work will start on 27th June 2008 and to be completed on or before the 14th August 2008. In accordance to your estimate.

Both of these and many more would be fully enforceable in a court of law once the cheque had cleared.
:huh:

olly300

I don't actually understand your point as in both the examples you have given you actually have a contract with the person/company you are buying goods and services from, and so if you pay them by any other method you can still take them to court.

If you pay them by cash then get a receipt however with most companies you can pay them via BACs straight into their bank account which will show up on your bank statement.

Also I still have cheque books for my current accounts. So it's not the banks phasing them out it's actually retailers who don't want them as for them they are too much hassle to deal with.

Mikeyorks

Mr_Mean wrote: »

Both of these and many more would be fully enforceable in a court of law once the cheque had cleared.

I think that what you believe in theory ..... would fall to bits in practice. It's like writing 'full and final settlement' on the back ..... which is basically just a waste of ink. Hiding a pseudo contract on the back of a cheque isn't going to work for anything.

skyrider007

Cheques would still be around for at least 10 years. I have read somewhere that said the APACS predicted the last cheque will be written in 2020.

PaulW922

My guess is that banks will stop offering cheques as standard on accounts and it will become a chargeable extra or be provided as part of a packaged account. If the bank charges case goes against them I reckon this will be accelerated, with free to use accounts being ATM/debit card only. As I said, that's just my guess...

ShelfStacker_3

I personally find cheques useful as a way of paying individuals or taking advantage of float time, and would be a bit annoyed if they were withdrawn.

In any event, there are still numerous people using them for whatever reason, so they won't be gone yet.

Mr_Mean_2

Sorry about the delay in answering I had to go away for a few days.

I don’t think cheques will cease immediately but businesses are already not accepting cheques and banks would prefer not to deal with them. As for the comment pseudo contract on the back of a cheque this totally misses both the point and indeed the fact. All you are doing is confirming the terms of purchase or transaction by you which in it self is a contract. However once the supplier has accepted payment the cheque effectively confirms the terms of purchase. The cheque can be reclaimed from the bank and entered in evidence this has already been accepted many times in the past by courts thus is case law.

It is something that I believe is an important safeguard for us and should be used more often its eventual lose will be another safeguard lost.

PBA

Oops, meant to hit reply not thanks!!

Wouldn't the contract have to be signed by both parties to make it valid? Otherwise there's nothing stopping me from paying a cheque for a tenner into my local Porsche dealer's account, then taking them to court because they hadn't delivered my new 911 as promised.

Biggles

I'll have to start checking the back of all my cheques in case, by paying it in, I'm agreeing to some contract I know nothing about! Who turns them over every time to look?

As pointed out by PBA, this is complete nonsense, if you want a contract both parties have to agree, and paying in a cheque cannot commit you to anything.

Mr_Mean_2

I have seldom had the misfortune to come across such blatant immaturity as both Biggles and PBA. Whilst you may not agree with the facts at least don’t make yourself look foolish with something you so clearly have no knowledge of or the maturity to understand. If the facts offend I apologise but at days end an old saying probably applies to both a still tongue makes a wise head. I have said my bit and have no plans to continue this topic

PROLIANT

The phasing out of cheques is a little hasty, although EPOS and other electronic systems are pretty good and stable these days there is still the possibility of them failing. and that is where a cheque comes into play, if I want to pay my friend who lives 200 miles away how can I do this without sending cash or BACS payment, what is the simplest method of payment?...a cheque, ok yes there is pay pal but we are going back to electronic systems here and it requires both parties to have a pay pal account, write a cheque, put it in an envelope, write name address etc, stamp of we go, job done, so having cheques phased out completely is not very practical, ok don’t issue cheque books like confetti from the banks but make it an option to request a small book of say 10 cheques and levy a small fee of say a few quid to cover cost's etc, that would be better for the environment and make people more efficient on how they manage their bank accounts as well. Just a thought.