Dealing with fraud

[mathnerd]

I worked in deposit operations at MajorBank for some time. While in that department (it wasn't the first department I worked for there), my specialty area was checks and exceptions. While we did not directly work with the fraud cases, we did have to be able to spot them in order to send them over to fraud. Anyway, the how's of this are pretty easy to imagine. There are chemicals you can use to bleach a check and then rewrite it for however much you want. The scanners at the ATM won't catch this. Not all ATM's are audited every day. It's very possible that this check was never seen by a human until the OP opened a fraud case. Even if it was deposited with a teller, a good thief can modify a check so that it's not obvious (again, the bleaching).

I'm going to add my voice to those recommending to find some other way to pay this bill. There are laws that cover electronic transactions that don't cover other types of transactions, including checks. RegE makes it very difficult for banks to wiggle out of paying back fraudulent transactions that were done with a debit/credit card or through electronic debit. Not so much with checks. You have very little protection when it comes to checks.

[Dreamstalker]

BOA sucks balls.

Yes, they do. When I was in college I had an account with them. A psycho neighbor stole my statement out of the mail when I was home for the summer one year and went on a spending spree; it was timed so I didn't realize what had happened until I got back to school. One of the merchants (major clothing retailer) was less than helpful and even tried to convince me that I had let my mom use my card ...that merchant's security was sadly lacking as the orders were placed over the phone and they did nothing to verify past asking for info that was on the statement that the thief had (now had they asked for the CVV that could have stopped it as she did not have the actual card). She forged my signature to accept deliveries--not only was it a fairly poor forgery, but I was 1500 miles away at the time the deliveries were 'signed for'.

Very long story short, BoA finally tried to claim that I was defrauding them (even with a police report, which they did not want to see). We finally had to go to the AG to get them off our back.

The bank suggested I have 2 bank accounts. 1 to pay bills and 1 for my discretionary funds.

That's a great idea (I had a discretionary, but it has turned into a joint account/mom's account for paying rent...I found that out after $500 in incoming consignment-sale money vaporized before I could dole it out to the owners). I still maintain my small checking account at my dad's bank...the idea is that it's a pain to access those funds from here (either wire transfer or ATM fees), but it's still there in an emergency.

[Akasa]

The person at my bank said she thought that the check was deposited at an ATM because no banker she knew would have taken that check.(For the question as to how it was cashed/deposited.)

The bank suggested I have 2 bank accounts. 1 to pay bills and 1 for my discretionary funds.

I want to thank you all for the support.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Why did the depositing bank (or any check-cashing place) even accept the check if it was a) altered like that and b) made out to a company but endorsed by an individual?

I was wondering the same thing. Such an obvious change should have been rejected by the teller.

Once again, all you need is somebody who isn't paying attention or doesn't care.

[Teefies2]

I was wondering the same thing. Such an obvious change should have been rejected by the teller.

I'm no so sure the check was stolen out of the mail. I suspect it was stolen by someone at the dentist's office/insurance office or was doctored by someone at the bank.

This happened to me. My then-husband went to a podiatrist. When he went to pay, the cashier told him - just fill in the amount, I have a stamp for the "pay to" line. (He wasn't very bright so he did.) That $100 check (this was in 1983 - so $100 was a big deal to us) was cashed by the cashier filling HER name in on the "pay to" line.

I was fortunate. As soon as I received the cancelled check, I called the podiatrist at home (again, 1983, I had been given his home phone number when I was a patient there -cell phones weren't common then - this would NOT happen today!) He verified that the name on the check was his cashier, said he would pursue it, and marked our account "paid".

Good luck!

[cleorose]

As someone who has dealt with fraud, run do not walk to your bank. Walk in because you need to switch over your account info. If this person has any kind of brain they probably wrote down the routing number and account number to your checking account (bottom of check), your personal address and phone number (also on the check) and they might even kept a copy of the check for signature purposes. (My sister did all of the above).

The credit bureaus should be contacted as well. You can do alot with a name, address and banking info. You do not want to know what either. My sister opened a welfare case in my name, since she had my info,she was able to get a social security card, ID etc all in my name. She was able to open a couple store cards and finance a car and all kinds of bad stuff. Just with having a checkbook, and some basic information. No precaution is too much.

I agree that your dental insurance should be either on auto pay or something. Checks are always a bad idea. Too easy to fake and alter. And no one is motivated it seems to protect the interests of the checkholder usually. I have a hubby that used to like write checks. Alot of checks. And he left the checkbook in the car. Well the bank sees that he has four or five months of checks ranging from $5 to 250$ and all the fake checks were local shops we used and for amounts that they had seen us write in the past. Guess who was out $730 ? Us. BOA sucks balls.

I wish you oodles of luck cause I have been there with the fraud.

[Sapphire Silk]

Why did the depositing bank (or any check-cashing place) even accept the check if it was a) altered like that and b) made out to a company but endorsed by an individual?

I was wondering the same thing. Such an obvious change should have been rejected by the teller.

I'm no so sure the check was stolen out of the mail. I suspect it was stolen by someone at the dentist's office/insurance office or was doctored by someone at the bank.

[taxguykarl]

I had an experience with a stolen checkbook back in the '80's. I promptly reported the theft to the local police and ended up closing the account, so none of the stolen checkes were honored or bounced. I did spend some time dealing with collection agencies about that incident.

Agreed with pressing charges and contacting the insurer. To avoid a repeat of this incident, ask about online or automatic debit payments-or come to think of it annual payments.

[Dreamstalker]

Why did the depositing bank (or any check-cashing place) even accept the check if it was a) altered like that and b) made out to a company but endorsed by an individual?

My boss at my other PT job once neglected to fill out the written amount line on the check. Even though she had signed it and done the number line properly, I could not write the amount out myself but had to send it back and have her fill in the missing bit.

[Automan Empire]

The bank is probably on this already, but where was it cashed? Even if not a bank, they probably have good video of the face, and are the most likely party to be left holding the bag for the $300, so they are motivated to cooperate.

[Seshat]

Once both the bank and the postal system are on the perpetrator, their life will become miserable.

Even so, make sure the dental insurance company is aware of the situation (if you got reference numbers from bank or postal system, pass both on), and make sure they get paid. Invite them to join with the legal slugfest onto the perp.

If you do end up out of pocket or otherwise given problems by the situation, feel absolutely free to seek appropriate legal/police redress. I won't advocate violence, but I do take glee in seeing justice done.

[Akasa]

Called the postal inspector.
Was given a reference number and told there won't be any updates until at least Monday. Also they won't call me with updates I need to call them.

Luckily I have a note pad that I put all my notes in.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Two posts deleted from this thread for advocating violence/harm to the criminal. While we know the posts weren't meant seriously, let's stay on this side of the law. :scowly-face mod smiley goes here:

Sorry! As one of the people whose post was deleted, I apologize for the advocation (however facetious it was) of violence against a no-good, shiftless waste of skin and oxygen fraudster.

[Seshat]

Two posts deleted from this thread for advocating violence/harm to the criminal. While we know the posts weren't meant seriously, let's stay on this side of the law. :scowly-face mod smiley goes here:

Staying on this side of good taste is preferred, but not required. Especially as it's my personal preference.

[Taz]

Akasa, depending on your state's laws and the bank, whether to press charges or not may not be your choice.

I was a victim of check fraud 20+ years ago. I had a roommate steal a check from my checkbook, write it out to the furniture rental place and print my name as the signature - nothing like my actual signature. My bank told me that once I signed a form stating that it was not my signature on the check, they would refund me the money and then the fraud would be their's to deal with legally. I never did follow up on what happened to the roommate, partly because I quickly found another place to stay.