I just got a letter from my bank about a check I cashed a couple weeks back. Turns out the lady closed her account! Argh! The check was for $50 and now I'm out the merchandise (a really nice leather wallet & purse) and the bank took $55 out of my account. I know, I know, you shouldn't accept checks, but it was someone that I vaguely knew, and she was a fellow vendor at the place I was selling at. What do you guys think I should do now? I have her address but no phone number. I'm going on vacation and won't see her again for another two months. I was thinking about sending her a politely worded letter asking for my $50, plus the $5 fee the bank tacked on. Is this enough? I'm hoping it was a misunderstanding, but this has really made me mad. What do you do in a situation like this?

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That's what's most frustrating to me, she knew I didn't usually accept checks but I was doing it because I thought she was ok. And she probably knew it was a bad check when she wrote it.

So do you think I should charge her the $55 the bank charged me, plus the $50 for the merchandise she still has? Or ask to get the merch back? I don't know if she's going to go for any of this, even though it's her fault. Right now I'm just hoping that I have the right address, or that at the very least she'll show up to the next sale I'm at as a vendor.

Wait, did the bank charge you $5 or $55? I read that they withdrew the $50 they credited you for the check and then charged you a $5 NSF fee. If that is the case you should charge her $55 not $55 plus another $50. Personally I'd tell her the NSF fee was $10 or $15 making her owe you $60 or $65.

Now, the place I work charges a $25 NSF fee but the bank only charges them $10. When I was selling Avon someone bounced a check, the bank charged me $5 but I charged her $15. This was done to deter people from doing it again.

ew. i've had this happen a few times over the years - once over the holiday season! but the percentage is very low compared to the amount of business owners i work with. most use credit cards these days anyways. but if i do get a check, i always call their bank to verify funds before i deposit.

Ok, sorry, I re-read my statement and there was just a $5 fee. I'm a lot less freaked out now. Still sucks though.

Thanks for all the words of advice. That sounds like a good idea, to charge $10 or $15 for the fee instead of $5. I even gave her a discount on the stuff she bought. Argh.

Just to mention, writing a check on a closed account is A CRIME. If you get no response from her after your first letter, contact the sheriff. She may have done it to others as well.