Safe Shopping: 3 Advantages of Using a Certified Check

Check and money order fraud occurs more frequently than most businesses and consumers might imagine. Advanced technology has made counterfeit negotiable instruments more convincing than ever. Oftentimes, the recipient does not realize he or she has been a victim of fraud until the item is returned by the bank and the perpetrator has vanished and is no longer easily traceable. While all payment methods have associated disadvantages, a certified check is one of the safest ways to receive payment.

Certified Checks Guarantee That Funds are Available
Accepting a personal check can be very risky as the recipient has no way to determine whether the required funds are present in the payer’s account. However, a bank issues a certified check, the institution is guaranteeing not only that the specified amount is available in the customer’s account, but the bank is also verifying that the payer’s signature on the check is valid. To ensure availability at the time the certified check is given to the recipient, the bank will freeze the specified funds in the payer’s account. If a certified check is not accepted or if the funds are not available, the recipient may file legal action against the bank and the payer for failure to pay. However, banks are not liable for funds if the recipient attempts to cash the check after its expiration date or if the bank’s signature was forged. When in doubt, the intended recipient should contact the bank to verify that the check and signature are authentic prior to making the transaction.

Safer Than Cash
While accepting cash is often the fastest, easiest way to transfer funds, recipients place themselves at greater risk when accepting large bills. Governments are constantly changing the appearance and composition of higher value currency to stay a step ahead of counterfeiters. In the US, the $100 bill was modified in 2013 to include a blue three-dimensional ribbon with images of bells as 100s along with a an image of a color-changing bell in an inkwell. The $50 bill incorporates subtle shades of blue and red along with historical symbols. The $20 note also includes subtle background colors to deter counterfeiting. Even the $10 bill features shades of yellow and orange along with images and words that are aimed at making its design more difficult to recreate.

Nevertheless, counterfeit bills are passed all the time, and they evade the well-trained eyes of store clerks, bank employees, and especially everyday individuals and street vendors. Cash transactions are much less trackable than other payment methods; therefore, finding an individual who makes payment with a counterfeit note is often extremely difficult. In some cases, proving the individual knowingly used fake currency can be an even greater challenge. Certified checks eliminate the need to look for subtle features to verify authenticity.

High Dollar Amounts and Long Distance Transactions
From the payer’s perspective, sellers may require a more secure means of payment. When making a face-to-face purchase, both parties are likely to be comfortable with using cash for convenience. However, when making an expensive purchase, many buyers may feel uncomfortable traveling with large sums of cash on their person. By using a certified check, the seller will have the security of knowing that he or she is receiving guaranteed funds while the payer will have the safety and ease of simply transporting a check instead of potentially storing and carrying several large bills to their destination.

Certified checks are very useful when completing long distance transactions as well. When making a payment to a recipient who is unable to meet face-to-face, sending cash by mail is ill-advised as it, and payers who have bad credit may not be able to use other payment methods, including credit accounts and personal checks. Therefore, a certified check will offer the payer and the recipient security when a long distance transaction is required.