What can I do if I have a customer who wrote a check that bounced?
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What can I do if I have a customer who wrote a check that bounced?
I have my own incorporated construction company. A customer wrote a post dated check to my company. I took it to the currency exchange and cashed it. The check bounced. Now the currency exchange is threatening me with putting out a warrant for my arrest. I don’t have the $2000 to pay them back and can’t get the money from the customer. Can I be arrested for this bounced check? I believe that there is separation between my company and myself. I was assured by the customer the
funds would be in the account.
Asked on March 30, 2017 under Criminal Law, Illinois
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
1) You can only be arrested, charged, or convicted if there is evidence that you knew, or at least reasonably suspected, that the check would bounce; in that case, you knowingly passed a bad check. But if you had no reason to think that it would, then you did nothing *criminal*, because you had no criminal intent.
2) They can, however, sue you for the money: whether you had criminal intent or not, when a check bounces, you have to repay the funds you received from it. If your company was an LLC and the check was made out to the company and cashed by the company, not you personally, they should only be able to sue the LLC, not you.
3) You can sue the customer, if you know their address, for the money. You could sue in small claims court on a cost-effective basis.
4) You can file a police report against the customer and look to press charges against him for passing you a check which he knew or should have known would be dishonored. The charges may encourage him to pay up--one of my clients passed me a bad check and when I filed charges, he ultimately paid.
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