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## Dealing with a Stolen Check and Fraudulent Deposit

Our company recently encountered a situation where a legitimate check issued to a supplier for 14K and change was stolen during transit. The check was tampered with, and a different name was pasted over the supplier’s name before being deposited into a Desjardins bank account by a fraudster.

Despite our long-standing relationship with BMO spanning almost two decades, our manager suggested that it is our responsibility to deal with this issue. The matter was passed on to the fraud department, but they claimed no responsibility and advised us to consider purchasing insurance to mitigate such risks in the future.

In light of these circumstances, it is crucial to determine the appropriate course of action to address this fraudulent activity and seek resolution.

Utilizing the AI Legalese Decoder can significantly aid in this situation by quickly analyzing legal documents, policies, and procedures related to banking and fraud to provide insights and recommendations on how to proceed. The Decoder can assist in understanding the legal implications of the fraudulent deposit, liability issues, and potential avenues for recourse.

Some key points to consider include:

– Verify whether the check was physically or digitally deposited and ascertain the extent of alterations made to the check. The Decoder can offer guidance on how to analyze the deposited check for alterations and provide suggestions on how to address discrepancies.

– Report the incident to the police and provide them with any relevant information, such as the name and address on the fraudulent check. The Decoder can offer insights on the legal aspects of reporting fraud and potential steps law enforcement may take in investigating the matter.

By leveraging the capabilities of the AI Legalese Decoder, you can gain a better understanding of the legal aspects surrounding this fraudulent activity and make informed decisions on the best course of action to protect your company’s interests. Thank you for considering our services!

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26 Comments

  • jellicle

    Nope. Stand firm. The bank has accepted a forged cheque. It is not the cheque you wrote but a forged instrument. File a report for fraud with your bank. You should probably file a police report as well and give a copy of the report to your bank (not because the police will do much investigating here, but because it will encourage the bank to believe you and do the right thing).

    Short version is the bank should a) credit you back the money b) try to recover the money from wherever it went (likely the bank where the fraudster deposited the cheque). None of this will be fast or easy, it will take months to resolve at a minimum.

    Don’t assume anything about the situation. The cheque is fraudulent; you deny writing such a cheque; the end.

    The banks are disinclined to be helpful here because one of the two banks involved is likely to end up eating this if the fraudster got away with the money, but too bad for them.

  • Nazgul_Neo

    Ask Bmo for a form called intended payee not paid / forged endorsement. It has to be signed by the supplier and witness.
    Add your banking details to it and share the signed form with bank as instructed and they will provide you back with the money. BMO timeline for reversal from other bank would be 6 years while you have 90 days from the clearing date to get this sorted.
    Hope this helps. We deal with this once a year through RBC and have always received the money back. Assuming a business unit, escalate with your relationship manager and they shall guide you.

  • pfcguy

    Escalate with BMO through the usual methods mentioned on their website.

    Its absolutely bonkers to me that a bank can give your money out to an unauthorized person and then be like “whoopsie doodle sucks to be you!”

  • Grayman222

    Not sure on the timeline here but if you are not already reviewing cheques cleared each day start that now. This would have had you calling BMO before the money cleared.

    BMO should also have a service where you can upload a list of valid cheques and all others fail, that would have blocked this. Just make sure not to ever forget this or all your cheques bounce.

  • henry-bacon

    r/legaladvicecanada

  • RunUpTheHillGD

    Cheque fraud goes to police.

    This is more on the depositor bank not doing their due diligence with verifying the cheque than BMO

    Time to move towards e-transfers or EFT moving forward.

  • Saint-Carat

    I’m providing advice based upon your claim original cheque was altered.

    Print this out. It is Payments Canada Rule A4 that provides the regulation for Returned and Redirected Items.
    https://www.payments.ca/sites/default/files/a4eng.pdf

    Walk into branch. Report a “Counterfeit Item” has been improperly completed in your account. Once you complete the statutory declaration that the cheque was false, they are required to credit your account and notify the receiving bank (ie. Where cheque was negotiated.) The bank that accepted the cheque needs to follow-up with whoever cashed cheque, not your problem.

    If they don’t agree, show them this print-out and:

    1. Section 6(a) which highlights up to 6 years for a Counterfeit Item.

    2. Section 15 for material alteration.

    Hopefully that helps.

  • blthmsphlp

    Cheques need to be discontinued. This is an outdated form of money and it easily gets counterfeited.

  • frozencakelife

    had something similar happen, but it was the banks fault they sent cheques on a homeline credit line to the address of the mortgage (rental unit), which they 100% knew was a rental and I never asked for cheques. had to fight them for a year, had to switch account numbers but was able to get my money back thankfully it was 5-6 cheques and less than 5k. I had to go to multiple branches and INSIST until they helped me and didnt accept “theres nothing we can do”. you do have a certain timeline to flag it ( 30 or 90 days )

  • EntrepreneurAny8835

    Looks like I am not alone with problems with BMO. It is the bank where I was advised for opening an account on my arrival to Canada. This was the worst experience with banking. I do not feel safe keeping my money in it and will be migrating to another bank.

  • ScwB00

    Others have addressed the current issue. To help prevent this in the future, turn on the feature known as Cheque Positive Payee (or Enhanced Positive Pay). This feature would have stopped this fraud. When issuing a cheque, you upload the list of cheques, amounts and payee names to the bank. The bank then automatically flags and declines cheques that don’t match. The upload can be done automatically or semi-automatically depending on your ERP/accounting software.

  • BookBagThrowAway

    Can guarantee the supplier sent to a person they know who does this and cash it! This is your sign to start watching your cash account daily!

  • SMWTLightIs

    Had thus happen at our sister company and the bank (cibc) refunded it right away. It was several cheques of various amou ts deposited into various accounts. They said they just pulled the funds back from the accounts.

  • jostrons

    Keep fighting them. It is the Big 5 Banks fault that this happens. They know its an issue, and they dont care.

  • Unhappy_Hedgehog_808

    Theft over $5000 is an indictable offense and can carry up to 10 years in prison, there is a chance the police may investigate this somewhat. It’s more than just fraud, it’s a serious theft.

  • berto2d31

    Somewhat similar situation but my company was on the receiving end of a cheque from a production I was working on.

    Cheque never showed up and months later we’d found out someone else had taken and cashed it. We ended up going through the issuing bank’s (HSBC at the time) fraud department and I had to sign an affidavit that I never received the cheque nor did I have any idea who had cashed it. My company banks with BMO and the cheque was deposited to someone at Envision Bank (never heard of it).

    Anyway, after a few weeks money was returned to the production and they cut me a new cheque.

    So I’d say you have to keep pressing and up the ladder with your requests until you get it looked at seriously. A police report can’t hurt. Not that they will do anything, they won’t. But having an official report should only help your case with BMO’s fraud department.

  • a_nonconformist

    FINTRAC reporting may apply.

    What is their name?

  • Trypt2k

    I don’t know, this seems like more of a Desjardins problem. I don’t see what BMO could do about it, especially if it cleared before you ever called them. The check never made it to BMO, it went directly from your hand to the fraudsters bank. If Desjardins checked with BMO due to suspicion but BMO gave the go ahead then I can see how it’s a BMO problem.

  • Just_Steve_IT

    Take it up with the Ombudsman. He’d probably like to hear about it.

  • Expensive-Sample-653

    Ombudsman? 

  • MightyManorMan

    Are you in Quebec? If you are, move it up the chain of complaints and mention that if there is no resolution that you reserve the right to request the intervention of the AMF. Desjardins is under the AMF.

    It’s it clear that the cheque was altered?

  • Select_Asparagus3451

    Aren’t Canadian banks just the worst? I mean truly—they have us all by the balls.

  • Laffy_Taffy_1990

    commence legal proceedings and freeze the fraudsters account while you go through the court process.

  • Kimrose781226

    Sue the bank with a good lawyer they will pay

  • dog_eat_cranberry

    Find a litigation lawyer

  • movack

    Is it acceptable to in write on the cheque “no mobile deposit”?

    That way it has to be deposited at the branch and the teller destroys the cheque. That way there is no double deposit with the same cheque