Checks Written but Not Cashed

[spearmint]

When you file Ch13 you have to give a list of all your debts. Does that include checks written but not cashed?

[optimistic1]

If you wrote a check with the sole intent on letting it bounce and end up owing the bank, I wouldn't necessarily think that is a debt. More like, fraud, IMHO. A checking account is not a loan, it is just a retention area for your own money.

The bank would also list you on Chexsystems, and it would be very difficult to obtain another checking account again.

But im no expert, and I could be wrong, but that is my common sense reply for you.

[justbroke]

When you file Ch13 you have to give a list of all your debts. Does that include checks written but not cashed?

If the check was written to pay a debt, then sure it's a debt to the extent that you were paying for product or service with that check.

So, say you bought a car with a $5K check but filed before it was cashed... that's a whole different topic and on the scale of immoral (if you knew you were filing the next day and didn't have the cash) and possibly criminal (if it was fraud).

If you're asking specifically about pay day loans, this does come up often. Pay day loans are just that... a loan. You issue checks in advance, payable on a particular point in time in the future. If you file Bankruptcy before they cash them, then you would list the debt.

The problem is, that checks are still honored even if you do file Bankruptcy. Filing doesn't (generally) freeze your checking account. If you wrote checks with the intention of them bouncing... that's a whole different area of response.

Suffice it to say, that if you fraudulently wrote checks knowing you were insolvent and/or didn't have the money at all, then you could face criminal prosecution, because Bankruptcy doesn't even stop criminal proceedings.

I hope I answered your question, and then some.

[EricaCallaha]

But on the other hand...if you wrote a check to the electric company and it hasn't cleared your account yet...you would not list that.

By the way, you should be on a cash basis if you are close to filing. Strictly money orders. Keep your balance very low.

Good luck.