Is it illegal for a bank to cash a check before the date marked on the check?

I wrote a check to my brother dated for the 28th and his bank cashed it on the 27th. I have the cancelled check and a copy of my statement showing an overdraft fee due to this mishap and am planning on taking it all to his bank to get reimbersed. I'd just like to know if what they did was illegal, unethical, or possibly just their policy. His bank is TCF.

Depends on state law.

In most states, it is ILLEGAL to post date a check (which is what you did) as well as illegal for a bank to cash it.

I don't think you are going to be able to get those overdraft fees back.

I always get my paycheck every other Thursday postdated for Friday but about half the time if I go on Thursday they will cash it.

i heard that the date you write on a check really doesn't mean anything...i mean, say you write it out to a friend, that date is a reminder not to cash the check until after that date. but if it IS taken to a financial institution(i.e. bank) then they can cash it...but i might be wrong.
for future reference, do not write out a check ahead of time. it only causes problems, believe me! good luck though.

It is not illegal.

It is addressed in Article 4, section 4-401 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

c) A bank may charge against the account of a customer a check that is otherwise properly payable from the account, even though payment was made before the date of the check, unless the customer has given notice to the bank of the postdating describing the check with reasonable certainty. The notice is effective for the period stated in Section 4-403(b) for stop-payment orders, and must be received at such time and in such manner as to afford the bank a reasonable opportunity to act on it before the bank takes any action with respect to the check described in Section 4-303. If a bank charges against the account of a customer a check before the date stated in the notice of postdating, the bank is liable for damages for the loss resulting from its act. The loss may include damages for dishonor of subsequent items under Section 4-402.

Your brothers "bank" did not cash it, your brother did. Your issue is with him, not the bank. Why should the bank pay because your brother did not hold the check until he was supposed to?

As a side note, you cannot be prosecuted on a bad check charge if a post-dated check is returned before the check date.

Absolutely in no way illegal. You've been getting answers based on the way people think things should work instead of the way they are.

no, it is not, and it woudnt make sense for the bank to do it. they would be the ones that would suffer a loss.

Yes, it is illegal for a bank to cash a check before the date marked on the check, just as it is considered legally wrong for one to post-date a check. You can go to a branch manager at the branch where you actually do business at your bank and explain the situation, and the branch manager at your bank will ask you to sign an affidavit of the facts, after which the manager can submit your affidavit of true statement by fax to another office at your bank who can make a determination as to whether to remove the overdraft fee from your account or not. Or, if your branch manager is familiar with you and carries enough weight and authority and experience at your bank, your own branch manager has the authority to remove the overdraft fee immediately--it depends upon your branch manager and your bank's policies. Your branch manager generally has the authority to remove such charges immediately, however, right while you wait; and your branch manager can print you a copy of your statement of account showing the charges removed immediately with your new balance on the statement. (Your new balance may not go through completely until midnight, though.) Then you do not have to go to the other bank for recourse of action. For recourse from the other bank, you have no hold or authority whatsoever for you have no account with your brother's bank, so you would need to retain an attorney which would cost a whole lot more than the overdraft fee itself, and it would surely not be worth an attorney's fee except for the principle of the matter and if you are rich out of your mind. Your brother's bank's attorney will be certain to note that you post-dated the check which is actually illegal, and any judge might use this fact to cancel out the wrong done to you by your brother's bank, hence you lose in court!

Who wants to go to court anyway--you will only cost yourself and others more time, irritation, aggravation and frustration? Your last recourse of action should be your brother if all else fails, for it is also his fault you have an overdraft fee because he took your check to the bank before the due date. You were doing your brother a kindness, yet he, so to speak, spit in the face of your kindness by completely disregarding your wishes to honor the due date you wrote on the check which I'm sure you noted to him in advance and asked his compliance of same. Of course, your brother may really have believed that the bank would take at least one whole day to run the check through, thinking it would safely go through the bank on the next day--that is on the actual date you post-dated the check. Although it may have been an innocent act on your brother's part, your brother should feel at least morally obligated to pay you back the bank overdraft fee if your bank will not remove it. However, your bank would be the first best bet--then your brother. I wish you well, and hope the best for you and your family members' lives!

The older you get, the more you realize, blood is thicker than water, and nobody else can be that brother to you that your own brother is. So if your brother does not do what's right, please forgive him and put this past you (it's not worth it!) and do not allow a wedge between you and your family member because bitterness will not just affect you--bitterness will affect others, including the rest of your family members, too; although you will be the most affected by unforgiveness and bitterness which could result in physical ailments later on and for the rest of your life, including arthritis, spastic colon, headaches, sinus infections (from grief of separation between you and your brother) and cancer which could eventually cause death, I believe.

I used to be a teller. We couldn't cash a check before 2pm the day before. If we cashed it after, it was as if it was cashed on the day written on the check. His bank could've made a mistake, or it could've done it on purpose- which is wrong. Either case, your bank shouldn't have withdrawn the funds until the date on the check. You could go to his bank and ask for the overdraft fee as it was their fault for not checking the date......... but you may get a run around too. Good luck.

The bank can't submit a check for payment until on or after the date on the check. You should be able to get your overdraft charge back.

No. It's not the banks responsibility to check. They are in the business of cashing and depositing money/checks.

It is not legal to post date a check.

You are the one who made the mistake.

When you hand over a check to somebody, you are supposed to make sure the money is in your account. Period.

Technically yes. But a lot of banks will do it anyway (I've done it before, many times).

His bank didn't look at the date on the check.

Point this out to them and you get your money back.

Yes it is illegal. It's also illegal to date a check in such a manner.

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