I was contacted via the Internet by an overseas vendor needing HP Inkjet Cartridges. We agreed on a price and even though the shipping was outrageous, he still agreed. I received a large check from him and when I went to Wells Fargo, I asked them if there was any special handling I could request to verify funds. They said no. I the asked how long I should wait before sending the goods to ensure that the check was good. They told me that 30 days would be sufficient for "any" check to completely clear.
My customer did not want to wait 30 days, but did wait 2 weeks.
About 2 weeks after this customer received his product he placed another order. It had now been a month since the first check was deposited, so I figured I had a new qualified customer. I decided to check with the new teller I had and once again, I was told that 30 days is plenty. She also told me there was no way to verify that the first check was indeed good. I deposited the check and sent the product after 2 weeks as before.
The second check bounced, so I contacted the customer. He told me that it was a clerical error and immediately cut me another check to cover the difference. Sounds like a concientious customer, so I thought nothing of it.
90 days after the first check was deposited, Wells Fargo contacts me and says that under their policy, they have up to 1 year to come back on Forged checks. They took back the money from all 3 checks and closed my accounts after 9 years of perfect credit with them.
What do you think???
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