Substitute
Checks & Your Rights
What
is a substitute check?
To
make check processing faster, federal law permits financial
institutions to replace original checks with "substitute checks." These
checks are similar in size to original checks with a slightly
reduced image of the front and back of the original check. The
front of a substitute check states: "This is a legal copy of
your check. You can
use it the same way you would use the original check." You
may use a substitute check as proof
of payment just like the original check.
Some
or all of the checks that you receive back from us may be substitute
checks. This notice describes rights you have when
you receive substitute checks from us. The
rights in this notice do not apply to original checks or to
electronic debits to you're account. However,
you have rights under other law with respect to those transactions.
What
are my rights regarding substitute checks?
In certain cases, federal law provides a special procedure that allows
you to request a refund for losses you suffer if a substitute
check is posted to your account (for
example, if you think that we withdrew the wrong amount from
your account or that we withdrew money from your account
more than once for the same check). The losses you may attempt
to recover under this procedure may include the amount that
was withdrawn from your account and fees that were charged
as a result of the withdrawal (for example, bounced check
fees).
The amount of refund under this procedure is limited to the amount of
your loss or the amount of the substitute check, whichever
is less. You also are entitled to interest on the amount
of your refund if your account is an interest-bearing account. If your loss exceeds the amount of the substitute
check, you may be able to recover additional amounts under
other law.
If you use this procedure, you may receive up to $2,500 of your refund
within 10 business days after we received your claim and
the remainder of your refund not later that 45 calendar days
after we received your claim.
We may reverse the refund (including any interest on the refund) if we
later are able to demonstrate that the substitute check was
correctly posted to your account.
How do I make a claim for a refund?
If
you believe that you have suffered a loss relating to a substitute
check that you received and that was posted to your account,
please contact us. You
must contact us within 40 calendar days of the date that we
mailed the substitute check in question or the account statement
showing the substitute check was posted to your account, whichever
is later. We will extend this time period if you were
not able to make a timely claim because of extraordinary circumstances.
Your
claim must include?
