RBC customer's cheque was cashed twice. He says his bank shouldn't have let it happen
CBC
A Montreal-area man is questioning his bank's security practices after one of his cheques was deposited twice.
About a month ago, Christopher Michaels was doing his taxes when he noticed a $150 cheque on his bank records that he did not remember writing.
"There's not a lot of cheques that typically go through that particular account," said Michaels.
"It was just odd."
At first, he thought it was for his snow removal company. But it turned out to be a cheque he'd given as a wedding gift nearly two years earlier.
The cheque was first cashed in July 2022 — and again in December 2023.
Banks don't have to cash a cheque if it's too old, which is usually six months after the date it's issued. But this is just a federal guideline, not a law.
"I've misdated cheques before," he said. "And I've had people come back to me and say, 'Oh, the bank won't accept it, you have to submit me a new cheque'."
When he took a closer look, he saw his cheque was deposited into two different accounts using a mobile application, which allows customers to deposit cheques by taking a photo.
Michaels reported it to his Royal Bank of Canada branch and filed a police report. But he's upset that his bank did not detect it in the first place.
"I think it's definitely like a flaw in the system," said Michaels.
Although his bank suggested it was probably a "one-off," at least one other wedding guest told Michaels their cheque was also deposited twice.
CBC News was unable to independently confirm this, but reviewed text and Facebook messages that suggested Michaels was not alone.
"You'd assume that some cheques would be flagged and then they would investigate that account and look back at all the other cheques that were cashed," said Michaels, a resident fo Saint-Lazare, Que., an off-island suburb west of Montreal.
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