FISGlobal.com / Certegy review: declined check 40

I went to beauty brands to buy some product. To my surprise my check was declined. I do not have poor credit and I pay my bills. I also could have paid for my products 100 times and still had money in my account. They gave me a c1 code which supposedly means I have unpaid checks. I talked to aaron who was very nice considering I was not. Although he was not very helpful. Aaron reports that this is a bank of america account that has been closed out. Well first off I do not nor have I ever banked with bank of america. I asked how this happened. Of course he has no information on this but he would be glad to disassociate the two. then he told me they were no longer linked and i should not have any problems from now on. first off I want to know how this happened and why? secondly if this honestly was the case how was he able to resolve this with the click of a button? I did call the company and let them know about this situation and hopefully they will choose another check company. I will not go back to this store until they do change.

I am out of town on a business trip and realized I left my personal debit card at home. I am staying at the Hyatt in Bethesda, MD and was thrilled when I saw that they offered check cashing services. I wrote a check for $100.00 and the hotel attendant told me I had been declined with a code 2. He was ignorant to what a code 2 was so I had him call Certegy back to investigate further. I didn't understand, as I had enough money to cover the check and hadn't had any check writing issues in the past. When speaking with the Certegy representative, Evadney, she confirmed the facts - 1) I had enough money in the bank and 2) I hadn't any check writing problems in the past - as if that made me feel any better. She told me it didn't fit my check writing profile and that they were protecting me... bull$#!@. Not only was I embarrassed, I was quite angry because it is evident that the technology tools used in their decision-making are inadequate. With that being said, they have cost Hyatt a customer as I won't return due to their collaboration with a company that clearly has subpar standards - something I generally don't associate with Hyatt. I will be forwarding my complaint to them as well.

I tried to write a check to Sears for $411.12 and when the cashier tried to process it he received an error. He asked me if I had problems with identity theft, and I had not, but there is credit monitoring on my bank account due to issues Peoples United Bank had earlier this year with the loss of tapes with un-encripted customer data on them, so the monitoring is more of a safety measure even though I have not had any issues with my account.

He called the 1-800 # and the automated message told him my check was declined for a "code 2". He asked to speak with an agent and they were of no help at all. We were just told to call another 1-800 #. I went through the automated prompts and the reason I got was that there was nothing wrong with my check, but it was denied as a security measure and that the info was relayed to the merchant. I then asked to speak to an agent to find out more details. She looked up my transaction and said there was nothing she could do. I asked if I would be able to write another check and if it would go through. She told me she could not guarantee that it would go through but that it probably wouldn't. She told me the reason why my check was denied was because I had not written enough checks with the retailers on their list, even though I have already written over 1500 checks from my account without an issue. She said the only thing she could do for me was to send out some info for me to fill out which would authorize them to view more of my account information.

I ended up having to withdraw cash from an ATM in order to complete the purchase.

This was a very embarrassing experience and has now made me gun shy of trying to write a check for any future purposes for fear that the same thing would happen again. Something needs to be done about Certegy. Honest customers should not be treated like criminals. I know I was not the first nor will I be the last honest customer who will have a check rejected for no logical reason at all.

I just tried to write a check at Bloomingdales in the amount of $189.44 today, November 14, 2008. I was told the transaction cleared but that the initial decline could not be overwritten.
I want to be absolutely sure that this transaction did not go through AND I want a letter confirming and apologizing for this inconvenience.
Thank you.

Hazel Sultan
C/O Capital Group, Inc.
Legal Department
11100 Santa Monica Blvd., 17th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90025

I only go to Gamestop with my son to pick out games maybe twice a year. Last year I had a problem using a personal check at this store because they use Certegy - it was declined. I have never ever had a check declined until going to Gamestop who uses Certegy. I called the rep at Certegy and they said "it was a typo error in the system". They also guaranteed that this error was "FIXED" in their system. So after almost a year again, I go back to Gamestop (knowing that this time no problem should happen)...Well BINGO, it happened again - this time for a small amount of $14. After putting this purchase on my credit card I immediately called Certegy One More Time... I was told again it was some kind of "error" but within 78 hrs check back and it should be fine. I called Certegy after the 78 hr period and she confirmed it was fixed... But this time I asked for a Letter to be sent to me confirming this. So I am waiting now for the letter to come. But believe me - I did and I will still follow thru with a statment that I made to the Certegy rep and that was, " I am calling Gamestop to let them know because they keep using Certegy they have lost me as a customer"... and then I will show them my letter when I get it in the mail...

On 11/19/08 at Toys R Us, my husband and I were Christmas shopping for our child. We attempted to pay by check. There was question about the funds being in the account. Our check was declined by Certegy. I called the customer service # for Certegy while still at the customer service desk in the store and the only reason they gave was "...not based on my personal data, but on some fraud prevention profile." What is this crap? I do not use credit cards, but was able to complete with my debit card after the most 30 embarrasing minutes of my life. How is this legal? I have never been so humiliated. The manager at Toys R Us was very kind, but his hands were tied. So many people staring while they were waiting. I am outraged.

I tried to pay for a purchase of 17$ at the local Circle K and was declined by you, my check is good and I do not write bad checks. What's your issue with my checks?

M. Baggett
lollygag12000@yahoo.com

I have had the same experience as many here. I was in a Walgreen Drugstore at Jupiter Rd. and E. Northwest Hwy. in Dallas today and had a check declined. Yes, i called my bank immediately and, of course, there were ample funds there like almost every one here but that didn't take away the embarrassment and anger I felt. We have had this checking account for over 30 years and have done business with this Walgreens since it was built almost 10 years ago. Just last week I made a purchase of $404.00 in the pharmacy with no problem and yet, they would not accept today's check of 64.64.

Certegy gave me the excuse that my check number and the amount set off a "theft" flag and that whether or not I had funds in my account was not the issue. How is it that a company has the right to tell you WHEN and WHERE you can write a check? I'm just livid!

I have (and encourage all of you) to report your stories to the FTC, the BBB and the AG of your states. Upon doing a little further research, I suggest writing the owners/managers of the stores where your checks were declined. It seems that Certegy has been aided by the very stores we do business with on a daily basis. I found the following in the July 2007 Business Technology article:

"Certegy provides background scans that tell retailers if a customer’s check is good or not. To run these scans, retailers give Certegy a customer’s name, address and bank-account number."

http://blogs.wsj.com/biztech/2007/07/05/

These merchants are giving our information directly to Certegy. While Certegy harbors most of the blame, it irritates me that someone I've been doing business with for almost 10 years thinks little enough of my business that I need checking out and no...I have NEVER written them a bad check ever, ever. But I'm guessing they don't need my $400.00 that they make off our pharmacy bills anymore either. I'd rather pay more and get less hassle.
Goodbye Walgreens!

I hope you all find some way to resolve the Certgey issue. Personally, I'll be looking for responses from all the agencies I've written to and will be looking to see what kind of civil case arises from this (if any).

Orchard Supply Hardware declined my check for $678 from an account where I had over $40, 000. I was stunned. The number they gave me at OSH led to Certegy. Certegy explained that it had to do with "patterns" of checks where they felt uncomfortable guaranteeing the check to OSH. What "patterns"? Did they call the bank? Access the account? Anything? He couldn't say.
Excuse me?!?!?! His supervisor, Nathan Hunt, couldn't say either. But if I cared to fill out a form and get "Certegy Gold" certified, it might not happen again. I hit the ceiling - AND WHAT'S THE COST ON THAT, NATHAN? Why do I need YOUR blessing to spend my $40, 000?
I called the bank where the check was drawn. They were calmly horrified and told me that Certegy does this all over and has been doing this for years. They told me to look on the internet - complaints about them are all over.
Slowly but surely, I am deciding to take my checks elsewhere, OSH.

I usually make purchases with my debit card on 99% of my transactions. For some reason on 04/28/09, I decided that I would write a check to pay for my new eyeglasses. My mistake. Lenscrafters uses Certegy for check verification. When the store employee ran my check through their system, my check was rejected by Certegy. I was MAD AS HELL. For some reason, Certegy says that I had written bad checks out of state for purchases at Kmart and Circuit City. Merchants only accept checks drawn on local banks so why would I have written checks that are drawn on an out of state bank. I was given a Certegy card by the merchant and I promptly went home and started the fact-finding about this error. I was told that my name and driver's license were used on an account from Louisiana. I don't even use the bank that the Louisiana checks were drawn on. No other credit reporting bureau has this information on me so where did Certegy get their info? No bank has ever contacted me about fradulent checks nor has any subpeona/warrant been sent for me concerning bad checks. Fund recovery is usually the first thing that a bank will do in order to catch a thief. With all of the background checks and cross references that are in place within the banking industry, you would think that someone would have snapped and at least attempted to contact me to find out exactly what happened. I have filed a police report and have frozen my credit. I am also contacting Certegy almost daily to get as much information as possible about what is really going on. They are sending an affadavit for me to complete but after reading some of the other posts, I may not complete these forms. This company does sound rather shaky and suspicious to me as well. I will probably post again after I find out more.

I HAD BRAKE WORK DONE ON MY 2000 FORD TARAUS THAT COST $217.35 . DIDN'T THINK THAT WAS BAD SO I HAD THEM DO THE WORK. LATER TO FIND OUT THAT THEY WOULD NOT ACCEPT MY CHECK DUE TO CERTEGY CHECK SERVICES NOT HAVING INFORMATION ON FILE. WHEN THE HAMMONTON DEALERSHIP WAS OPENED I TOOK ALL 3 OF MY CARS THERE AND SPENT WELL OVER 300 DOLLARS AT TIMES AND WROTE CHECKS WITH NO PROBLEM NOW THAT I AM FORCED TO GO TO THE NEAREST FORD DEALER BECAUSE I LIKE FORDS I GET THIS CRAP. MY DAUGHTER HAD TO USE HER CC TO PAY FOR THE VEHICLE WHICH MADE HER NOW GO OVER HER CARD LIMIT AND GET CHARGED EVEN MORE MONEY. I AM VERY UPSET THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED AND WILL THINK TWICE ABOUT GOING BACK TO THE EGG HARBOR TWP DEALER AGAIN.

I tried to write a $30 check for gas when I was informed by a Murphy's emplyee that centerdy declined my check. I have plenty of money in my bank account and I demand that you fixthis problem asap! i've been holding on your telephone line for over an hour while
accessing tour website. I am about to leave to go back to murphy's to write another check and it had better go through this time. You people are rude and you play with people's lives like they are toys! I am going to join the mant lawsuits against you.

I went to the Target in Canton and paid with my Target check card. The card was declined and I was asked if I wanted to use some other form of payment. I would not have a Target check card if I wanted to use another form of payment. I left the stuff and called Certegy. I was told that they have me linked to two closed bank accounts - neither of those bank accounts were the account that is used by the Target check card and neither is a bank I have ever done business with. I notified Target since this happened before that I will not be shopping at their store if they cannot use better check services. I have never had problems with a check other than Target.

This Certegy company must be stopped. I wrote a check at Big Lots today and was shocked to hear that it was denied. I normally use my debit card but didn't have it that day. I've never written a bad check in my life. And this, after the store clerk announced all my personal information over the telephone trying to get a live person herself. Even she was frustrated. I left that store embarrassed and absolutely livid. I called their toll free number and was so frustrated by the run-around, and the "canned" answer to my inquiry as to why my check was denied. I never could speak to a live person, and they ended up disconnecting me after their incompetence at trying to hear the spelling of my first name 5 times! By now I was incensed! I then tried to find the Certegy web-site and discovered this Complaints Board with so many similar stories from other people. That fueled my anger with this company even more that I want to do something about it so that I do not have a repeat episode and others may be spared. What do we do?

I just got declined for a $26 check and I have over $1000 in my account. I called certegy and was advised by the rep. and his supervisor that the reason the check was declined was because of pattern of check writing, and they are actually trying to protect my account.
when I looked on certegy web site, I figured out why they are decling checks right and left. They want people to pay a yearly fee to become a certegy gold member, and then they will cash your checks. I cannot believe that they are actually blackmailing people to pay them an anual fee. I am planning on contacting the attorney general's office on this one. I am just pissed.

I submitted a check in the amount of $89.00 to Lowes for building supplies November 28. The check was declined by Certegy. The cashier handed me a slip from her cash register with a page of gibberish about the decline under a code one about "prior unpaid checks" whatever that means. After several calls to the 866 number I got a live body on
the phone. I was informed it was nothing at Certegy but a third party company called Early Warning Services in Scottsdale, AZ sent them information about my account. I was very confused and angry this company takes information from "anybody" and automatically assumes it is valid.
I contacted this Early Warning Services and the first words from the answerer was for my account routing No.s and my account No. I told her this smacked of a phishing scheme to me and asked for an explaination. I was informed that banks contact them about checks that are returned to the banks unpaid. That sounded more like the bank was so damn lazy it could not return the check from where it was deposited or contact the writer. Anyway, the person further states the check information is on their computer for 93 days. Basically I was told, whaterver the circumstances, you're not good for writing a check in their eyes, no matter what the circumstance, right or wrong!
Big Brother is truely watching you. Pretty soon cash is not going to be accepted because you look "funny".

My wife wrote a $21.12 check at The Dollar Store and was declined. We called Certegy and we were told that we had a check returned. We have been with our bank over 19 years and we have never had a returned check. We called our bank to check this out and they confirmed that Certegy was wrong. Our balance is modest but always more than adequate to cover our checks.

We have not been able to resolve this yet and my wife is afraid to try and write checks.

We would appreciate any help on this issue.

I went to Target on 12/23/09 to make a purchase of 297.83 for christmas gifts. When I got to the cashier and tried to pay with a check I was told my check was declined. Sure that I had more than enough to cover the check I told her to run it again and there was no way my check was declined. Sure enough it was declined again and I was giving back the check with Certegy's information and contact number. Still in line and very upset, I called the number to get an automated system that after 5 minutes couldn't tell me why my check was declined but that it was for MY PROTECTION! After sitting on hold another 10 minutes I get a live agent and after speaking to her for some time I was told that I didn't have a bad check with them and they don't verify funds, but that the numbers on my check or on my account are too close to some one that is writing bad checks. Okay so since someone else is using bad checks I can't use my good checks to purchase anything. Then i am told there is no way to override the system and they have no control over it... Okay so let me get this straight, you are the check cashing company that declined my check but you can't verify funds and override the decline? Hummmm, bad business, bad company, and Target and any other retail store that uses this worthless company will be out of business soon from pissed off customers. Every one that has encountered this situation with Certegy should file a BBB complaint! pronto!

I filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy on my report and it was dimissed by the court which states that I have a clean history. Yet when I tried to write a check they said Certegy declined it because of my bad history and still have outstanding checks. I have contacted my Attorney and told asked if what they are doing is illegal, he said yes and they just ignored my Attorney. I am pursuing Criminal Charges in regards to Bankruptcy Laws and Regulatons. Someone has to put an end to these people who have control over our lives just by a little computer error.

Looks like things haven't changed a bit! Tried to purchase a computer monitor at Staples this past Sunday. Didn't want to put the purchase on credit card, so wrote a check. DENIED! By, guess who, Certegy! No reason given, the store just kept asking for an "alternative form of payment". Since we didn't want to use a credit card, we walked out of the store without finishing the purchase. On Monday we called Certegy -- how fun that was! Over and over again all they kept saying was that the check "does not meet parameters" or "does not meet the format". When we asked what those parameters are, or what the format is, we were told that they couldn't tell us those, but they kept repeating that our check didn't meet the parameters and didn't meet the format. We also asked if we were to go to the store today and attempt to make the purchase would the check again be declined, and the person said 'yes'. Again we asked why and all they would say is that same line about the parameters and the format, but wouldn't tell us what those are. Having read these posts, it's a bit more clear -- there are *no* parameters and *no* format, it's just on someone's whim to decline or not decline. Since it was Sunday there weren't others in the store, so we were 'spared' some of the embarrassment, but that didn't make us feel any better about having the check declined. The rest of what you feel -- what have I done? Why is my check not good? I'm financially responsible and financially sound, so that can't be it. You run through all the emotions, then get angry! Who are these people to sit at some 1-800 number and seemingly randomly ruin someone's day. Needless to say, we'll be purchasing a computer monitor elsewhere, not Stapes. We probably won't be buying much else there either if they continue to use Certegy. On a related note, we wrote a check that same weekend at a different store -- one that uses TeleCheck --- no problem whatsoever. Didn't even have to show driver's license or other identification. Check went through, purchase approved, we went home with our purchase. Sad to say the same did not happen at Staples. Not only did we have to use our driver's license, we had to give our telephone number, etc., etc., etc.--- still got declined. When we called Certegy, we wouldn't give the bank account number -- we just wanted to know why the check was declined. I must admit, we were less than pleased with the reason. We won't be trading at stores that use this company to validate checks -- just not worth it. There are too many other places to shop. We wrote to Staples to let them know why they will lose us as a customer -- haven't received a response yet. Perhaps they don't care -- they have so many other customers, what's the difference if they lose one. That's the attitude we got from the people at the store itself when we went back there on Monday. Judging from the number of those stupid little slips they have, this must happen often. I can't believe a store with Staples' reputation continues to use this company! As others have said, it does help to know you're not alone and it would be nice if something could be done to make them stop mistreating people.

Went to Eastern Mountain Sports to buy my wife Mother's Day gifts totaling $421. Much to my surprise my check was denied. Clerk said they use Certegy and I might want to call them to clear things up. Called Certegy and was told that there was no fraudulent activity on my account or any bounced checks. They enter my check into their computer model and the computer decides whether or not you are a risk. A COMPUTER MODEL - WTF! Absolutely no basis what so ever. I was then told that in order to prevent this from happening again, I need to update my account and increase my check cashing limit? What account and what limit? Absolutely absurd! Needless to say I left the store with no presents, feeling like a dirt bag and probably looking like one to the cashier. Ridiculous! THIS COMPANY NEEDS TO GO!

I went in to buy groceries and I did not have a Debit card with me, so I proceeded to write check & I was told my check was declined and was handed a piece of paper with Certegys number and was told to call them. I have tried several times & get nothing but recordings, I finally did speak to someone who told me there was nothing bad outstanding (which I already knew), he gave me another number to call but agin nothing but recordings, I finally called [protected] and after listening to recorder after recorder I finally get a live person and she hangs up, wht a horrible way to run a business, I will NEVER shop at Albertsons or ANy store that is affliated with Certegy.
I have NEVER had a check returned or any problem cashing checks ANYWHERE.

declined check by certegy

I wrote a check at Target for $145 with over $3000 in my checking account and was declined by Certegy. When I call they said it was not due to anything negative, but it did not meet their parameters! WTF? I have a 750 cresit score so it wasn't due to bad credit or lack of funds. It was embarrassing. I can't believe respectable companies would use such a ridiculous system. The only reason I was writing a check was because I am waiting for my new debit card to come in the mail... so lame

the last 2 times i have tried to cash my payroll check at walmart it has told me that it has beenm declined when i have cashed payroll checks there before and i call and i get the run around it is really pissing me off. I all of the sudden cannot cash payroll checks there anymore when they keep being declined for some sttupid reason. They do not give u a straight answer when u call and they say they they cannot overide it and when u want to talk with a supervisor they still give u the run around and it is a good check from a company and should be no reason why it should be declined. walmart needs to get a different check cashing system or they will be losing business i am telling u that. certegy needs to give people a more valid reason when they call and want to know why things are declined instead of giving them the run around. never had i had to deal with such ignorant incapable people in my life and stupid people who cannot give u a straight answer.

My son went to get diesel fuel to pick up a load of calves from our supplier, we wrote a check for $98.00 to pay fro fuel, ( we had over 6000.00) dollars in the account. The check was declined by Certegy. I had to drive 24 miles to the gas station to pay cash for this transaction, since the check was declined. While my son was waitting on me the station attendent let another man fill up on the same pump, so he had to wait till i got there to clear up the register before he could pay for his fuel. I Have never been so angry before! they just daid call Cleregy and see if we can find out why it was declined. Like usual you do not get to speak with a human being only a recording when i gave the information it just said no negetive information just incomplete. How can they expect people to have cash or credit card on hand to cover the amount if you know you have money in the account. What would have happened to my son if i did have the cash to cover the fuel? Jail who knows, someone needs to do something to keep this from happening to innocent people. Go back to human people answering phones, not automatic answering services or compters. People need jobs not computers!

I have been trying to find out if a transaction to Walmart has been paid or not... my bank transaction history shows that their was a charge of $48.71 that was rejected. Embarrassing... Well I have NOT received any notification from Walmart nor any other company trying to collect so I call Walmart myself. I get the run around from them and finally get told that Centergy is who I need to contact, so I call them and FINALLY get someone on the phone that informs me that its Telecheck that I need to contact. Upon calling Telecheck I go through the prompts asking for routing/acct #, check # and amount, so I enter it all and get told that it was approved. Well you would think that if it has been approved / paid that my bank would show it in my history / statements NOT the case as far as I can see there is NOT an amount for $48.71 to anyone... I go on their website for TRS Recovery and it asks for a case number which I do NOT have because I have NOT ever received any written notification from them. So I call the number [protected], which gives two options to press and neither work at getting any further than the initial message letting you know its an attempt to collect a debt and the options to choose from to press for assistance. How are you supposed to get something paid or answers about if they have received payment or not if there is NO WAY TO GET THEM? I ran into an issue back in 1999 with due to a check written to Walmart that I was under the impression had cleared in 1996 imagine my surprise when I found out it had NOT and I had to not only pay for the check but a FINE as well. So you see why I am going through DUE DILLEGENCE to get answers? Its irritating to say the least!

I have dropped Amica Insurance for the same type of reason. Certegys customer service is nonexistent, Amica must know this, so I will take my insurance business elsewhere. I would not recommend Amica to anyone. There is an old adage, if you make your customers happy, you are lucky if they tell ONE person about it. If you make them unhappy, they will tell anyone who will listen about it.

I would love to pursue some action against these people. What a bloody rip off. I had the same experience as many, many other people. No wonder they have a po box out of florida..If you know anyway i can help let me know and if i find anyway to stop these robbers i will post it! I will take all my business to mom and pop stores that really need the business. Which we should do anyways..stop making china wealthy~!

I would so love to know what transpired with the attorney general please? This is an outrage and beyond. I will go to my credit union tomorrow and ask what can be legally done to these people now that they have all my bank information. Very tacky explanations and no customer service. I feel blackmailed!

freecreditreport.com...great now the song is stuck in my head ...gosh!

Ms. Alice Latorre, You can put me on your contact list?

I had a $10.00 check declined? It was a bonus check from Walmart-Discover card. Walmarts machine said i submitted the wrong social security #? The clerk and I each tried it several times with no success? They called certegy who I then talked to and was told to take it somewhere to cash? I made a number of calls to certegy who said that I submitted a wrong social security #. I told them Walmart-Discover card told me to have Walmart and certegy call them and they said they would clear the matter up. Certegy said they wern't able to make outside calls? Now the bottom line, as I see is, certegy is abusing Walmart customers. Walmart does nothing about. In this day and age, we are all in jeopardy of having our lives destroyed, because people like Walmart are more interested in the bottom line than any thing else. I suggest we, independantly, take action by writing to the better business bureau, the attorney general of your state and all three credit bureaus also write to your city, state and federal legislators. I willbe writing to the manager of the Walmart in question and advise him that I will no longer patronize his store. There are stores a little away. As far as I'm concerned it is all Walmarts responsibility? As you can see, certegy is irresoponsible. Twice I spoke to the people and they came off arrogant and unconcerned. Please, folks, don't let let them crap all over us.

I was shopping at Academy today in Lufkin, Texas and my check was denied. I am 59 years old and have never had a check denied in my lifetime. This was very embarrasing not to mention that it totally 100% PISSED me off. I called the telephone number on the card they gave me, only to receive an automated voice which PISSED me off even more. I asked the store to hold my purchases until tomorrow however, I think I'll shop at BASS PRO SHOP or Wal-Mart to buy the life jackets and fishing supplies I had intended to purchase at Academy. TOO MUCH HASSLE. 6-9-2010

I work for a major retailer, and we got rid of Certegy for just the reason you listed. They decline checks for no reason at all!

If you have an attorney that told you that filing chapter 7 is going to clear up records on bad checks that you have written, I would check into retaining another attorney or perhaps reading the laws yourself. Checks you wrote in good faith that were worthless do not represent an extension of credit that you are relieved of and their record isn't automatically erased. You may have relief from debt collectors who purchased the worthless paper but there are no laws that say a merchant must take your check because you think you are entitled. Chapter 7 also hammered your credit score and creditors are not legally required to extend you any credit. Also, I assure you that check verification companies never tell the merchants why they are declining your checks. The cashier or manager may have been speculating on the reason your check was declined, likely based on information you gave them while stating your argument.
Certegy isn't checking bank balances when you are punched into the register. It's checking your drivers license number and checking account number to see if you are on a blacklist. This list is composed of anyone who has a bounced a check with any check verification company (they all work together) and a few other bad debt situations like abandoned bank accounts with negative balances. This would put you at or near the top of the list. So if you arrived in a limo with President Obama and he stood up giving a thumbs up while you presented a $2.00 government check with your drivers license, the check would be declined even though the account has billions of dollars in it. These companies also flag customers for excessively large checks and multiple checks written in a short period of time. These aren't declined but are required to be called in on a telephone for approval. During this process, the name on the license is matched to the check and your bank is called for for an actual available funds inquiry. They are never legally required to take your check under any circumstances.
It's easy to blame a store, but understand this... Checks are like IOU's and stores have received millions of dollars of worthless ones. Certegy charges stores a small percentage of the amount of each check written to back those checks. In other words, if a Certegy approved check bounces, they pay the store and become the new owners of the worthless paper and try to collect on it themselves. Having said this, the rules of the game are that the store can only accept checks approved by Certegy and it must be electronically approved or a manual valid approval code entered at the register. In other words, if Certegy declines your check, the store has no possible way to complete the transaction on the register. There is no "trust me" or "take my word for it" or "I have a billion dollars in the bank" or "I filed bankruptcy" bypass for you.
Here's a tip for ya... If you have the money in the bank, just whip out your ATM card, swipe it and be on your way. I'm sure the customers in line behind you would appreciate it as well. You'll have your stuff, the store will have it's money and everyone will be happy except Certegy whom won't make a nickel on the deal!
In your case, I would strongly suggest abandoning check usage altogether as it doesn't seem to be your forte. No intelligent business person is legally required absorb your future debts as your financial misfortune enters into round two because you perhaps feel that you will always have Chapter 13 to turn to next. It's nothing personal against you, just sound financial business advice based on your past performance with check writing. If your intent is to use Chapter 7 for the purpose it was intended, then the changes must start with you, not everyone else involved.

The exact same thing happened to me at a Shaws (known as Albertson's in other states). I have had a courtesy card with them for years. My check was declined and I was given a card to call. These people are nightmares. I was told that I "fit one of their profiles" from a "risk module that they designed". I asked for the reason and was told they couldn't tell me for privacy reasons. They also told me there were no negative issues in my file. I told them that according to their card I was handed, per the Fair Credit Reporting Act, they have to tell me..even after speaking to a Supervisor I was told no...but they did elevate authorization on my account.

I was humiliated and they have established a problem with my checks with this store, which they had no valid reason to give me.

I am notifying our Attorney General, I am in Connecticut and Mr. Blumenthal investigates everything. I also believe that a class action suit should be taken against this company.

Any ideas on what to do?

Thank you

I went to publix on Dec. 20 to make a purchase, I submit a check for 27.88 and I have told that the check was declined cause they dound a bad check on file under my DL# but with a different name . I called and spoke to representatives they told me that they removed it but they never did . does anyone know an good attorney to take care of that for me please ?

all the websites try to make us fall on them through their attracting ads..people please i request you dont waste your hard earned money spending waste in believing this ads...

I went to an emercency vet on sunday ..my dog was very sick ..i gave them a check 2, 220.00and they put it through to certegy ...well they denied my check so i had to bring my dog home and in the middle of the night my dog passed away ...so what do i do now