How to deal with bad checks?

I shoot a lot of team and individual youth sports where the parents pay for packages for posed shots of their kids sports teams and individual kids shots.

Maybe it's a sign of the times but here lately I've been getting quite a bit of checks returned because of lack of funds. I have to pay the bank a service charge plus I end up giving the pictures away for free.

In the past I've only gotten a couple of these here and there and I've just ignored them but now it's costing me a noticeable amount of money.

Just wondering if anyone has had to deal with this situation and if so what to you generally do. Should I call the person who wrote the check and hassle them or what?

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks

Simply: take cash.

don't take checks

Call them. If they don't make good + fees go to the police. It would be a shame to be hauled into court for a few $$, but sometimes that is what it takes.

Not taking checks is not realistic in most cases when dealing with leagues of hundreds of kids/parents. I charge a $20 fee on top of what the check was for bad checks, and that's exactly what my bank charges me for there service charge so not trying to make money off it. Most of the time it's just an honest mistake or the banks infamous business practices of doing all debits before deposits so if you're close you get the fine.

Biggest problem of course is collecting the money from them, I'll send out a notice to them but who knows if they'll pay. I still have one from last year still need to settle up but the parent said he wants to meet on a weekend and I'm not usually around on them so it keeps getting put off. Others have not paid at all and just not worth going after usually - however there are a few collection agencies out there you can use (link below). Only happens every so often though and would say at least 80-90% of parents pay with a check.

http://www.acainternat​ional.org/Default.aspx

A waiting period for the check to clear is a good idea. You are still out the bank fees if it bounces but you at least minimize your loss by not printing photos before you actually have the money.

Luckily, I've not had any bad checks yet but my bank is very reasonable about reversing bank fees.

Make sure you have an address for the people. Send a bill for the images plus the dishonour fee and a service fee to cover your time. Find a polite way to say any unpaid bills are sent to a debt collection agency 30 days after the date the invoice is sent.

jdouglas003 wrote in post #7625080
ust wondering if anyone has had to deal with this situation and if so what to you generally do. Should I call the person who wrote the check and hassle them or what?

Thanks

Of course you should call them and request payment.
You needn't "hassle them", just respectfully let them know the check was returned to you, and you'd appreciate prompt payment of the original invoice, as well as the associated returned check fee.

In the future, on any reciept you provide to your customer, you may want state a flat fee for bounced checks, and get more than one phone number to reach them if necessary.

As far as I know, non-payment for services like photography is a civil matter. You can call the police, but unless there is a physical item that has been stolen without compensation (and evidence supporting the claim) then I am not sure what they will do besides maybe filing a complaint (which you will probably want to do if you intend to purse the matter in court later).

If you're getting a LOT of bounced checks (as you said) then switching to other forms of payment seems like an obvious next step :-/

Hassling them is a bad idea. Its going to eat up your time, make you (even more) upset and probably won't be any more effective than alternatives like hiring a 3rd party collector or filing in small claims court.

Tarzanman wrote in post #7626043
As far as I know, non-payment for services like photography is a civil matter. You can call the police, but unless there is a physical item that has been stolen without compensation (and evidence supporting the claim) then I am not sure what they will do besides maybe filing a complaint (which you will probably want to do if you intend to purse the matter in court later).

If you're getting a LOT of bounced checks (as you said) then switching to other forms of payment seems like an obvious next step :-/

Hassling them is a bad idea. Its going to eat up your time, make you (even more) upset and probably won't be any more effective than alternatives like hiring a 3rd party collector or filing in small claims court.

Although photography is a service, aren't the physical prints and lack of payment a criminal matter instead of a civil one?

I'm not a cop, or a lawyer. That said, I would think that the answer to your question is yes.

...but in practicality, I think that unless you live in a relatively quiet town that you're going to have a hard time getting law enforcement to move quickly or make an arrest based on a failed transaction involving a bounced check for (presumably) ~$300 or under.

If you're doing it locally, why not pay the offender a visit?

JasonBr wrote in post #7626617
If you're doing it locally, why not pay the offender a visit?

Could result in physical confrontation...

Tarzanman wrote in post #7626043
As far as I know, non-payment for services like photography is a civil matter. You can call the police, but unless there is a physical item that has been stolen without compensation (and evidence supporting the claim) then I am not sure what they will do besides maybe filing a complaint (which you will probably want to do if you intend to purse the matter in court later).

If you're getting a LOT of bounced checks (as you said) then switching to other forms of payment seems like an obvious next step :-/

Hassling them is a bad idea. Its going to eat up your time, make you (even more) upset and probably won't be any more effective than alternatives like hiring a 3rd party collector or filing in small claims court.

In most states a bad check is a crime. I used to be a cop in ky and it was called "theft by deception". Depending on the amount determined if it was a misdemeanor or a felony.

I am a pi in indiana now and it is also a crime in this state.

Tarzanman wrote in post #7626567
I'm not a cop, or a lawyer. That said, I would think that the answer to your question is yes.

...but in practicality, I think that unless you live in a relatively quiet town that you're going to have a hard time getting law enforcement to move quickly or make an arrest based on a failed transaction involving a bounced check for (presumably) ~$300 or under.

In most cases they will take a theft report and submit it to the prosecutor for charges. The prosecutor will either issue a warrant or a subpoena to appear in court, most likely based on the amount of the checks are for.