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Demand for Payment of NSF Check (South Africa)
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Non-sufficient fund cheques, also known as NSF checks, bounced checks, or "bad checks", are a common problem for companies and individuals. There may be a number of reasons, either intentional or unintentional, why a check does not have sufficient funds for its payment. Some of these reasons may be such things as account closures, temporary holds on funds in the account, bank error, fraud, and a number of other reasons ranging from honest mistakes to criminal activities.In most jurisdictions, the writer of an NSF check will face some consequences. These vary from extra fees levied by the writer's financial institution to various civil and possibly even criminal consequences. There may also be consequences initiated by the intended recipient of the check, such as a demand letter or legal action, or refusal to accept any more checks from the writer. Merchants may also report the writer to a national database such as TeleChek which helps alert other merchants and banks of bad check writers.
One of the simplest ways for a merchant to address an NSF check, and start initiating its recovery, is with a demand letter (Demand for Payment of NSF Check). This is a legal document which essentially states that the recipient of the bad check is demanding payment of the money owed. It frequently includes the complete contact information of both parties, and may also include details such as the date, number, and amount of the check, and the reason that was given for denial of the check. If the check writer still does not settle the balance owing, and the recipient wishes to pursue legal action to recover the money, a demand letter can also provide proof in court that the check writer did not attempt to resolve the issue.