Cheque-cashing loophole hooks consumers in fraud
17.06.2008 14:00
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- Source: cbc.ca
A Vancouver MP wants to close a loophole that allows cheque-cashing businesses to sue victims of fraud after they have cancelled a cheque. The NDP's Libby Davies planned to table a private member's bill Monday after Money Mart threatened a Vancouver couple with legal action for cancelling a cheque they wrote to a fraudulent repairman. In April Stan Green contacted a skylight repair company about the leaky roof on his Point Grey home. His wife wrote a postdated cheque to cover the repairs, but shortly afterwards the Greens learned something was up.
'This change is way overdue. I wonder why the government didn't introduce this change themselves. This is not a new problem.' --William D. Add your comment The company's phone number didn't work and the Greens found a warning on the RCMP website that the contractor was a fraud, so the couple cancelled the cheque with the bank. But a few days later they realized their problems were not over yet. “We get a phone call from Money Mart demanding a thousand dollars, plus problems because the cheque had been refused, and they were going to sue if we didn't put the money up right away,” Green told the CBC. It's all because of a century-old federal banking law that allows businesses to go after the person who wrote the cancelled cheque. The repairman cashed the cheque, and when Money Mart discovered the stop payment, it went after the Greens, rather than the repairman, to get the money back, Green told the CBC. Nobody from Money Mart was available for an interview, but Davies told the CBC the law that allows this to happen needs to be changed. “My bill would prevent the cashing of cheques, by businesses like Money Mart, when the person who wrote it, had cancelled it,” said Davies. The MP for Vancouver East is proposing to amend the law to force businesses like Money Mart to verify the validity of cheques before cashing them, and to prevent them from going after people like the Greens. RelatedInternal LinksSupreme Court rules payday loan lawsuit can proceedConsumer HeadlinesMexican state cleared in tainted tomatoes probeOne part of Mexico — Baja California — has been cleared of suspicion in the outbreak of salmonella-tainted tomatoes, which has sickened 277 people.Air Canada cutting 2,000 jobs, trimming capacityAir Canada said Tuesday it plans to eliminate 2,000 jobs and reduce its capacity as the company joins the list of airlines cutting back in the face of higher fuel prices.Summerside ponders buy-local policyThe City of Summerside is considering working the value of purchasing from local firms into its tendering process.Coffee drinking not harmful and may help against heart disease: studyDrinking copious amounts of coffee is not harmful to your health, and particularly if you're a woman, may actually protect you from heart disease, new research suggests.Honda rolls out new zero-emission fuel cell carA new zero-emission, hydrogen fuel cell car rolled off a Honda production line in Japan on Monday and is headed to southern California. Consumer Life FeaturesIN DEPTHOnline CanadianaIf you list it will they buy it?TRENDSBest brandsToyota, Google world's most reputable companiesVIDEOTravelBackpacking in Europe (5:51)BLOGFood BytesBLOGComm-OdditiesSegway sales surge as pump prices risePeople who read this also read …
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