Complaint Review: Certegy Check Services - Tampa Florida

I use an out-of-state bank because I also get my car insurance through them and I get a good deal. My paychecks are direct deposited but once a month I get a bonus check which I normally cash at Wal-Mart. I was out of work for 3 weeks and received a check from the state Employment Department, which (by the way) does NOT indicate fron which bank the account is drawn.

It was evening and banks were closed so I went to Wal-Mart – where I always go. They know me in there. The cashier (who must have been in a bad mood) refused to cash my check because the "JR" was missing from the end of my name on the check. The address and everything else matched my driver's license. I complained to the manager but got nowhere. 

Being used to getting paid weekly and having had no pay for 3 weeks, I had only $5 left in my bank account so I really needed that money. I had just been called back to work and needed to gas the pickup to get there! Fred Meyer was close, so I went there to cash the check. They were happy to do it, despite the missing "JR" because the address matched my DL. However, when the gentleman ran it through the system, he got a message declining the check. He handed me the phone number for Certegy and told me I would need to call them to find out why they wouldn't cash the check.

Upon calling Certegy, I was asked for my name, phone number, social security number, etc. I also gave them the check number, routing and account numbers, check amount, and who issued the check. After searching the system and NOT FINDING ANYTHING, I was told that the check was declined because I had apparently done something out of the ordinary when cashing the check but other than that, it was not my fault that the check was declined.

All I could figure was that since I normally cash checks at Wal-Mart, a flag went up because I was using Fred Meyer instead of Wal-Mart. Desperately needing the money, I decided to drive across town to the other Wal-Mart. The cashier there attempted to cash the check but also received a message declining the check.

Once again, I called Certegy. Once again they couldn't find the check in their system. BUT again I was told that it was nothing I had done that caused the check to be declined. The man on the phone couldn't seem to answer any of my questions. He did tell me not to attempt to cash the check anywhere that uses Certegy because they are all linked. I fortunately found someone to give me a ride to work the next day.

I called the issuing agency the next day to find out where I could cash this check. When I explained to the agent what had happened, she informed me that since Certegy had flagged the check, I would not find ANYONE to cash it – even a bank. My only option was to take the check back to the agency so they could do an automatic deposit into my checking account. (They didn't do this originally because they always send a paper check out the first time when you qualify for unemployment.) 

My wife was able to borrow from a relative to cover the check until we get the money. Otherwise, we would be in BIG trouble. All because this Certegy company (which I'd never even heard of before) decided to flag my state-issued unemployment check. What a hassle and a heartache. Their "foolishness" ended up costing me a lot in fuel with all the running around I had to do, JUST to get money I am entitled to.

I think Certegy is bad news.