Say you currently have $1,000 in your account and want to write a certified check for $1,100. The bank will not verify the check even if you are scheduled to get paid $3,000 in a few days. [1] X Research source
Sometimes credit unions and smaller banks offer lower fees, so you can choose to shop around and compare prices. But if you don’t already bank there, you may not be able to get a check certified at that location anyway.
If you anticipate a lot of problems or have questions, you can call the bank ahead of time to schedule an appointment.
When you leave the bank, your balance may appear as $20,000, but if you just certified a check for $5,000, only $15,000 will be available for your use.
Alternatively, you can deliver your check by hand or mail it using standard mail, but you won’t have a written record of its receipt if you use these methods.
You can also call the payee to confirm, but this method is less reliable.
If you trust the payee, and they inform you that they lost the certified check, you will also need to report this to your bank before writing them a new check.
