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You can no longer pay cheques into the Post Office

(22 Posts)
Allira Thu 12-Mar-26 20:12:01

lixy

Thanks 25Avalon. Life seems hell bent on getting as complicated as possible doesn’t it, with little thought for the customer.
Do hope your cheque arrives safely.

Every new initiative seems to be making life more so difficult for ordinary people.
Banks, the NHS, obtaining prescriptions etc etc.

Allira Thu 12-Mar-26 20:10:08

theworriedwell

David49

This is about risk a very large transfer between banks could take a long time to reverse and the Post office no longer accept that risk.
My own bank has just closed the local branch and I now need to scan cheques into the app then the intermediary is removed.
Thankfully I don't receive or write many cheques.

I can't remember last time I wrote or received a cheque.

Yes, I received one the other day. It was for such an insignificant amount I nearly shredded it but thought that I wasn't going to let the firm keep it.
Luckily we still have a bank here but not for much longer.

valdavi Thu 12-Mar-26 20:06:48

We've lost the bank here 5 years ago, the one in a neighbouring town 3 years ago and the one 6 miles away, this year.

But recently they have opened a banking hub in our town which all the main banks share. there are only certain days where you can discuss overdrafts, mortgages etc with your own bank's rep, but you can pay in cheques & cash to any high street bank account every day,which is a godsend for our business, as to get into the city to do this is probably a 1.5 to 2 hour commitment, and the nearest alternative is 23 miles away.

Hope more banking hubs crop up soon across the country.

NotAGran55 Thu 12-Mar-26 19:44:34

I deposited a rare business cheque for £3250 this week at the village post office , into an HSBC business account without any problems.

Grammaretto Thu 12-Mar-26 19:29:15

I haven't seen a cheque for a long time but I needed to transfer money from my late DH account to pay a large bill so turned up at the bank HQ after a long bus ride to the city centre.

First I was asked if I had an appointment.
When I said no I was told there'd be a long wait and did I want a coffee?

About 10 mins later I was invited into a cubicle where a young man (looked about 12) listened to my rather complicated story.
He couldn't deal with it and sent me to my solicitor, which luckily wasn't far away so I did that and he explained the problem but sent me straight back to the bank!

If only my local branch still operated, the helpful team would have dealt with it quickly, I am sure.

25Avalon Thu 12-Mar-26 19:12:47

Ladyleftfieldlover should you need to pay a large cheque into Lloyds bank you will have to go into your bank. Otherwise trust Royal Mail to deliver it.

Why I thought it was ageist is that the age group with the highest percentage of non mobile app users is probably that age group. Furthermore if you have a physical condition or have stopped driving you may not be able to hop on and off two buses and spend all day getting to your bank. Of course many of us are tech savvy.but I know many elderly who haven’t a clue how to download an app or even take a photo. Why do they make and sell simple phones that only send and receive texts and phone call. Bet they don’t sell many to the young.

Ladyleftfieldlover Thu 12-Mar-26 18:21:24

Of course it isn't ageist! My 93 year old uncle is tech savy and probably knows more than the 70 year olds of my acquaintance! In fact I only know one elderly person who refuses to use a computer. She is 78 and just won't have anything to do with them. I can remember in the 70s when decimal coinage came in. So many people thought 'old' people wouldn't be able to cope. Of course they did. Banks closing down is a problem but there are always ways of getting round this. Drive, bus, taxi, lift...I can't remember the last time I went in an actual bank.

Doodledog Thu 12-Mar-26 18:04:43

It's annoying, and poor customer service, but I don't understand why it's ageist?

Floradora9 Thu 12-Mar-26 16:50:43

We are no keen on paying cheches or cash via the post office as twice we have had the payment go missing . One was a cash deposit and one a cheque. We had to ask the person who wrote the check for another one and then months later the lost one was deposited in our account so we had to sort that out . Both times the Post office said it was not their blame.

lixy Thu 12-Mar-26 16:48:23

Thanks 25Avalon. Life seems hell bent on getting as complicated as possible doesn’t it, with little thought for the customer.
Do hope your cheque arrives safely.

25Avalon Thu 12-Mar-26 16:21:27

lixy

I don’t understand this, and really hope that it isn’t so.

I pay cheques in regularly via the Post Office to the Co-op bank They go, with a paying in slip, into the special envelope. Nowhere on the envelope do I have to say what the value of the cheque is, just how many cheques are enclosed.

If you bank with other banks do you have to declare the value of the cheques?

Hi Lixy you can no longer pay any Lloyds or Bank of Scotland cheques in via the Post Office. Hopefully this will not apply to the Co-op Bank and you will still be able to pay cheques in as usual. Maybe I should open a Co-op Bank account.You don't have to write the amount on the envelope.
My problem was that the cheque was for too large an amount to pay in via the mobile app and can only be paid in at a branch, if you can find one still open, or to put it in an envelope, write on Lloyds' freeppst address and post it in a Royal Mail Postbox. Keep fingets crossed it arrives safely!

ronib Thu 12-Mar-26 15:58:38

Life is even more complicated if you try to pay in an American dollar cheque to a bank. It really isn’t any fun being older and having to keep up with changes.

lixy Thu 12-Mar-26 15:48:41

I don’t understand this, and really hope that it isn’t so.

I pay cheques in regularly via the Post Office to the Co-op bank They go, with a paying in slip, into the special envelope. Nowhere on the envelope do I have to say what the value of the cheque is, just how many cheques are enclosed.

If you bank with other banks do you have to declare the value of the cheques?

Maremia Thu 12-Mar-26 15:12:38

Difficult for businesses though?

theworriedwell Thu 12-Mar-26 15:02:54

Jaxjacky

Santander have a limit of £5,000 per day.

I wouldn't mind having a problem of paying in more than £5k a day.

Jaxjacky Thu 12-Mar-26 14:52:33

Santander have a limit of £5,000 per day.

theworriedwell Thu 12-Mar-26 14:47:38

25Avalon

You won’t be able to do that David49 if your cheque is above a certain amount. It’s go to branch or post it.

Did they say what the limit is.

theworriedwell Thu 12-Mar-26 14:46:55

David49

This is about risk a very large transfer between banks could take a long time to reverse and the Post office no longer accept that risk.
My own bank has just closed the local branch and I now need to scan cheques into the app then the intermediary is removed.
Thankfully I don't receive or write many cheques.

I can't remember last time I wrote or received a cheque.

25Avalon Thu 12-Mar-26 14:44:09

You won’t be able to do that David49 if your cheque is above a certain amount. It’s go to branch or post it.

David49 Thu 12-Mar-26 13:25:23

This is about risk a very large transfer between banks could take a long time to reverse and the Post office no longer accept that risk.
My own bank has just closed the local branch and I now need to scan cheques into the app then the intermediary is removed.
Thankfully I don't receive or write many cheques.

yogitree Thu 12-Mar-26 13:10:41

It's the same with paper sterling. I tried to deposit an £100 note, but my mum had given it to me some years ago and it's now deemed unacceptable to the PO as they have to pay the banks to take these. Trying to find a nearby bank is impossible and takes a trip to the nearest large town to achieve this.

25Avalon Thu 12-Mar-26 13:06:13

I had a cheque to pay in that was too large to pay on Lloyd’s bank app which I have on my phone. So I filled in a paying in slip and enclosed it in the special paying in envelope which I took to the Post Office. It could not be accepted. I rang the bank and was told you can no longer pay any cheques into the PO. You must use the app. What if my cheque is higher? Then you must take it into branch. But you’ve closed all the branches down and my nearest is 6 miles away with no bus service. That is what you have to do and take proof of ID with you such as passport or driving licence for security.

They tried to say because everyone these days banks via the app or online. It still doesn’t answer if your cheque is more than the stipulated amount. My cheque was from HM Treasury who will only pay that way.

I asked why customers weren’t told and the reply was that it was on their website! The website also states as I discovered that you can put your cheque and details in an envelope and send it to a Freepost address. How secure is that?

So I am going on holiday soon and driving through a town with a branch and will pay my cheque in there - hopefully.

The bank were most unhelpful. I think it’s ageist. If anyone doesn’t have the app and can’t get into a branch they are stuck.