Uncashed paycheck 13 years old
Under US law, a bank is not obligated to honor a check that is more than six months old. § 4-404. BANK NOT OBLIGED TO PAY CHECK MORE THAN SIX MONTHS OLD. A bank is under no obligation to a customer having a checking account to pay a check, other than a certified check, which is presented more than six months after its date, but it may charge its customer's account for a payment made thereafter in good faith. Note the law says the bank is not OBLIGATED to honor the check, but they are not forbidden from doing so. I don't have a survey on this, but I think most banks won't honor a check after more than 6 months to a year. I've had a few occasions where early in the year someone accidentally wrote the previous year on a check, like on January 10, 2017 they dated the check January 10, 2016, and the bank has given me a hard time about cashing it. The statute of limitations to challenge payment or non-payment of a check is 6 years: § 3-118. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS. (b) Except as provided in subsection (d) or (e), if demand for payment is made to the maker of a note payable on demand, an action to enforce the obligation of a party to pay the note must be commenced within six years after the demand.  I understand your frustration about being denied money that you presumably worked for and earned. But look at it from the other side. Suppose you wrote a check to someone, and years later they still had not cashed it. At some point you'd want to be able to clear this off your bank account. What if you want to close the account? What happens when you die? Would your heirs have to keep this account open for years ... decades ... centuries ... on the possibility that someday someone will cash this check? Realistically, there has to be SOME time limit. 6 months should be plenty of time for someone to make it to the bank with a check. If the company still exists then you could argue they have a MORAL obligation to pay you. If they have records that show that they did indeed give you this check and you never cashed it there'd be no question that you were trying to cheat them. But a moral obligation and a legal obligation are two different things. Legally, they paid you, and it's your problem that you failed to cash the check. You could talk to a lawyer, but if you live in the US, I think you are out of luck. (Of course other countries have different laws.) Even going to small claims court the burden would be on you to prove that they never paid you. The 13 year gap would be the core of the argument by the company that they have no obligation to keep records from 13 years ago. That is far longer than they need to keep them for tax purposes.  Even if they sent you a replacement check the next year, that happened to me once, the record of that transaction would have been 12 years ago. The bank will not cash it because of the date being 13 years ago. As we move forward with more and more of the checks being deposited via phone/scanner the banks will be even less likely to handle stale checks because the fact you have the check in your hand doesn't mean it wasn't cashed. "If this is in the United States, there are laws governing business behavior when they have recorded expenses (checks, bills, etc) which are never withdrawn or deposited.  A business is required to turn over these funds after a certain time frame to the state government as a part of their business tax cycle.  (One caveat- these laws vary in age by state, and 13 years is a long time.  You might still be out of luck for an amount so old..) There are even businesses which have cropped up to search for ""lost money"" (for a fee, of course) that your great uncle might have left behind and which now sits in a government holding account somewhere.  It's not necessary to go through the third parties though, because the United States posts this information for the world to see.  A good starting place is: USA.gov Unclaimed Money Tool Do as much legwork there as you can.  You could even attempt to contact the former employer (you said the business accounts still exist) and in a very friendly, non-confrontational manner ask them what their procedures are and would have happened to your paycheck funds.  As others have stated, they are under no legal obligation whatsoever to fix your problem for you, but who knows, you could get lucky and they might voluntarily help you out!  You're looking for information not cash, so politeness, patience and understanding are your tools. If all else fails, you could try one of these 3rd party services.  Here you run into diminishing returns as paying fees to search for money which might not exist just puts you further in the red."
I wish I could up vote your comment more. I think that a lot of people do not understand that kids held minimum wage jobs that paid minimum wages, but adults received more money. At some point kids stopped working as much and adults kept or took over what was traditionally a kids first job. Those first jobs like working at McDonald's were never meant to be the only job a person had. "Well, primarily because that's fraud and fraud prevents a debtor from receiving a discharge in bankruptcy court.  Fraud would be pretty easy to prove if you didn't have an income change and you have several lines of credit opened on and around the same day with almost no payments made toward them.  Additionally, thanks to the reforms of the bankruptcy code, if your income exceeds the median income of your state you'll be forced in to a Chapter 13 and committed to a repayment plan that allocates all of your ""disposable income"" to your creditors. Now if whoever posted that will attempt to simply not pay then negotiate repayment plans with their creditors the process will last far longer than 7 years.  It takes a long time to be in default for enough time that a consumer creditor will negotiate the debt and this is assuming the creditor doesn't sue you and get a judgement which could apply liens to any property you may own.  The judgment(s) will likely cause you to pursue bankruptcy anyway; only now you're at least a few years beyond the point at which you ruined your credit." "Bankruptcy should be your last option, and you will find that BK will not resolve most of your problems, and create many more problems. There are two kinds of BK that are available to the average person, Ch13 debt repayment and Ch7 liquidation.  Both have severe repercussions and lasting effects on your credit (7-10 years, after discharge). And the calculations required under the 2005 BAPCPA are complex and may require help to understand. Ch7 liquidation is the more severe course, and the trustee would liquidate assets that exceed exemptions (vary by state) to pay your creditors. Ch13 debt repayment is hard, and only 20-25% of those who pursue that route complete the debt repayment plan.  Your credit score for either course would suffer greatly (200-250 points) and would remain reduced for years, especially since you would have to rebuild credit. And the law is flawed both in design and execution as there is no reward for successful debt repayment, few finish their repayment plan (20-25%), the mean recovery for unsecured creditors in repayment is zero (thus does not help creditors), and leaves the debtor with damaged credit for years (not a fresh start). Although you may have made some decisions that have placed you in a difficult position, you can find solutions to resolve these problems. You may find that simply learning to make better choices will improve your situation. Take a financial education course (such as the Dave Ramsey course), and learn how to budget, and make better choices. The LearnVest website offers a simple way to budget by dividing budgeting into only three (3) categories with suggested percentages for each, essentials (<50%), financial priorities (>20%), and lifestyle (<30%). The damage to your credit from the derogatory effects of BK would linger for years, but the damage from poor payment history declines much quicker, and loses most of the effect after 2 years (and should you keep the accounts open, leaves you with good history and longer account history), thus the effects decline to minimal after as little as 2 years of good behavior/payment history. Make a plan that prioritizes the debts, and how you will resolve the problem, and work the plan.  Based upon the income and debts you mention, the situation you have may not be as bad as it appears. You may be getting bad advice, especially from a debt settlement company that might be more interested in their fees than in your problem. Since you ""want to play fair and continue with payments, but when people start to get greedy like this I am ready to just stop caring"", you really need two things, a plan, and a friend, someone who you can talk to honestly and openly, and who can support you as you work through the plan you make. Since you ""would prefer the option that will give me the most peace of mind and allow me to start saving money as soon as possible"", you need to find an approach that fits your goals.  Your statement that you ""don't plan on ever using credit again"", fits with the Dave Ramsey philosophy and resonates with many of us who have learned that those who grant credit are often harsh masters. Now that you have provided more information, the advice below expands upon the above reflecting upon your specific situation. Since you make $62K/year, you may be close to the median income, and the BAPCPA (Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005) has a presumption of abuse for filing Ch7 when you have above median income (for your state, check the law). As you may be pushed into Ch13 debt repayment anyway, examine what you could do to repay the debt (over 5 years, 60 months, as that would be a Ch13 repayment duration). Since you have $8K of revolving (unsecured?) debt, that would be repaid in Ch13 over 60 months at about $133/month (no interest), but you would also be paying 10% to the trustee.  There might be some portion of your auto debt which is unsecured, and also be repaid unsecured, suppose that is $3000.  That would add another $50/month to the plan. The car could be repaid over 60 months (including interest), so you might be repaying $300/month for the car (estimate), although the payment could be higher or lower depending upon how much of the value of the car is unsecured.  The trustee might object that the car is too expensive (depends upon the value, and the trustee), and require be liquidated. Since BK excludes relief for student loans, you might find yourself paying the student loans at the same payment. Your $62K income suggests that you have about $4200/month (guess, after taxes).  The mortgage payment is higher than 25% ($1050-1100 would be ideal for your income).  But after your mortgage payment you should still have about $3900.  Even with $300 for credit card debt, $500 for car, and $400 for student loans (guessing), that leaves $2700 for essentials (utilities, food), lifestyle (cellphone, entertainment), and savings. You might find a friend who is good at budgeting who would be willing to help you craft a budget and be your ""responsibility partner"" to help you stick to the budget. Here is a sample plan (your mileage may vary), Essentials (50%, $2100): $2180 Financial (30%, 1230): $1250 Lifestyle (20%, 840): $500 (pick up slack here, as you have high debt load)" When I was 18 in 1983, someone making $3.35 minimum wage full-time also could not afford a 2-bedroom apartment in any state. This is why most young people making minimum wage get roommates or live in some sort of communal housing or just live at home with their parents. If you are in your 40s and still making minimum wage, then there are other problems at play. Why don't you get a better serving job?  If you have all those years of experience why not bartend at a local or try for PF changs or Cheesecake Factory or something?  I'm not trying to be snarky, I've got 13 years in the trenches myself. I just wouldn't work at a tgichilibees at my age or with my experience unless I was on some real hard times. The solution is clear: You need to find a second job and work on the weekends and use that to pay off your debt.  You're only 25, you need to scrimp every ounce of your extra energy and pay off your debts by age 30.  You can do it by working a second job, and by working harder at your current job and getting promotions and raises. The two do not imply that they are connected. The statement above states that there are plenty of people who graduated and are around 21-25. Then the next statement explains that people who graduated make 100k+ - it doesnt mean they are 21-25.....it just means they achieved two objectives at separate times. A fourteen-year-old can invest a few thousand into commuting to a part-time job or an education. If you can wait five years for a couple hundred you can wait two to four years for a car (or gas money) or a class (or some textbooks.) This is not your problem and you should not try to fix it. If your employer paid money into someone else's account instead of yours they should ask their bank to reverse it and should pay you your wages while they are waiting for this to be done. No bank will let you do anything about money paid by someone else into an account that is not yours, or give you details of someone else's account. I wouldn't be too concerned, yet.  You're young.  Many young people are living longer in the family home.  See this Guardian article: Young adults delay leaving family home.  You're in good company.  Yet, there will come a time when you ought to get your own place, either for your own sanity or your parents' sanity.  You should be preparing for that and building up your savings. Since you've got an income, you should – if you're not already – put away some of that money regularly.  Every time you get paid, make a point of depositing a portion of your income into a savings or investment account.  Look up the popular strategy called Pay Yourself First. Since you still live at home, it's possible you're a little more loose with spending money than you should be – at least, I've found that to be the case with some friends who lived at home as young adults.  So, perhaps pretend you're on your own.  What would your rent be if you had to find a place of your own?  If, say, £600 instead of the £200 you're currently paying, then you should reduce your spending to the point where you can save at least £400 per month.  Follow a budget. With respect to your car, it's great you recognize your mistake.  We're human and we can learn from our mistakes.  Plan to make it your one and only car mistake.  I made one too. With respect to your credit card debt, it's not an insurmountable amount.  Focus on getting rid of that debt soon and then focus on staying out of debt.  The effective way to use credit cards is to never carry a balance – i.e. pay it off in full each month.  If you can't do that, you're likely overspending. Also, look at what pensions your employer might offer. If they offer matching contributions, contribute at least as much to maximize the tax free extra pay this equates to. If you have access to a defined benefit plan, join it as soon as you are eligible. Last, I think it's important to recognize that at age 23 you're just starting out.  Much of your career income earning potential is ahead of you.  Strive to be the best at what you do, get promotions, and increase your income.  Meanwhile, continue to save a good portion of what you earn.  With discipline, you'll get where you want to be. With a credit card debt at 17%, you should basically not eat in order to pay the balance off.  This should be gone within the month.   That being said, I would have a hard time reducing my contributions below the 4%, but would certainly do it to the 4%.  However, I would also deliver pizzas on nights and weekends and work all available overtime.  Coincidentally the pizza place by my home is hiring delivery drivers however, they did not disclose how much they typically make.  Only that they make min wage plus tips. Make sure you stop borrowing first, then try to have this knocked out in 4 weeks or less. "First off learn from this:  Never cosign again.  There are plenty of other ""tales of woe"" outlined on this site that started and ended similarly. Secondly do what you can to get off of the loan.  First I'd go back to her dad and offer him $1000 to take you off the loan and sign over the car.  Maybe go up to $3000 if you have that much cash.  If that doesn't work go to the bank and offer them half of the loan balance to take you off.  You can sign a personal loan for that amount (maybe).  Whatever it takes to get off the loan.  If she has a new BF offer him the same deal as the dad. Why do you have to do this?  Because you owned an asset that was once valued at 13K and is valued at (probably) less than 4K.  Given that you have a loan on it the leverage works against you causing you to lose more money.  The goal now is to cut your losses and learn from your mistakes.     I feel like the goal of your post was to make your ex-gf look bad.  It's more important to do some self examination.  If she was such a bad person why did you date her?  Why did you enter a business transaction with her?  I'd recommend seeking counseling on why you make such poor choices and to help you avoid them in the future. Along these lines I'd also examine your goals in life.  If your desire is to be a wealthy person, then why would you borrow money to buy a car?  Seek to imitate rich people to become rich.  Picking the right friends and mates is an important part of this.   If you do not have a desire to be a wealthy person what does it matter?  Losing 13K over seven months is a small step in the ""right"" direction." "I disagree with BrenBran, I don't think this is qualified as unreimbursed employee expense. For it to qualify, it has to be ordinary and necessary, and specifically - necessary for your employer. This is not the case for you, as there's no such necessity. From employer's perspective, you can work from your home just as well. In fact, the expense is your personal, as it is your choice, not ""unreimbursed employee expense"" since your employer didn't even ask you to do it. You should clarify this with a licensed tax adviser (EA/CPA licensed in New York)." "My education on this topic at this age range was a little more free-form. We were given a weeklong project in the 6th grade, which I remember pretty clearly:  Fast forward 6 years (we were 12). You are about to be kicked out of   your parents' house with the clothes on your back, $1,000 cash in your   pocket, your high school diploma, and a ""best of luck"" from your   parents. That's it. Your mission is to not be homeless, starving and   still wearing only the clothes on your back in 3 months. To do this, you will find an apartment, a job (you must meet the qualifications fresh out of high school with only your diploma; no college, no experience), and a means of transportation. Then,   you'll build a budget that includes your rent, estimated utilities,   gasoline (calculated based on today's prices, best-guess fuel mileage of the car, and 250% of the best-guess one-way distance between home and job), food (complete nutrition is not a must, but 2000cal/day is), toiletries, clothing, and anything else you want or   need to spend your paycheck or nest egg on. Remember that the laundromat isn't free, and neither is buying the washer/dryer yourself. Remember most apartments aren't furnished but do have kitchen appliances, and you can't say you found anything on the side of the road. The end product of your work will be a narrative report of the first   month of your new life, a budget for the full 3 months, plus a ""continuing"" budget for a typical month thereafter to prove you're not just lasting out the 3 months, and all supporting   evidence for your numbers, from newspaper clippings to in-store   mailers (the Internet and e-commerce were just catching on at the time, Craigslist and eBay didn't exist yet, and not everyone had home Internet to begin with).  Extra Credit: Make your budget work with all applicable income and   sales taxes. Extra Extra Credit: Have more than your original $1000 in the bank at   the end of the 3 months, after the taxes in the Extra Credit. This is a pretty serious project for a 12-year-old. Not only were we looking through the classified ads and deciphering all the common abbreviations, we were were taking trips to the grocery store with shopping lists, the local Wal-Mart or Target, the mall, even Goodwill. Some students had photos of their local gas station's prices, to which someone pointed out that their new apartment would be on the other side of town where gas was more expensive (smart kid). Some students just couldn't make it work (usually the mistakes were to be expected of middle-class middle-schoolers, like finding a job babysitting and stretching that out full-time, only working one job, buying everything new from clothes to furniture, thinking you absolutely need convenience items you can do without, and/or trying to buy the same upscale car your dad takes to work), though most students were able to provide at least a plausible before-tax budget. A few made the extra credit work, which was a lot of extra credit, because not only were you filling out a 1040EZ for your estimated income taxes, you were also figuring FICA and Social Security taxes which even some adults don't know the rates for, and remember, no Internet. Given that the extra-extra credit required you to come out ahead after taxes (good luck), I can't remember that anyone got that far. The meta-lesson that we all learned? Life without a college education is rough." "If you earn $160 a week for 26 weeks, are unable to claim yourself, have no other income at all, you will earn $4,160, which falls under the standard deduction, in your case a bit over $4,500; per publication 17, it is $350 above your earned income, to a maximum of $6300 as of 2016.  (H/t Hart CO for the reminder.) In that case, if you paid no taxes (at all) last year (either did not file or filed and had 0 tax paid, so got a 100% refund), you could legitimately claim ""exempt"" by writing that on line 7.   However, you would be very close to owing taxes, so if you have any unearned income (interest from bank accounts, dividends from your non-sheltered college fund, etc.), you would possibly owe taxes.  You're also going to owe taxes if you have another ~$2150 of earned income from any other source (including things like mowing lawns, tutoring, etc.). Keep all of that in mind if you have any other sources of income other than the above."