Why You Should Stop Mailing Checks, Especially Now
If you’re mailing checks to your landlord or utility provider, it’s time to look for another way to pay your bills. Check fraud and mail theft nearly doubled between 2021 and 2022 , affecting hundreds of thousands of Americans, according to reports from the Financial Crime Enforcement Network and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Criminals take subtle actions to cash checks — steal them in the mail, change the name of the recipient and the amount of the payment — and defraud banks to cash them. This often includes creating fake identities using stolen personal information and then opening fraudulent bank accounts and issuing new checks. Some sell copies of washed checks online , or use stolen mailbox keys to pick up checks directly from pickup locations.
While banks are returning checks for lost money to fraud victims, the AP reports that the process is slower than usual due to a significant increase in fraud cases.
Fewer Americans write and mail checks, but it’s still fairly common. Here’s how to minimize your chance of becoming a victim.
Request an alternative payment method
If you’re writing checks for a business that offers another payment method —with a debit or credit card, an ACH or EFT transaction, or a service like PayPal, Zelle, or Venmo—you should almost certainly use one of these instead. . You generally have better fraud protection and visibility into the recipient of the transaction. Some businesses also work with electronic checks , eliminating the need to mail a paper check.
If these options aren’t available yet, but you have a personal relationship, like with a landlord, you can probably convince them to consider a check alternative. It is safer for you and for them: checks can be not only stolen, but also lost or returned. You can also serve checks if the recipient is local.
How to protect mailed checks, if needed
If you absolutely must mail a check, take every precaution to minimize the risk of it being raised and washed away. Don’t leave checks in your home mailbox with the flag up. Don’t even use an outdoor collection box (and if you do, check the pickup time so your mail doesn’t sit up all night). Ideally, bring your check to the post office and drop it directly into the mailbox in the lobby or give it to a USPS officer. This minimizes the few points where people can steal from you.
Once you’ve mailed a check, keep an eye on your bank account until you’re sure it’s been received and cashed by the intended recipient. Sign up for transaction notifications where available so you can detect suspicious activity as soon as it happens, as you may only have 30-60 days to report fraud and request a refund.
Finally, consider sending checks by certified mail or FedEx to require the recipient’s signature. While this won’t prevent theft, it will at least raise an alarm if your check isn’t delivered as expected.