TCF Bank TCF charges 3% of check amount to cash a check for non-customers. Fraser, MI Nationwide

Why didn't your customer just go down to the bank and withdraw the cash.  After all if he was as furious as you were claiming, he would be going to go close his account out anyways, so taking another 30 seconds to get $900 of that in cash should have been a no brainer.  You could have provided him with a receipt that would have been better than a cancelled check.

As for the fee...just like you they are taking a risk.  Yes, even though it shows they have enough money, if the account holder comes back at a later time and says it wasn't their check the bank may have to "eat it", so to speak.  

But one must ask why don't you accept Credit/Debit Cards?  He could have given you the debit card tied to his account and you could have swiped it right there for an instant approval.  You wouldn't have even had to drive down to the bank to do this.

But you say...oh the fees.  Yea, how much do you make an hour?  Say you charge $80/hr to your clients.  Say then it takes you 30 minutes to drive, go to their bank, cash the check, and then go to your bank to do the deposit....that is $40 in "labor" you are spending to cash this check...even if it was free.  There are many readers that plug right into your smart phone and charge about 2.5-2.75%.  On $900...that would have been about $24.75.

You do the math for the REAL costs of cashing a check.

Oh and if that $900 was for anything more than just getting the supplies, as a customer I would be more pissed at you than the bank.