TELECHECK First Data Company Telecheck discriminates against honest check writers, causing stress and embarrassment Internet

I am a small business owner and work hard to maintain my financial health. To this end, I keep adequate funds in my account, have never written a bad check, and have an excellent credit rating.  These facts apparently do not always matter when people write checks at businesses that use Telecheck.

Recently, I suffered embarrassment and stress while trying to pay for my purchases at my local Home Depot and Auto Zone stores.  I am a very regular customer at Home Depot and have always paid for my purchases using a check.  In fact, the week before this incident occurred, I wrote a large check there with no problem.  Over the years, I have spent thousands of dollars at Home Depot and used a check for each and every purchase. 

I was shocked when, during a recent shopping trip at Home Depot, the cashier handed my $69 check back to me saying that it had been "denied.  When I asked her why, she just handed me a piece of paper with a reference number and a phone number on it for Telecheck and told me to call them.   I was very embarrassed, as there were people in line who knew me, and I could only imagine that they thought I was trying to pass a bad check.

My first thought was that my checking account had been compromised and my funds depleted. Was I a victim of identity fraud?  I immediately went to my bank (where I have had an account for over 20 years), and they assured me there was no problem with my account.  The people at the bank could offer no explanation as to why my check had been "denied" by Telecheck.

I called Telecheck and, after navigating a lengthy voice mail system requiring me to supply much personal banking information, I finally reached a live person.  I asked her why my check had been denied and she told me, (in very broken English), that my check did not fall within Telecheck's parameters.  I asked her what that meant, and she would only repeat the line your check did not meet our parameters.  I then asked to speak to a supervisor and she said someone would call me back. Of course, no one ever did.

Hoping it was just a fluke, a few days later I tried to purchase a battery at Auto Zone and that check too was denied. I was given another slip of paper with Telecheck's phone number on it, and went through the excruciating voice mail system again, only to be told by another non-English speaking person that my check did not fall within their guidelines.

I did some on-line research about Telecheck and was amazed at the number of complaints people have posted about them. Many of the complaints were identical to my experience.   People who have written checks for years with no problem, were now having their checks denied and they could only get a vague explanation from Telecheck.  A couple of States have even sued Telecheck over some of their consumer practices.  I am in the process of making a complaint about Telecheck to the Consumer Protection Agency and through our States Attorney Generals Office.