How to Void a Check And Protect Your Bank Account

Becoming financially independent involves knowing how to deal with your finances and checks. Certain financial transactions will require you to use a void check and you should be aware of what that entails. If you still don’t know how to void a check, fear not because we’re here to help you with the process.

Using Online Banking Options

Some financial services and employers accept digital bank account verification instead of a voided check. This can be done through secure online platforms where you input your account details. Online banks and financial services like FormPros offer digital voided check generators, making it easy to provide the necessary information without a physical check. Deposit slips contain your account information, and you can write “VOID” across the slip. This can be used in place of a voided check for setting up direct deposits or automatic payments. If you want to set up direct deposit for your paycheck or other regular payments, you will likely need to provide a voided check.

Also, you don’t need to bother endorsing the check as you won’t actually be using it. Any bank teller (even those working the first hour of their first shift) will understand that the check itself is anything but legitimate and you will have nothing to worry about. Get proven ways to earn pocket money, help cover rent, and crush your debt — sent to your inbox daily. Plus, it’s easy and quick to get started with Current — the sign-up process can take as little as two minutes. In the other states, the program is sponsored by Community Federal Savings Bank, to which we’re a service provider.

You can detach a check from your supply and write ‘VOID’ across its front. The word does not have to cover the entire face of the check, but it should be big enough so no one else can use it. Voiding a check is a simple way of providing such financial information. We have options to fit every need and qualification level, so you can get the cash your business needs to keep surging forward– or get through a rough patch. It doesn’t matter if someone else picks that check up and tries to write over it. So, be thorough and write it large and wide across the majority of the check.

• This allows us to maintain a full-time, editorial staff and work with finance experts you know and trust.
• When you void something it means you’ve made it empty, of no effect, or null.
• If you do not have a checkbook, the process of getting checks, voiding them and providing it to the employer for direct deposit can be difficult compared to the available alternatives.
• You can still use that check to grab or provide your bank routing and account number as those numbers are tied to your bank account and not individual checks, however.
• Whenever you give your bank information to someone else, there is always a risk of it falling into the wrong hands — even if it’s only a small risk.
• Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service.

Sometimes you’ll need to cancel a check payment after you’ve already sent or given the check. In a computerized accounting system, there is usually a menu option for voiding a check, since this is a sufficiently common activity to warrant having its own routine. We’ve put together a list of the best banks that don’t use ChexSystems or require a credit check. Although some mistakes can be corrected by marking the incorrect information and initialing it, this is not always a safe practice. It’s essential to note that some businesses may not accept such corrections. The check could still be run through the bank’s system for the incorrect amount.

Alternatives to voided checks

Instead, turn it into an encrypted or password-protected file or create a link to a file in a protected folder. Or better yet, see if you can send a hard-copy through the mail or via fax. If you don’t have any checks, and you want to set up a direct deposit or automatic electronic payment, there are other ways to do so. If you prefer the convenience that online banking provides, then check out Wise.

To do this, write down the original check number in your check register or software you use to track check payments and make a notation that it has been voided. If your bank’s online tools allow you to keep track of your written checks, record it there. Often, banks will provide instructions on how you can set up a direct deposit without a voided check. Reach out to your bank, or see if there’s any information online about how you can do this. You can also use a voided check to set up automatic electronic payments, including ongoing expenses such as rent and bills. Autopay can be very useful to stay on top of recurring bills like utilities, rent, or credit card payments.

How to Send a Voided Check

You can provide written informaition about your account, but many companies require the voided check for verification. Whatever you do, never sign a voided check or write any additional information in the blank spaces provided. The purpose of a voided check is to provide your bank name, routing number, and personal account number. Grab a check out of your checkbook, and write “void” across the front. Write with well-spaced letters that are tall and wide enough to cover the whole face of the check without obscuring the banking information at the bottom. You want to make it difficult for thieves to erase or cover your void mark.

This check cannot be treated as a blank check and used to make any payments, but it can still provide relevant information about your bank account. You can always contact us and we’ll help you with whatever you need, as soon as possible. If you want to avoid writing checks for mortgage, rent, and insurance, you can use a voided check to set up automatic electronic payments.

A voided check is a check which is no longer valid and has the word ‘void’ written on the front. A voided check will have all of your bank information printed on it, so it can provide others everything they need to set up a direct deposit payment from your account. If someone gets hold of a blank check, they could potentially fill it out and commit fraud. By writing “void” across the check, you ensure that no bank will process it.

• Often, banks will provide instructions on how you can set up a direct deposit without a voided check.
• Direct deposit will be the preferred way for those institutions to make payments and for you to receive them quickly.
• If you mess up writing a check, then you’ll want to void the check you already wrote on and start over again.

Write in big, bold, clear print VOID on the face of the check

If you’re the one making the payments, you may need a voided check from the other party to connect the accounts. If the other person is making the payments, he or she will need a voided check from you for the same purpose. If you’re self-employed, a freelancer, or you run a business, you may have certain clients whom you work with on an ongoing basis. To simplify and speed up payment, you may set up an electronic billing and payment arrangement with that client. Setting up the arrangement may require you to provide a copy of a voided check so the client can establish the electronic link for payment purposes. Even though fewer consumers make payments by check, voided checks remain important.

The person who receives a voided check cannot fill in the amount and other details and present it to a bank. It also prevents a thief from taking the check, filling out an amount, and forging your signature to debit funds from your bank account. Once you have the voided check you need, consider scanning or photocopying it. You may need to provide voided checks numerous times in the coming years. When an original check is not required (for example, if you’re going to fax in the instructions or submit an electronic image of your check), you can use the same copy repeatedly.

We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. Voided checks are useful in setting up direct deposits, payments and regular bill payments. Many banks now offer the option to set up direct deposit through their online banking platforms. Simply log in to your bank’s website or app, navigate to the direct deposit section, and follow the prompts to enter your account information.

This is a fancy name for checks printed on demand for specific purposes at your bank or credit union. Banks typically charge a fee for these checks, which can be anywhere from a few dollars to as much as $25. But, if you normally have no need for paper personal checks, this can be a way to provide a voided one. Faster access to funds is based on comparison of traditional banking policies and deposit of paper checks from employers and government agencies versus deposits made electronically. Direct deposit and earlier availability of funds is subject to timing of payer’s submission of deposits.

Providing Bank Account Information Online

Also, ensure it’s written across the entire check, but don’t write over the information at the bottom of the check since it includes important banking information. Once a check has been voided, it’s no longer usable as a form of tender. No matter who the check was written out to or how much it might be written for, the check can no longer be presented to a bank or credit union for payment. While many people have switched to using debit cards instead of paper checks, there are times when you may still need a check. There are also instances when a company requests a voided check, or when you wish to have a check voided for your own purposes.

If someone requests a voided check from you, it’s easy to take care of. Simply use a blank check and write ‘VOID’ in large letters across the void a check meaning front. Then, use a pen with black ink and make the word large enough to be read. Sometimes mistakes happen when writing a personal check, like putting in the wrong name or incorrect amount, rendering it useless.