From: "Alex" 
Newsgroups: uk.finance uk.legal
Subject: Re: Credit Cards/Chip and Pin/ATM withdrawls
Date: 29 Dec 2005 19:07:34 GMT

At 18:19:03 on 29/12/2005, Ronald Raygun delighted uk.finance by announcing:

> Alex wrote:
> 
> > At 17:00:48 on 29/12/2005, Ronald Raygun delighted uk.finance
> >> Alex wrote:
> >> > At 14:38:04 on 29/12/2005, Mr X delighted uk.finance by announcing:
> >> >> The French have a different attitude to credit cards than we do and it
> >> >> is a very serious offence in French Law to dishonour a cheque.
> >> > 
> >> > As it is in the UK.
> >> 
> >> But it isn't.  Stopping cheques is something which is done routinely.
> > 
> > So is speeding.  Are you saying speeding is not an offence in the UK?
> 
> No.  I'm saying if stopping cheques were a criminal offence, banks
> wouldn't let you do it, since they could be co-liable as conspirators.

I believe most banks will only stop cheques that have been reported lost or
stolen.  You can't just ask your bank to stop a cheque because you don't feel
like paying any more.

> > I believe that writing a cheque which you have no intention of honouring
> > is an offence of fraud or theft.
> 
> Quite so.  But simply dishonouring a cheque isn't.  At the time of writing
> you could have had every intention of honouring it, and you could later
> have changed your mind (such as if the cooker you had just bought with it
> doesn't work).

I'm not sure that's a valid reason for stopping a cheque.

> > I also believe you can then successfully sue just on the cheque itself.
> 
> Indeed, but that's a civil matter, not a crime.

Quite so.  But the prior action may well be a crime.