A check is one of the types of negotiable documents written to a bank in accordance with the form conditions determined in the Turkish Commercial Code. The word “check” in the deed or if the deed is written in another language, the Turkish equivalent of “check” must be in the text of the deed!
First of all, if we talk about the elements of the check; the drawer issuing the check, the addressee of the bank branch that will pay the check, the person holding the check (creditor) is the bearer, The procedural endorsement used in the change of ownership of the valuable paper, The person who endorses the warrant, is the endorser, personal guarantee given in favor of the drawer is aval, The person who gives an aval is an avalist. The check must contain the commercial title of the addressee bank, the place of payment, the date and place of issue, and the signature of the issuer! If the place of payment is not shown, the place shown next to the trade name of the addressee bank is considered the place of payment.
In order to receive the check payment, it can be “presented” to the branch where the checking account is held, to another branch of the drawee bank, and to the clearinghouse. It must be presented to the addressee bank for payment. If the check is presented to the clearing house, although it cannot be presented to another bank other than the addressee bank, this situation becomes “presentation for payment”.
Checks are do not need acceptance and are paid according after presantation to Article 707 of the TCC. The endorsment of the addressee is void. The bank is responsible for checking whether the check is FAKE or FALSIFIED. In the bank’s payment of a counterfeit or falsified check, the responsibility will remain with the bank within the scope of the bank’s due diligence, if the drawer does not have any faults in committing this unlawful act. According to Article 711 of the TCC, if the drawee claims that the check came out of his own or a third party’s hands without his consent, he may forbid the drawee without paying the check. (This article ammendent in new TCC) The addressee bank must strictly comply with this request. Despite such a prohibition, the bank that makes the payment has to bear the consequences of its grossly flawed behavior.
As a rule, although the check does not have a maturity date, the “post-dated check” type was created by writing a future date on the check issuance date. The place where the check is presented and issued is important in terms of presentation times. The submission period starts the day after the issuance date written on the check. It must be presented within 10 days if the check is to be paid at the place of issue, within 1 month if the check is to be paid in the same continent but within 3 months if it is to be presented and paid in different continents. If the check is not presented within these periods, the issuer has the right to withdraw from the check and the provisions of the bad check will not be applied to the issuer. If the issuing bank has not withdrawn the check, it can make a payment within the first 6 months if it wishes. Even if the check is presented to the bank before the issuance day, it must be paid on the day of payment(İssue date). If the amount in the bank does not cover the entire check amount when the payment day comes, the amount in the bank is paid. The creditor who does not accept this part to be paid goes into default and loses his right to apply in proportion to the amount he refused.
As of January 29, 2018, the amount that banks are obliged to pay for each check sheet submitted in due time, in case there is no equivalent, has been increased from 1,410 TL to 1,600 TL. If the check is not presented within five years from the date of printing on it, the bank’s liability for the amount it is obliged to pay for dud checks ends.
The fact that the bank liability amount is not requested at the time of presentation for a check sheet submitted on time does not prevent it from being requested later, and there is a general limitation period of 10 years for the debts of the banks arising from the bank liability amount.
The issuer’s right of withdrawal from the check is possible after the submission deadline has passed. Even if the payment authorization given to the bank within the submission period is withdrawn in this way, this statement will have legal consequences after the submission period expires. After the exercise of the right of withdrawal, the bank no longer has discretion and the bank has no ability to make payments for owner.
BOUNCED CHECK
One of the situations frequently encountered in practice is that the check is bounced(Dud), that is, the check does not have a cash equivalent in the bank. In this case, the check is returned to the bearer by stating that it is “non-refundable” by the bank. The person issuing a check, whose account is partially or completely unavailable at the bank, is obliged to pay an additional ten percent of the outstanding value of the check and to compensate the bearer for the entire loss incurred due to this.
The bearer’s partial or complete non-payment must be determined by an official document, the Protest, a dated statement of the bank that will be written on the check, which also shows the date of presentation, or a dated statement from the clearing house showing that the check was not paid even though it was delivered on time. The person presenting and the bank official must sign the non-refundable transaction together. If the bearer refrains from signing, the non-refundable statement will not be made.
In the check, problems are encountered in line with the latest regulations regarding the clearinghouse. If the check is presented to a bank other than the bank where the account is held, the check will be cleared. In fact, the transaction made in this case is technically a “presentation endorsement”. After the check is cleared, it is the bank with the clearing house that presents the check. According to Article 3 of the Law No. 5941, it is regulated that the check must be presented by the “bearer” in order to be written without any compensation. Since it is the bearer bank that presents the check in the clearinghouse, the one who will make the unrequited demand is the bearer. Again, according to the 8th article of Law No. 5941, if the check submitted through clearing houses is determined not to have sufficient cash in the account, the partial reserve amount in the account is blocked for fifteen days in favor of the bearer presenting the check. In line with these explanations, the transaction made by the clearinghouse is not a bogus transaction and these checks cannot be the subject of the crime of issuing bad(Bounced, dud.) checks.
Upon the request of the bearer within 6 months from the execution of the unrequited transaction, a decision of “prohibition of issuing checks and opening a check account” is given with an application to the Enforcement Criminal Court about the real or legal person who owns the check account.
The person about whom a decision has been made in this way is obliged to return all the check sheets in his possession to the banks to which check sheets belongs. If the amount of the check is paid together with the interest to be accrued as of the legal submission date according to the issuance date written on the check, the prohibition of issuing checks and opening a checking account is lifted.
You can always contact us for detailed information about checks, which have become an indispensable element of business life, or for assistance in case of any grievances you experience
