What about bad checks?

[janedoe2]

I hope I am posting this in the right area.

I can barely bring myself to admit this, but....

My son took school pictures and they came out bad. I foolishly returned the pictures and TRUSTED the picture studio to not cash my check. It is a local owned place back in Cali that I've dealt with for years. They said no problem and the check would not be deposited. Stupid me did not call my bank to put a stop payment on it. Flash forward a few months and I get these overdraft notices from my old bank. I had left just enough to cover the newpaper boys final payment and the account was to close on a zero balance.Some company I never heard of is electronically trying to debit my account for 3 different amounts. I stopped payment and closed the account. I did not realize it was this picture check. A few months later I get this letter from Data Central saying I owe them $10 amonth in interest charges plus the face value of the check ($35) plus $25 returned check fee. The new total is now about $140. They already got the $25 fee but now say they applied it to interest charges.

Can they charge interest? I offered to send $35 but they sd they will apply it to the interest first.

Which state law do they go by? Cali or Washington? Should I just send them $140 and have another expensive "lesson learned"?

I feel so stupid:cry:

[SecretAgentWoman]

DV them, are they on your CR? Do you know for a fact they still have the check? (No check, no case.) But certainly, I would check about laws in your state. The interest sounds fishy.

Check for possible criminal laws, too. For instance, in Texas, they say screw the collection agencies, call up the local JP and have a warrant issued for your arrest. In Texas, it's called "Theft by Check." Consumer complaints have nothing to do with it.

Part of the reason I haven't wrote a personal check in 4 years. (The other reason is I'm in the 21st century now, lol.)

[janedoe2]

They're not on my credit report..yet. They say they have the check. With the new check21 all they need is a photocopy anyway. I called the studio and they said they do not remember anything but I owe them $$. I think I will pay them the $140 and hope they don't report it to the CRA's.

The more I touch my credit reports the more I turn to Shleprock(?) from the Flintstones. Everything I touch turns to cr*p. I've had bad credit for sooo many years now I'm used to it.