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Important information

• Additional Info:

  Since February 2022, BBB received Scam Tracker submission(s) reporting that Holiday Cash Program is sending out unsolicited checks using the BBB logo.
  
  BBB found that mail was returned as undeliverable from the St. Petersburg address, and is still attempting to locate additional information to verify who is sending the checks.
  
  
  Here are two tips about fake check fraud:
  
  1. Having the funds credited to a bank account does not mean the cashed check is valid.
  Federal banking rules require that when someone deposits a check into an account, the bank must make the funds available right away - within a day or two. But the bank also has the right to recover the money from the account holder if the check is counterfeit. It is only when the check works its way back to the bank that supposedly issued the check that it is discovered to be counterfeit.
  
  2. Cashier's checks and postal money orders can be forged.
  A cashier's check is a check guaranteed by a bank, drawn on the bank's own funds and signed by a cashier. Cashier's checks are treated as guaranteed funds because the bank itself, rather than the individual account holder, is responsible for paying the amount of the check. Cashier's checks are commonly required for real estate and brokerage transactions. If a person deposits a cashier's check, the person's bank must credit the account by at least $5000 the next day. The same holds true for postal money orders.
  
  
  For more information about fake check scams, please visit:
  https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/18367-dont-cash-that-check-bbb-study-shows-how-fake-check-scams-bait-consumers
  
  For more information to identify a potential scam, please visit:
  https://www.bbb.org/all/scamtips