What is the difference between bank check and cashiers check

Money orders usually cost less. The U. Money orders are easier to buy. You can buy money orders at post offices, some retail stores, banks, money transfer outlets and elsewhere. Going to a supermarket for milk? You could also pick up a money order at the customer-service counter. That makes either option safer than carrying cash. However, on a money order, the purchaser fills in the receiver's name, which is similar to writing a check.

Learn more about how to write a check here. If you lose the money order before filling it in, anyone could cash it. And an official check drawn up by a financial institution may seem more credible to a recipient than a money order from your local hour market.

Unlike a cashier's check, however, a certified check is more similar to a personal check: The money comes directly from your own bank account, which means you're responsible if it bounces.

Certified checks are more secure than personal checks because the bank takes a few extra steps to ensure they're valid and that the associated account has sufficient funds. When you get a certified check, the bank will authenticate your identity, verify that the check will clear from your account, allocate the funds for the payee, and add to the check an official bank stamp or watermark.

Like a cashier's check, you can get a certified check either at a bank branch or online. Fees for certified checks range widely. Some banks and credit unions may waive the fee entirely if you're a customer or have a certain amount of money in your account. Some banks issue only cashier's checks, not certified checks; you may see either type referred to as an "official check. Both types of checks are safer than a personal check.

They're good options if you're paying a large amount, or if you're transferring to or receiving money from a person you don't know.

The payee may require you to use one or the other form of payment, so confirm whether they have a preference. Since these checks differ in the way they're guaranteed, you may find that a payee requests you use a cashier's check for particularly large sums. The official nature of a cashier's check or certified check means it's more difficult to replace one if you lose it. Contact the bank immediately to learn about the process to report and get a replacement for a lost check.

The process to replace a cashier's check in particular is complex. You'll likely have to buy an indemnity bond, which is a type of insurance that confirms you're on the hook to cover the funds if a lost check turns up later and the payee deposits it.

You won't be able to simply stop payment on the check. Reach out to insurance companies you already have a policy with and ask if they sell indemnity bonds. If not, you may have to go through an insurance broker. Even with an indemnity bond, the bank may require you to wait up to 90 days before you can get a replacement check. Choosing the Best Payment Option Whether to use a cashier's check or a certified check often comes down to the payee's preference.

To get a cashier's check, you transfer funds from your checking or savings account into the bank's own account plus a small premium for the service. The funds are usually then available to the payee by the next business day. When you write a certified check, the money is drawn directly against your personal checking account , and your name and account number appear on the check. In addition to your signature, a bank representative will also sign the check, and it will have the words "certified" or "accepted" printed somewhere on it.

The bank has guaranteed that check and may put a hold on those funds until the check clears. Even though the bank certifies that the person writing a certified check has the money available in their account, the funds stay in that person's bank account until the certified check is deposited by the payee. Assuming that the check is genuine, both cashier's and certified checks are secure forms of payment.

Plus, certified checks do not have the same watermarks that cashier's check have, making them slightly easier to fake. Let's say, for example, that you have a car listed for sale through an online marketplace. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency warns against this type of scam.

By that time, you may have written checks or made purchases with your debit card against that amount. If those debit payments are returned or your checks bounce, that could mean overdraft or non-sufficient funds NSF fees for you.

Look up the bank's phone number online, rather than dialing the number printed on the check which could be fake. Lottery and sweepstakes scams are another form of check fraud. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. With a certified check, the bank certifies the signature is genuine and that the customer had sufficient funds to cover the check when it was issued.

A money order is an order for a pre-specified amount of money that must be paid in advance. Money orders are inexpensive, and you can purchase them with cash or a debit card, but there may be limits, such as the U. First Internet Bank Blog. Previous Post.