Public Information:
Notice to Customers Making Payment by Check

Authorization to Convert Your Check:  If you present a check to make your payment, your check will be converted into an electronic fund transfer. "Electronic fund transfer" is the term used to refer to the process in which a business or government agency electronically instructs your financial institution to transfer funds from your account to its account, rather than processing your paper check. By presenting your signed check to the OCC, you authorize the agency to copy the check and to use the account information from the check to make an electronic fund transfer from your account for the same amount as the check. If the electronic fund transfer cannot be processed for technical reasons, you authorize the OCC to process the copy of your check.

Insufficient Funds: The electronic fund transfer from your account will usually occur within 24 hours, which is faster than a check is normally processed. Therefore, make sure sufficient funds are available in your checking account when you send your check to the OCC. If the electronic fund transfer cannot be completed because of insufficient funds, the OCC may attempt the transfer two additional times.

Transaction Information: The electronic fund transfer from your account will be on the account statement you receive from your financial institution. However, the transfer may be in a different place on your statement than the place where your check entries normally appear. For example, it may appear under "other withdrawals" or "other transactions." You will not receive your original check back from your financial institution. For security reasons, the OCC will destroy your original check, but it will keep a copy of the check for record keeping.

Your Rights: You should contact your financial institution immediately if you believe that the electronic fund transfer reported on your account statement was not properly authorized or is otherwise incorrect. Consumers have protections under a federal law called the Electronic Fund Transfer Act for an unauthorized or incorrect electronic fund transfer.