My bank has just informed me that I will no longer be getting my checks back in my statement. They are not allowing me to opt out of check imaging. When I called the bank, a customer service rep told me that the federal government is requiring banks to image checks. Is this true?
The bank representative who told you that the federal government was involved in the bank's decision to stop including paid checks with your statement was incorrect, it simply isn't true. There was a law passed a couple of years ago commonly called the "Check 21 Act." That Act created a legal foundation for banks to start exchanging images of checks -- instead of the checks themselves -- to make check clearing more efficient, but the Act does not require that a bank accept images or return images (instead of actual checks) to its customers.
Large numbers of checks are now exchanged in image (electronic) form. Some are converted back into paper copies before being paid. Many banks have decided that, since so many of the checks they pay aren't original checks anyhow, why not include images in statements rather than the paper items?
There are significant cost savings for banks when they stop including paid checks with their statements. The checks no longer have to be sorted down by account number and matched with the appropriate statements, statement issuing equipment can be simplified and streamlined, and postage costs can be reduced. Your bank undoubtedly has a good explanation for its decision to move to "image" statements, but the federal government didn't make the decision for the bank; management did.
If you are concerned about having proof of a payment, your bank should be able to provide you with a legible-sized, two-sided copy of any check paid on your account. That copy should stand up in court if you ever have to go that far, and the IRS accepts such copies as documentation of payments to them and to others.
Give your bank's new statement format a try. You'll probably find it convenient, and a lot easier to store than the old "checks enclosed" statement.
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The bank representative who told you that the federal government was involved in the bank's decision to stop including paid checks with your statement was incorrect, it simply isn't true. There was a law passed a couple of years ago commonly called the "Check 21 Act." That Act created a legal foundation for banks to start exchanging images of checks -- instead of the checks themselves -- to make check clearing more efficient, but the Act does not require that a bank accept images or return images (instead of actual checks) to its customers.