I cashed a cashiers check and 6 months later my bank is telling me that the account was not located. The real reason however is that the check is counterfeit because the bank name of the check and the bank they sent it to are different. My bank is telling me I cannot file a late return claim and are holding me accountable. What can I do?

How long can a bank take to say a check will not be accepted?
Certanily after 6 months the bank must have some idea if it is good or bad

Bank of America right?

Scam artists frequently alter bank names and routing numbers on checks causing them to bounce around the banking system as the item does not belong to any institution. Unfortuantely, you as the depositor, retain responsiblity for any item you deposit into or cash against your account.

For how long?
Please tell me a bank has to inform its "CUSTOMER" about problems after a cetain time peroid?
(so they might be able to help each other. Isn't that what people should do as oopposed to waitng months and in some cases years and then taking no interest in it except to tell it's customer it is there problem)

The bank that accepts the fake check for deposit will not know there are any problems until it receives it back from the bank on which it is drawn. There are laws in place that require that bank to act upon a check no later than midnight the business day after it is presented for payment.
In the original anons post it appears that it took several months for the check to get to that bank as the information on it had been altered. Generally I get these items back within a few weeks, but not always.
I agree banks need to work with their customers. However, that door also swings the other way.
I have stopped countless fake checks (my folder is 6 inches thck) for people who have won foreign lotteries, took jobs as "International Payment Processors", "Secret Shoppers" or have wanted to help an online relationship enter the country, etc. In many of these cases when I have asked probing questions about the source of the check, I have been crossly informed by the customers I'm supposed to be helping to "Mind my own business."


If it seems too good to be true...it is.

My problem and others) (Ref. Checks valid indefinitely) is this was not a fake, fraud, an out of country,out of state check or even a out of town check. It just was lost by the bank!!!

Am I correct in saying that a bank does not get their money until the other bank pays it??????

They are losing Interest Right?

If this is correct they have in a sense not been paid for a bill.
If this happens to me after 30 days I get an interest fee and a penalty, after 60 days I am contacted, after 90 days if there is no response it will go to a collection agency.

Does a bank work different?

The bank receives provisional credit on the item from its Federal Reserve Bank that it uses to clear the check. The bank credits its depositor for the funds. As the Federal Reserve clears millions of items every day, it does not track funds from an individual check going between the bank of deposit or drawee bank.
First Anon, it may not have been your bank that "lost" an item. It passed from your bank to the Fed or other bank that offers check clearing services, and finally to the drawee bank. There are several places along the way for an individual item to be misrouted. (An unfortunate consequence of this being a human process.)

Review Section 4 of the Uniform Commercial Code to determine what your rights are and what the bank's right are.
If you feel your bank has been negligent, you may need to retain the services of an attorney to prove your case. As noted above, there are several instituions along the way that could have contributed to the delay in the check clearing process.
As has also been noted in many other threads, your recourse should be with the individual who gave you the bad check.

How long is this provisional credit for?