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About Presentation Times
Paper checks are presented two times for payment. Why are EFTs presented an unlimited number of times? Also, the merchant where the EFT was given can present a return check fee an unlimited number of times. Is this true everywhere, or do I have a problem with my bank?
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 Automated Clearinghouse (ACH) rules do, in fact, impose a limit on the number of times a returned ACH item can be re-initiated. Generally speaking, counting the first attempt, the one that is bounced for insufficient or uncollected funds, three times is the limit. If the ACH item is a re-presentment of a paper check that was bounced for insufficient or uncollected funds, the total of the paper and electronic trips is also three.
There is, in fact, no limit to the number of times a paper check can be presented to a bank for payment. The Federal Reserve System has a prohibition against using its check collection system more than twice for a paper check, and other check clearinghouses may have similar rules, but the holder of a check can take it to the paying bank every day for months and present it for payment.
If EFTs are being presented more than three times total, it's not your bank's fault. It is the originator of the item that controls how many times it gets re-initiated. Your bank can refuse subsequent attempts only if they can be detected, which is nearly impossible, and can press a rules violation complaint with the automated clearinghouse association.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 1/30/09
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