I have a Power of Attorney to cash another person's check. When I take it to the bank, what will they do with it? Do I give them the original? Will they make a copy of it? Will I need to and how do I endorse the check? Does the Power of Attorney accompany the check through the banking system, or does the bank just keep it on file? I understand that many banks will not cash checks with a Power of Attorney that is not my question. My question is *IF* they cash a check with a POA, what do they do with the document? How does the paperwork flow?
You will need to be added onto the customer account as a POA. They will then just keep a copy of it in the office and image the document on their system.
Generally they will simply need a copy of the POA document and then will attach a note on the account when it was applied, and where the document is stored for example: POA Xyour nameX on file at branch 123, 3/24/08. Other banks will scan it into their document image system to be included in the account file. Each bank will have a different protocol. - it will not however travel with the check the whole way through the system - the bank of first deposit will verify the validity, and then their mark is sufficient for the other holders in due course. As to how to endorse: (person named on the front) by: (your name), Attorney in Fact
Here's the operative part of your question that I will quote: I understand that many banks will not cash checks with a Power of Attorney that is not my question. My question is *IF* they cash a check with a POA, what do they do with the document? How does the paperwork flow? The answer is, they handle the documentation as they would if the account holder him- or herself were the one who initiated the transaction. However, an important aside is, the best Power of Attorney is one in which the POA is listed along with the primary holder on the account, recognized by the bank that the POA is as much a holder of the account as the primary holder. Increasingly, for each institute one deals with, there should be on file an authorization from the individual in question who assigns another person to act on his or her behalf. A generic POA seldom if ever carries in any business transaction any longer except as a wise thing to have indeed in the event that especial situations warrant it. Exceptions are there? Yes. In other words, each business establishment has its own POA requisites and recognizes none other -- true of all private, public, and governmental concerns.
