The Overpayment Check Scam: Why a Check That "Cleared" Can Still Bounce

It starts with a generous buyer, a new employer or a "client" abroad: a check arrives for more than the agreed amount, with a polite request to send back the difference. Weeks later, the check bounces — and the money you sent is gone.

Why "available" is not "cleared"

Federal rules require banks to make deposited funds available quickly — often within a business day or two — which is usually long before the paying bank has finished checking the item. Seeing the money in your account does not mean the check is good. A counterfeit check can be returned days or even weeks later, and the full amount is taken back from you. Any money you sent onward in the meantime is yours to lose.

That gap between "available" and "actually collected" is the entire scam.

Common versions

• Marketplace overpayment — a buyer "accidentally" pays $2,500 for a $1,500 item and asks for a refund of the difference, often by gift card, wire or a payment app.
• Fake job — a new "employer" sends a check for equipment and asks you to forward part of it to a "vendor."
• Mystery shopper — you're hired to evaluate a money-transfer service by sending part of a check you received.
• Lottery, grant or inheritance — you've won, but must pay "fees" or "taxes" out of a check you were sent.
• Rental deposit — a tenant from abroad overpays the deposit and asks for the extra back before moving in.

Cashier's checks and money orders can be fake too

Scammers like cashier's checks because people trust them. But cashier's checks, certified checks and money orders are counterfeited as well — the paper, the logo and the security features can all be imitated. The only reliable check is the issuing bank itself.

What to check on the check itself

1. Amount in figures vs. words — they must match exactly.
2. The MICR line at the bottom — consistent, crisp characters printed in magnetic ink; smudged, uneven or slightly misaligned printing is suspicious.
3. The issuing bank — find the bank's phone number on its official website (not the number printed on the check) and ask whether the check is valid.
4. Signs of alteration — erased, overwritten or inconsistent amounts and payee names; ink that looks different in one area.
5. The routing number — it should belong to the bank named on the check.
6. The story around it — an overpayment with a request to send money back is the scam, whatever the check looks like.

The rule that always works

Never send money back from a check you just deposited. If someone overpaid, they can wait until the check has truly been collected — or you can return the check itself and ask for a new payment for the right amount.

If you deposited a fake check

• Talk to your bank immediately. Explain what happened and ask what you are responsible for.
• Don't spend or forward the funds, even if they are available.
• Stop all contact with the sender and don't send anything else, however urgent the request sounds.
• Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov; for checks sent by mail, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service also takes reports.

For businesses that accept checks

Set a rule for large or unusual checks: hold the goods until the funds are collected, verify cashier's checks with the issuing bank by phone, and never refund an overpayment by a different payment method. Train staff to recognize the overpayment pattern — it is the same story every time.

Automated first look

ThisVerify checks photos and scans of checks for edited amounts, mismatched figures and words, and alterations — a fast reason to stop and call the bank.

Related guides

• Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist payment scams
• Fake wire transfer confirmations