A dishonored check is one that the bank of the payee rejects. When there is insufficient money in the cheque issuer’s bank account, checks frequently bounce. Banks frequently return checks for the following reasons: incorrect dates and payee information. Usually, banks charge fees for returned checks. By making purchases online, you can stop checks from bouncing. A check’s validity in India is limited to 90 days from the date printed on it. In order for the bank to honor the check, the beneficiary must deposit the check within this time frame. Additionally, the bank has the right to return a check if the drawee enters the erroneous year. When the balances in the drawers’ accounts are insufficient, checks frequently bounce. The bank imposes a cheque return penalty on both the cheque drawer and the payee in certain circumstances. In accordance with Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act of 1881, recipients of bounced checks may bring legal action against check drawers.
Cheque bounce is a criminal matter and is tried under section 138 of Negotiable instruments act, 1881. the dishonor of Cheque is a criminal offence and is punishable by imprisonment up to two years or with monetary penalty or with both. It takes at least 12 to 18 months for the case to be resolved if one decides to take legal action.
If the drawer does not make the payment the payee continues to file the case. Following documents are required to file the case, your lawyer will prepare the relevant affidavits, applications, petitions paying the court fees, stamp fees and all clerical and incidental charges as per the procedure.

1. Original Cheque return Memo
2. Original Dishonored Cheque
3. Name of the Payee
4. Copy of the ID Proof of the Payee
5. Copy of the Address Proof of the Payee
6. Name and Address of the Drawer
7. Copy of the Legal Notice sent to the Drawer
8. Copy of the Reply to the Legal Notice received if any
9. Acknowledgement receipt from the Post Office which the Legal notice was sent
10. Agreement document if any for which the Cheque was collected
11. Email / SMS / WhatsApp message to the drawer regarding this issue if any

Note: In case a document is misplaced / lost, there is a procedure to handle this, it starts with filing an FIR, followed with gathering duplicates from the Bank. One can also look at filing a Recovery Suit and there are multiple ways to handle the case. As a best practice one should either maintain a softcopy or a photocopy of all necessary documents to ensure seamless execution.

+91 9870257821

Our legal team can provide you with the following services:

Call For Legal Consultation