The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has introduced a progressive penalty regime for customers who issue dud cheques, with sanctions becoming increasingly severe for repeat offenders.
Under the revised rules, customers who issue cheques without sufficient funds in their accounts could face financial penalties, adverse credit reports and, in repeated cases, a ban on issuing cheques and accessing new credit facilities.
A dud cheque is one presented for payment when the account does not have sufficient funds to cover the amount stated on the cheque. In such circumstances, the bank will reject and return the cheque unpaid, while the account holder may also face legal action.
For a first offence, the customer’s bank is required to impose a penalty equivalent to 10% of the face value of the dud cheque.
The customer will also receive a warning notification explaining the consequences of committing another offence.
The first offence must additionally be reported to the Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs) and the Bank of Ghana.
If the customer issues a second dud cheque within one year of the first offence, the financial penalty increases to 15% of the cheque’s face value.
The second offence must also be reported to the CRBs and the Bank of Ghana.
The customer will receive another warning about the consequences of further breaches of the dud cheque rules.
The sanctions become significantly tougher when a customer issues a third dud cheque within one year of the first offence.
In that case, the penalty rises to 20% of the cheque’s face value.
Beyond the financial penalty, the Bank of Ghana will ban the customer from issuing cheques for at least three years.
The customer will also be barred from accessing new credit facilities from the banking system for one year.
The central bank will notify all banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions (SDIs) about the ban.
The Bank of Ghana has warned that adverse reports submitted to Credit Reference Bureaus could affect a customer’s creditworthiness.
A record of issuing dud cheques could result in a poor credit score, higher borrowing costs and more limited access to credit in the future.
This means customers who repeatedly issue cheques without sufficient funds could face financial consequences beyond the immediate penalties imposed by their banks.
Once a bank receives notification of a cheque-issuing ban, it must notify the affected customer within five working days.
The bank is also required to recall all unused cheque books from the customer and must not issue new cheque books until the sanction has been lifted.
Customers who fail to return unused cheque books within 10 working days of receiving notification could face additional sanctions.
In such cases, the bank must report the matter to the Bank of Ghana.
The central bank may subsequently ban the affected customer from operating any current account and include their name in the Directory of High-Risk Cheque Issuers.
The Bank of Ghana is urging customers to exercise caution before issuing cheques to avoid penalties and damage to their credit profiles.
Customers have been advised to check their account balances before issuing cheques and take into consideration pending transactions that could reduce the funds available in their accounts.
The central bank has also cautioned customers against issuing cheques based on money they expect to receive later, unless they are certain the funds will be available before the cheque is presented for payment.
Customers have further been encouraged to keep proper records of cheques they issue, including their expected presentation dates.
Where a customer anticipates that there may not be enough money in the account to honour a cheque, the Bank of Ghana advises them to contact their bank promptly.
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