A certified check is issued by a bank or savings and loan. The check is guaranteed to clear because funds are set aside to cover the check when it is issued. A check written on a personal or business account is not certified and there is no guarantee it will clear for payment. Provided the bank or savings and loan follows proper procedures, the check is as good as cash. However, because of the mounting number of counterfeit certified checks in circulation, the best course of action is to cash a certified check at your own bank or at the bank where the check was issued.
Step 1
Go to either a bank where you do business or the bank that issued the certified check.
Step 2
Endorse the check, on the back.
Step 3
Present the check to the teller.
Step 4
Give the teller your driver's license or other government-issued identification. Provide the teller with a second form of identification as well (a credit card, for example).
Step 5
Place a thumbprint on the face of the check as directed by the teller. You will be asked to do this only if you cash the check at the bank where the check was issued.