We stopped cashing checks for non-customers unless the check is drawn on our bank. We also do not sell them money orders, travelers, checks, wire transfers, etc. One of the reasons being OFAC and Patriot Act rules, the other being that we found that we were having to staff up for peak check cashing days as well as ordering extra cash for those days. The first month we notified these people that we would no longer cash checks and encouraged them to open accounts. These have to be real accounts with real activity--not just $20 sitting in a dormant account. The next month, we turned them away. It has only been two months, but it has been wonderful. We now have plenty of tellers everyday to handle our real customers, we do not have to pay as much overtime, we do not have to buy their lunch (nobody had time to go out on certain days) and we are lowering our cash limits which means we have more to invest. Our customers love it because they do not have to wait in long lines. So far, this has been one of the best decisions that we have made this year.
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NOLA is my Beach!