Help! How to Deposit a Check Made Out to the Wrong Name?

Seeking Advice
1

Hey all,

I’m in a bit of a tricky situation and could use some advice. My wife recently received a check from her deceased grandma’s estate, but there’s a problem—the name on the check is incorrect.

Here’s the situation: My wife’s birth name was Sue Honeymaid, and she legally changed it to Debbie Bronner after we got married. The check, however, is made out to ‘Sue Bronner’—a mix of her former first name and her current last name. She has all the necessary documents: current ID, old and current SSN cards, name change court order, etc. The address matches for both names, but nothing actually says ‘Sue Bronner’ since she was only ever Sue Honeymaid and then Debbie Bronner.

We’ve already tried depositing it at two different banks. The first was the credit union where she has a personal account—they wouldn’t accept it. The second was Chase, and they said their system wouldn’t take it either. A third bank seems unlikely at this point.

I’ve considered having her endorse the check so I can deposit it into my account, but I’m worried the bank will still want ‘Sue Bronner’ to be present with ID, which is impossible.

Getting the check re-issued is technically an option, but it’s really, really difficult due to some complex reasons on the estate’s end. I’d prefer to avoid that if possible.

Has anyone dealt with something similar? Are there any tricks or potential solutions we might be overlooking besides the obvious ‘get it re-issued’? Any advice would be greatly appreciated :wink:

1 Like
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Take it to the bank where it was written off and request that they get in touch with the client to make sure it’s okay to cash. It’s possible they won’t do it. Try it, but it would be best to obtain a fresh check.

1 Like
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You are going to have to have the check reissued. Regardless of how difficult it will be. But it shouldn’t be difficult at all.

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First, endorse the back of the check to match the name on the front of the check. In your case, your wife should endorse it as “Sue Bronner.”Then, write the correct name that’s on her bank account (in this case, “Debbie Bronner”) underneath the incorrect endorsement. When depositing the check, bring along her identification (driver’s license or passport) to show the banker the correct spelling of her name.
Explain the situation to the bank teller and provide the supporting documentation along with the check for deposit.