# Check Made Out to First Name- Cashable?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 9, 2007, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336 "2007-12-09T00:11:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\
**Post date:** [December 9, 2007, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336/1 "2007-12-09T00:11:49Z")

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Today in the mail I received what must be a cashier’s check. It’s drawn on a local credit union, it’s typed out, and it says “official check”. The sender is a friend to whom I loaned money a couple months back, but her name and account number is not on the check itself. It’s made out to my first name only, which is puzzling me. Should I deposit it as is, should I write out my last name on it… or what?

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**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [December 9, 2007, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336/2 "2007-12-09T00:34:38Z")

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I’d like to know the “legal” answer to this question.

FWIW, though, I generally find that it doesn’t matter what name is on a check when it’s deposited. Really. Cashing may be another issue, because they’re being careful. For example, my most recent experience was depositing a money order made out to someone else that I decided not to spend (closing, or something like that). No problem.

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**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\
**Post date:** [December 9, 2007, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336/3 "2007-12-09T00:41:57Z")

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I guess I will just deposit it as is. I wonder if this was a passive-aggressive way of paying back a debt, a mistake, or she didn’t have my last name with her (it’s unusual and confusing). Unfortunately, I don’t feel comfortable calling and asking her, as our friendship is no longer intact, partly because she took so long in paying me back.

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**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\
**Post date:** [December 9, 2007, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/check-made-out-to-first-name-cashable/429336/4 "2007-12-09T00:45:20Z")

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It will probably go through just fine especially since it is a cashiers check. Checking law is pretty lenient when it comes to names on a check. I have always gone by middle name and have never had a problem cashing a check even with misspellings.

Likewise, the singer “Sting” (or any other example of your choice) wouldn’t have any problems cashing a check under those circumstances.