Subsection 2: Injunction and regularisation

A drawee who has refused to pay all or part of a cheque for lack of sufficient funds shall send the account holder the injunction provided for in article L. 131-73 by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. It specifies the number and amount of the cheque for which payment could not be guaranteed, as well as the status of the account on the date payment was refused. It enjoins…

The injunction letter specifies the means by which the right to regularise may be exercised.

When a payment incident occurs on the same account after a previous incident that has not been cleared, a new injunction is sent by simple letter. The holder is informed that the current ban will continue to apply until all unpaid cheques have been cleared.

The injunctions provided for in this paragraph are sent by the drawee to the account holder even if the account on which the cheque or cheques were drawn has been closed. This obligation ceases at the end of a period of one year from the date on which the account is closed.

When the account holder has paid the amount of the unpaid cheque to the beneficiary, he must provide proof of payment by remitting the cheque to the drawee.

If the rejected cheque has been paid when presented again, the drawer shall report this to the drawee.

Pursuant to articles L. 733-18 and L. 743-1 of the French Consumer Code, the cancellation of a debt corresponding to the amount of an unpaid cheque is deemed to constitute regularisation of the incident. The drawer provides proof of this deletion to the drawee by submitting the certificate referred to in articles R. 733-18 and R. 743-1 of the same code.

In cases other than those provided for in articles R. 131-20, R. 131-21 and R. 131-21-1, the incident is regularised when, at the request of the drawer, a blocked provision earmarked for the actual payment of the cheque is set up. The funds referred to in the first paragraph become available again after a period of one year, if they have not been used when the unpaid cheque is presented…

When all incidents that have occurred on the account have been regularised in accordance with the procedures set out in this sub-section, a document certifying this regularisation is given or sent to the account holder by the drawee. The account holder is also informed of his situation with regard to the provisions applicable to the prevention and punishment of cheque-related offences. Account holders are informed that they will only be…

A joint order of the Minister of Justice and the Minister of the Economy shall specify the information that must be included in the injunctions, notices and other documents provided for in this sub-section. The provisions of this paragraph shall apply separately to each of the accounts held by the person concerned.