Do the electronic scanner that banks use only read the routing & account numbers?

The checks are also coded with the amount. But the bank has a responsibility to safeguard your account and if a bad check was passed it is their fault not yours. BUT, you must reconcile your account in a timely manner, not months later. ~ Talk to your bank, not us.

The check clearing house scans the OCR characters along the bottom of the check and an hand writting analyzer reads the numeric amount on the check (similar to post office zip code readers). If the written amount can't be read, then a human processes the check. If and only if the account holder or payee protests the check, will the bank do anything about it. The only thing that is 99.999% correct is the OCR account number and bank routing numbers on the bottom of the check. What's pre-printed in the upper left corner is irrelevant. Names change (through marriage), addresses change (through moving), etc. But account numbers never change unless the account is closed. The question I have is: Is this a legitimate check that you authorized or wrote to pay a debt? Many businesses convert actual paper checks to Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) and the funds are deducted from your account electronically - similar to a debit card transaction. So the "Signature on File" or "Signature not Required" is irrelevant. If the check is NOT yours, or you did not make the purchase or incurred the debt, the bank has an obligation to reprocess the check and return your money. They are correct when they can't verify if the check is legit - unless the account holder protests.