Stump the Banker: Question about Check Formatting?

Question

I was reading a story about a dispute between famed satirist Randall Munroe and Verizon who kept billing him for 2/10ths of a cent. He finally wrote them a check for 2/10ths of a cent, but expressed it on the check as an advanced mathematical equation. (0.002 + e^i*pi + absolute value of infinity/2). The equations works out to 2/10ths of a cent. A link to an image of the check is here:
http://consumerist.com/consumer/verizonmath/solve-this-math-problem-verizon-221345.php

After I was done laughing, I started to wonder whether or  not a check would be legal if the dollar amount was provided in the form of an equation. After all, it would have the required information including an exact value, but you'd need to find someone who could figure out the calculation first. Is there anything in the UCC that would prohibit writing out the value of the check in this manner?

Darlene H · Accepted Answer

While I realize my research was not near as extensive as yours, I did attempt to use my limited connections and got this reply:  "MY SOURCE SAYS THE LEGAL LINE IS SUPPOSE TO BE FILLED OUT IN THE DOLLAR AMOUNT. "THATS THE LINE UNDER  WHO ITS MADE OUT TOO" .  SHE SAID SINCE YOU ARE DEALING WITH COMPUTER BILLING, WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IS SEND A CHECK TO THEM FOR 3 CENTS  AND LET THERE  COMPUTER FIGURE OUT HOW TO SEND YOUR CHANGE BACK TO YOU. LOVE YA  JOHN"

Might not be the best answer, but I bet it 's the most laid back.  Sorry I couldn't do better, but your answer to my question was most useful, and the wheels are in motion.

darlene

Anonymous · Answer

Randall Munroe Verizon Check

speck323 · Answer

hey white fang- your really great,but...you've answered your own Q

Stump the Banker: Question about Check Formatting?

3 Answers