Bad Check Laws In New Mexico

by


Below are the civil and criminal penalties for writing a bad check in New Mexico under Code: Chapter 56 — Commercial Instruments and Transactions, Article 14 — Worthless Checks, 56-14-1., Section 56-14-1 — Civil action; damages.

The below penalties and fines apply if the plaintiff made written demand to the defendant to pay the amount of the check not less than ten days before taking any action.

Civil Penalties: Amount equal to one hundred dollars or triple the amount for which the check is drawn, whichever is greater, but shall not exceed the amount of the check by more than five hundred dollars. The defendant may pay to the plaintiff before the court hearing the amount of the check and the court and service costs to satisfy the bounced check and prevent a court hearing. If the defendent does decide to go to court and the court or jury determines that the defendant could not cover or pay the bad check because of economic hardship resulting from an unforeseen accident or act of God, then the court or jury have the right to waive all or part of the statutory damages but the amount can not be less than the amount of the worthless check plus court and service costs.

Criminal Penalties: Up to $1000 fine or 30 days in jail, or both. One to 3 years in jail, or up to $1,000, or both.



For more information on bad check laws and for criminal and civil penalties in other states for writing bad checks, please read Bad Check Laws

Check with your state statutes for the most current information on New Mexico bad check laws.

You may want to also read Getting A Checking Account While On The Chex System

Learn how to Prevent Overdraft And Bounced Check Fees

Although all information has been written in good faith and has been reviewed, please email us at [email protected] to report any inaccuracies.