Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

[FlamingParrot]

Last year I sent a couple of SARs and they haven't responded to them. Well, one did, asking me for documents and signatures, etc. but I never got anything. The other didn't respond at all. I would like to know if the POs I sent were cashed. I found some posts on CAG with a phone number to ring but they were dated 2007!:noidea:

[labman]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

I believe the Post Office can tell you if it has been cashed, but I don't think they can tell you by whom if that is relevant.

The link below looks as though it might tell you, I don't know!

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/postal-orders-enquiry

[FlamingParrot]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

Thanks Labman, I wouldn't expect to find out who cashed it because I remember cashing POs just by going to the Post Office counter and presenting them, without showing ID or anything. I didn't think there would be a record of the person cashing them but there must be a record of whether they've been cashed or not. Surely cashing a PO intended as payment of the maximum statutory fee for a SAR and not receiving anything would constitute an offence of some sort...

[labman]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

Surely cashing a PO intended as payment of the maximum statutory fee for a SAR and not receiving anything would constitute an offence of some sort...

OK, so I'm putting 2 and 2 together here and coming up with, from what you say here, must be the right answer. The PO you want to trace is the one you sent with the SAR post to which I responded a couple of days ago.

Any offence would have to be proven, and that would involve proving who cashed the PO which would be exceedingly difficult, and possible impossible.

Who is to say someone in Royal Mail did not steal the £10? It is possible.

The only way you would be pretty confident is if receipt of your SAR and PO has been confirmed in writing (letter or email). If they have received it, the chances are they have cashed it.

If this involves a debt, it is often used as a ploy to reset any SB clock, so you need to address it.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

Actually, it's two separate SARs for two different reasons. One responded asking for documents and signatures, which I provided, we exchanged a few letters, but they still didn't send any documents. The other one didn't respond at all and I've gone to the ICO who have written back saying they are looking into it.

[labman]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

The other one didn't respond at all and I've gone to the ICO who have written back saying they are looking into it.

If they don't respond, after ICO intervention which would be somewhat suicidal given a couple of the fines the ICO have dished out recently, force it through the courts.

[PlanB]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

Any offence would have to be proven, and that would involve proving who cashed the PO which would be exceedingly difficult, and possible impossible.

Who is to say someone in Royal Mail did not steal the £10? It is possible.

It would be dead easy if the postal order was made out to the recipient's name and it was crossed with "account payee only" . My local post office always advise me to do that and even print out the name of the payee on the P.O.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: Is there a way to find out if a PO was cashed?

It would be dead easy if the postal order was made out to the recipient's name and it was crossed with "account payee only" . My local post office always advise me to do that and even print out the name of the payee on the P.O.

Sadly I didn't do that, in fact, if memory serves me (and at my age, that doesn't happen very often), the advice from another forum was to send them blank. I have been sending SARs with POs for 10 years, the others I'd previously sent got a response so I didn't think things would be different now.