Ford government rebate cheques aren't clearing for some Ontarians
An estimated 150 to 200 people weren’t able to cash their $200 cheques
Some Ontarians have run into roadblocks when cashing their $200 cheques from Premier Doug Ford's government.
The "taxpayer rebate" cheques, as the government calls them, have been on their way to millions of Ontarians over the past few days.
But after receiving their cheques in the mail, some Ontarians had trouble depositing their cheques and seeing the money show up in their accounts.
Kristine Newton told CBC News she received her cheque on Jan. 21. She banks with Simplii Financial and deposited the cheque through its mobile app by uploading a photo of it.
There appeared to be no problems, until two days later when she checked her bank account and noticed it was in overdraft, and that her $200 cheque hadn't been processed.
"The cheque had essentially bounced," she said.
Government says RBC to blame
Newton said she called her bank and was told payment on the cheque had been stopped, and that she should call the Ministry of Finance.
When she called the ministry, Newton said her personal information was taken and she was told they would follow up with her.
Newton was left confused and upset, and without the $200 she had been counting on to take her pet to the vet.
"I had to cancel my cat's vet visit. That $200 was to take my old, beautiful cat to the vet," said Newton, who had been unemployed for more than a year and just recently got a new part-time job.
"To say I was upset is an understatement," said Newton.
A spokesperson for Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy told CBC News the department is aware of problems with some cheques, and that the issue can be traced to RBC.
In an emailed statement, RBC spokesperson Andrew Block acknowledged that a "handful" of Ontarians saw their cheques "returned" after they were deposited.
It's not a case of there being insufficient funds, according to the bank.
Block said that RBC undertakes several steps to authenticate cheques to ensure they are legitimate and received by the intended recipient.
"On very rare occasions, our protocols may result in a cheque being returned when it should have been processed, which is what occurred in this instance with a handful of cheques," he said, adding that the bank has now resolved the issue and that impacted customers have received their $200.
"We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience it's caused," the statement said.
RBC says problem is solved
Newton says the money finally showed up in her account on Tuesday, along with a refund for the charge she incurred for the invalid cheque.
"Being a government cheque, never in my life would I have even thought to not trust it," she said.
RBC is among the financial institutions that were used to issue the cheques on behalf of the government. That means some people, like Newton, were impacted even though they are not RBC customers.
RBC didn't provide a precise number of how many people were impacted but said it is between 150 and 200 — and it doesn't anticipate any further problems.
Cheques still being mailed out
The Ford government announced in October that it planned on sending $200 cheques to every Ontarian over the age of 18 to help with the cost of living. Parents are also getting an extra $200 per child.
On Jan. 17, it said the cheques were in the mail.
Opposition leaders have criticized the government's choice to send the cheques to every Ontarian, regardless of their income level.
To be eligible to receive the money, Ontarians had to have filed their income tax return for 2023, not be incarcerated in 2024, and not be bankrupt.
An estimated 12.5 million adults and 2.5 million children will be getting the money, with the program costing the treasury an estimated $3 billion.
There will be added administrative costs on top of that, including for mailing the cheques, but the ministry of finance says those costs are still being finalized and will be publicly available later in the year.
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