As stock markets fall, Internet security scandals arise and top pop acts are revealed to be only miming, the average man in the street has begun to take better care of himself and his money. Likewise Josephine Bloggs. With the increasing use of debit and credit cards, the art of cheque writing is slowly, but surely, becoming lost to us all. Even more so though ... the art of writing a blank cheque.

There are three types of blank cheque: unlimited blank cheques, limited blank cheques, and void blank cheques. Though they share a name, they are very different beasts, and giving the wrong type of cheque to the wrong type of person could prove expensive.

Writing an Unlimited Blank Cheque

If you ever...

• Felt your life is boring, and you need a thrill.
• Wanted to be a big spender just once in your lifetime.
• Needed to know what it's like to walk in the boots of Bill Gates or Howard Hughes.
• Wondered how the European Union spends all that money.
• Wanted to make somebody really happy.

.... then you may wish to fill out a blank cheque. Here's how:

1. Locate chequebook and find an available¹ cheque. It must be your chequebook: writing blank cheques using someone else's chequebook is probably illegal.

2. Find a suitable writing implement. Ballpoint pens are probably best for this purpose, as pencils and crayons tend to be unacceptable to the bank.

3. (Optional) Write the recipient's name on the 'Pay' section of the cheque. This will make it harder for someone else who obtains the cheque to cash it. If you do not fill this section in, then anyone can cash your cheque.

4. Sign bottom right-hand corner of the cheque, and date the top right-hand corner of the cheque.

5. (Optional) Fill out the cheque book stub to make things easier when reconciling your next bank statement.

6. Remove cheque from chequebook, taking care to avoid papercuts. Your cheque is now ready for presentation, mailing, dropping or whatever other purpose you require it for.

Procedures may vary around the world, for example in the USA² they do not have cheques, only checks.

Under no circumstances give an unlimited blank cheque to someone who may fill in an outrageously large amount of money and cash it in and run away to a tropical island. Money may not be able to buy happiness, but a lack of money can certainly create a lot of misery.

Writing a Limited Blank Cheque

Writing a limited blank cheque is very similar to an unlimited blank cheque.

1. Obtain available cheque and writing implement as normal.

2. Write on the cheque, for example, 'Not more than one hundred pounds (£100) only'. This will ensure that the recipient cannot withdraw more than £100 using the cheque. The best place to write this is probably at the bottom of the cheque under the 'amount payable' section.

3. Proceed as for an unlimited blank cheque.

Limited blank cheques are used for a variety of purposes. For example, suppose you've asked a friend to buy a certain painting at auction, up to a limit of £500. You could present a limited blank cheque with 'no more than five hundred pounds (£500) only' written on it, and if your representative wins the auction s/he can fill in the exact amount and hand over the cheque.

Using a Blank Cheque

To use either type of blank cheque, simply fill in an amount in the 'amount payable' sections (once in numbers and once in words) making sure that it is less than any stated maximum, and pay it into your account as normal.

Alternatively, keep it, and tell your friends about your 'inchoate instrument' to show off your general knowledge. That's just a fancy finance term for a blank cheque - obscure jargon ever being a means to justify high salaries.

Writing a Void Blank Cheque

Void cheques can be a convenient way of providing someone with your bank details. This can make it easy for someone to pay money into your account using some form of electronic transfer.

1. Obtain available cheque and writing implement as normal.

2. Write 'VOID' in large letters.

3. (Optional) Write 'VOID' on cheque stub.

4. Tear cheque out of cheque book.

5. That's it!

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¹ An available cheque, in this sense, is one which hasn't been written on by the owner of the account - it just has the standard information added by the bank: name and address, bank name and address, cheque number, account number, etc.
² The United States of America comprises 50 states that have slowly been gathered together since 1776. The most recent addition was Hawaii in 1959.