On August 24, 1989, Karrer and her son opened a joint checking account with Georgia State Bank. The signature card agreement contained a provision that Karrer should report any account problem to the bank within 60 days of her statement or lose her rights to assert the problem against the bank. On August 15, 1990, Karrer tendered a check signed by her in the amount of $1,510 to Casey Construction. At the time the check was tendered, Karrer knew there were insufficient funds in her account to cover the check. Casey, who had an account at the same bank, deposited the check to its account along with another check and received $965 in cash.
On Saturday, August 18, 1990, Karrer went to the main office of the bank and for the first time notified it that she wanted to stop payment on the check because of Casey’s defective work. Her account did not have sufficient funds to honor the check, so the bank assured her that it would do everything to stop payment. The stop payment order was not implemented before the check was returned to Casey for insufficient funds. Casey’s attorney notified Karrer on August 24 by registered mail that the check was dishonored and that if she failed to pay the full amount of the check, both civil and criminal actions would be filed against her. The letter was returned “Unclaimed.” The letter was sent to the same address that Karrer and her son used when they opened the account.
Karrer was arrested on October 9 for the issuance of a bad check. She never tried to make the check good prior to her arrest or communicate to the bank any problems she had with the requested stop payment order or the return of the check for insufficient funds until June 4, 1991, almost eight months after her arrest. Even on closing her account in February 1991, she said nothing to the bank about its handling of the check or the stop payment order. In August 1991, Karrer filed suit against the bank, alleging that its return of the check for insufficient funds was wrongful, unlawful, and improper. She also alleged a breach of the agreement between herself and the bank and demanded damages for her arrest, imprisonment, and indictment on charges of issuing a bad check. Is she entitled to collect? [Karrer v Georgia State Bank of Rome, 452 SE2d 120 (Ga App)]