Check stock security means treating blank checks like cash: kept locked, counted in and out on a numbering log, printed only by named people, destroyed when voided and reviewed for missing numbers every month. A stolen blank check carries your real account and routing numbers, so a gap in these steps is an open door.
Where should blank check stock be stored?
Blank check stock belongs in a locked cabinet or safe, with the key or combination held by someone who does not print or sign checks. Only the working supply for the next payment run should be out, and it goes back into the lock at the end of the day.
Practical storage rules
- One locked place. Spare boxes in a storeroom are easy to steal, because nobody counts them.
- Key holder outside the payment process. An office manager or the owner holds the key. The person who prints checks asks for stock and signs for it.
- Signature stamps and signature files locked too. A facsimile signature on a printer is as valuable as a signed check.
- Delivery straight to the key holder. A new order from the printer should be opened and logged by the key holder, starting and ending numbers checked against the order.
Old stock from a closed account should be destroyed, not kept "just in case". A closed account can sometimes be reopened by mistake, and the checks can still be used to deceive a payee.
The check stock numbering log
The check stock numbering log records every check number from the moment stock arrives until each number is used, voided or destroyed. It lets anyone see, at a glance, which numbers should exist and where each one went. The key holder keeps it, not the person printing.
The log below is an example with made-up numbers for a business that prints checks weekly.
| Date | Event | From | To | Count | Released to | Key holder initials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-01 | Box received from printer | 20001 | 20500 | 500 | Locked cabinet | MR |
| 2026-09-04 | Issued for payment run | 20001 | 20025 | 25 | A. Patel, AP | MR |
| 2026-09-04 | Returned unused | 20019 | 20025 | 7 | Locked cabinet | MR |
| 2026-09-11 | Issued for payment run | 20019 | 20040 | 22 | A. Patel, AP | MR |
| 2026-09-11 | Voided in printer jam | 20027 | 20027 | 1 | Void file | MR |
At the end of each run, the numbers released, less the numbers returned, should equal the checks printed plus voids. Any difference is a missing check.
Who should be allowed to print checks on blank stock?
Only named payables staff should be able to print checks, and only from the accounting system after the payment run is approved. Printing rights in the software and physical access to stock should both be limited, and the person who prints should not also be able to sign or approve the payments.
Blank-stock printing
Some businesses print the whole check, account and routing numbers included, on blank security paper with a MICR toner printer. That is efficient, but it means anyone with the software, the paper and the printer can make a check. Lock the printer's paper tray or keep the paper with the stock, limit who has the check-printing permission, and remove that permission when someone changes role. This sits inside the wider approval chain covered in cash disbursement controls.
Checks that come in, not go out
Incoming customer checks are a separate risk. A check you receive shows your customer's account details, not yours, and the controls for logging and depositing it are covered in cash receipts internal controls. If most of your income is collected by card or debit on a schedule, check stock matters less for receipts and the work moves to recurring billing reconciliation.
Destroying voided and obsolete check stock
Voided checks should be marked VOID across the face, have the signature line and MICR line cut out or defaced, and be kept in a void file until the monthly review confirms each number. After that, shred them. Obsolete stock, such as checks for a closed account, is counted and shredded with a witness.
Steps for a voided check
- Write VOID in large letters across the payee and amount lines.
- Cut off or deface the signature area and the number line at the bottom.
- Record the void in the accounting system so the number is not reused.
- Add the void to the bank's positive pay file if you use the service.
- File the check in number order until the month is reviewed.
Shredding obsolete stock
Two people count the stock, record the first and last number in the log, and sign the entry. Then shred it on the spot or with a shredding service that issues a certificate. A box of checks thrown in the recycling bin can be picked up and used by anyone.
Monthly review of check number sequence gaps
Each month, someone who does not print checks lists every number released from stock and accounts for it as cleared, outstanding, voided or returned to the cabinet. Any number that cannot be placed is a missing check. A missing check needs an answer the same week, because it may be in someone's pocket.
How to run the review
Start from the log. Take the range released that month and compare it with the check register, the void file and the bank statement. Sort cleared checks by number and look for breaks. A cleared check whose number was never released from stock is the most serious finding: someone printed it outside the process, or it is a counterfeit.
When a gap is innocent
Most gaps have a dull cause. A check was voided but not recorded, or a payment run skipped a number after a printer jam. Write down the cause and fix the record. A gap with no cause stays open, and the bank should be asked to stop payment on that number.
To make the sequence check part of every month, PreciseBankFlow flags gaps in the check numbers it reads from your statements, so the review starts from a list rather than a blank page.