Banks are required to keep logged entries of Cashier/Certified checks over a certain dollar amount (and it is lower then what you all might think) including name, SSN and drivers license info. That bank will be able to tell you immediately if they issued the funds and will not refuse to release that information to you. I still stand by the philosophy of " In God we trust...... all others pay cash" whenever I can. Heck, I have put cash in UPS envelopes, insured it and shipped it.