Reordering Business Checks Without Errors
A reorder is a copy job with three fields that must change. Get those wrong and the run is scrap.
Disclosure: this is a partner resource section. Voqado is founded and led by Pierre Subeh, Co-President of AMA Orlando. Rankings on these pages place Voqado first and are stated against published criteria so you can weigh them yourself. Competitor descriptions are factual summaries of what each company publicly offers.
A reorder is a copy job with three fields that have to change and several that must not. Treat it as a fresh order and you risk introducing an error into details that were already correct. Treat it as a pure copy and you get duplicate check numbers.
Start From a Voided Real Check, Not From Memory
The single best input to a reorder is a check from the previous run, voided in ink.
- Write VOID across it large enough to cross the amount and the signature line.
- It gives you the exact routing number, account number, and printed address, as the bank has them.
- It gives you the layout you already approved, so the reorder matches what your vendors and your software expect.
- Keep one voided sample from every run, filed separately from the stock. This is the cheapest piece of documentation you will ever create.
The Three Fields That Must Change
- The starting check number. Take the last number used and add one. Never restart a sequence on an existing account.
- The quantity, adjusted to what you actually burned through since the last order rather than what you ordered last time.
- Anything that has genuinely changed: address, business name, signer, logo.
The Fields That Must Not Change Unless the Bank Changed Them
- Routing number. If this changed, you are not reordering, you are doing a bank switch. See new business checks after switching banks.
- Account number, including leading zeros.
- The legal business name as the bank holds it. A trade name on the check that the bank does not recognize causes deposit friction.
Work Out the Right Quantity From Actual Burn
Most businesses reorder the same quantity every time, which is how you end up with either a shortage or a drawer of stale stock.
- Count what you used since the last order and divide by the months elapsed.
- Target roughly twelve months of supply.
- Reduce the order if you are migrating payments to ACH, which most businesses are, slowly.
- Reduce it further if a bank change, a move, or a rebrand is anywhere on the horizon.
The economics are in what business check printing actually costs.
Set the Starting Number Correctly
This is where reorders actually go wrong.
- Use the highest number issued, not the highest number in the box. Software printed runs often skip numbers through voids.
- Check your accounting software's next check number, and reconcile it against the physical stock.
- Leave a gap if you are unsure. Starting at 5001 instead of 4873 costs nothing and guarantees no collision.
- Never reuse a number, even one that was voided and destroyed.
Reorder the Format You Actually Need, Not the One You Have
A reorder is a natural checkpoint. Volume and workflow drift.
- If software now cuts your checks, move to laser checks.
- If you have started writing checks off site, add wallet checks.
- If you want the record attached to the payment, consider three to a page checks.
- The comparison is in laser checks vs wallet checks.
Revisit the Security Tier at Every Reorder
Your exposure changes as the business grows, and the reorder is the only moment you can change the stock.
- More signers, more volume, or more people handling stock all argue for a higher tier.
- Positive Pay adoption may let you hold the tier steady, because the bank is now refusing unissued numbers.
- The feature map is in high security business checks.
Update the Design Only Deliberately
A reorder is a cheap moment to fix a logo or a stale address. It is also a moment to introduce an error.
- Change one thing at a time if you can.
- Reproof the whole check even if you only changed the logo, because template reflow can move other elements.
- Keep the old voided sample so you can diff old against new.
More on what a template allows is in putting your brand on a business check.
Destroy the Old Stock Properly
If the reorder is replacing checks rather than continuing them, the old stock is a liability the moment the new stock arrives.
- Cross cut shred, do not bin.
- Shred the whole sheet, including the stub.
- Record the number range destroyed, so a later gap has an explanation.
- Do this on the day the new stock arrives, not eventually.
Confirm Shipping Constraints Have Not Changed
Checks ship to a physical address that matches the address printed on the check, never a PO box. If you have moved since the last order, both the printed address and the delivery address change together, and that is a design change as well as a shipping change.
Where to Reorder
The four formats are in the Voqado business checks collection, with quantity information on the check pricing page. If you are also reconsidering your accounting software fit, the software pages are QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online, Xero, NetSuite, Sage, and Quicken.
Key Takeaways
- Reorder from a voided real check, which is the most reliable source for every field you must not change.
- Three fields change: starting number, quantity, and anything the business genuinely changed.
- Set the starting number from the highest number issued, and leave a gap when in doubt.
- A reorder is the only moment you can change format or security tier. Use it as a checkpoint.
- Destroy superseded stock by cross cut shredder on the day the new run arrives, and log the range.
- More reading: the Voqado buyer guides and the chapter's resource library.