Never, ever had a problem with a check at my bank. Do people no longer have a relationship with their bank anymore? If they don't call you by name when you come in you should be banking somewhere else IMO...
Are you serious? Up here in the Northeast we dont have Mom and Pop Banks.. It's Pretty Much Chase,Wells,and B Of A.. They are in it for the volume of money they can move through there. They wouldnt know me from a hole in the wall..