$177,000.00 Bank error.

[~Barn~]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28654819/

Can you imagine?

I don't think I would contact my bank either. That would be the hardest call in the world to make!

I'm thinking I probably would have just moved all of it to my Money Market account, and as the monthly interest deposits came in, transfered those over to my checking.

I mean seriously.... Fuck the bank if they can't get my deposit right. Quiting your job, moving, and buying a house was probably a little rash, though.

[McVaaahhh]

I'd be curious if they could actually be convicted of theft. Being stupid, yes, but theft, doubtful.

Is it theft if the cashier at a store gives you too much change?

[~Barn~]

Yeah, but you don't sign contracts that allow you to buy some cold cuts at Safeway. My guess is that there is "fine print" in most banking contracts that mandates the notification of the bank, in the event of a discovered transaction that's in error.

[modette99]

Yeah the bank screws up and the people have to go to jail, that sounds a little messed up. I do not think I would quit my job for $177K that buys very little nowadays.

I had a problem one time where I inquired about refinancing my vehicle with my credit union as it was a lower rate vs Fords rate. I provided all the details but never signed the paperwork due to not liking the terms. They required me to carry insurance of $100 deductible and I called them and they said that it could not be waved. So I said okay I'll stay with Ford as the rate was not much higher, so no big deal.

A few months go by and I'm still mailing payments to Ford I get a check back from Ford. I'm like okay, I have no clue what this is about. I call Ford and they say the vehicle was paid off in full by guess who my credit union. So I call them, and they were very unhelpful, in fact I had a few words with the gal and got nowhere. So I called Ford back, told them I never authorized this...they were very friendly and told me they would look into the matter. A few days go by and I get a call from the Credit Union President wanting to know what happened. I explained it and he said he would look into the matter. A few more days go by and he calls me back and said he sees I never signed the paperwork and this had never happened and when someone inquires about a loan they have always gone through with it. He told me the Vice President of Ford financial services will be calling me. He did and the credit union paid Ford to take the loan back.

I was young at the time (22) and just wanted it straightened out.

However if this happened to me today, I would pretty much tell the credit union to kiss my butt and thanks for the Free car. I mean, its not like I did not spend time dealing with this and sitting on the phone to get answers. Reflecting back I should of been compensated for my time.

So yes banks do make mistakes and I do not feel these people stole. The bank should suck it up and instead learn from the $177K mistake. Instead of trying to blame them for theft, which they never asked for the money in the first place. If someone wants to deposit $177K into my account, thank you...but I will not ask where it came from.

[salsashark]

I'd be curious if they could actually be convicted of theft. Being stupid, yes, but theft, doubtful.

Is it theft if the cashier at a store gives you too much change?

Yes, they can be convicted of theft. They knew it wasn't theirs and they took it and ran.

I remember reading about this a couple of years ago so the details are fuzzy but it has to do with unlawfully benefiting from the mistake. Yes it sucks... if someone made this mistake in my account I would want to keep the money as well. But in the end, it's not their money and they have no right to it.

[modette99]

Yeah, but you don't sign contracts that allow you to buy some cold cuts at Safeway. My guess is that there is "fine print" in most banking contracts that mandates the notification of the bank, in the event of a discovered transaction that's in error.

You know I do not recall a sheet of paper being present when we opened our account. My first bank account my father just handed them $3K for me, and I then transferred over my credit union money and that was it. They verbally took my name, address, and SSN and I showed my drivers license.

Next time I'm at my bank, I'll ask to see if there is policy...and if it is in writing and if I can get a copy.

Some might argue that the error depends on the individual and their interpretation of whether it was an "error".

[Spiderman]

Theft?!? They withdrew it from their OWN bank account!

Maybe they thought it was an anonymous deposit from a rich relative?

[modette99]

Found these stories:
http://www.englishrussia.com/?p=249

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/sav...nk_errora1.asp

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com...urProblem.aspx

http://www.expertlaw.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3084

So when something like this happens, why should the bank not be held on theft charges, like they want on individuals. This is the reverse of the bank paying out.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574...-13762,00.html

[dirkterrell]

Yeah the bank screws up and the people have to go to jail, that sounds a little messed up.

They took a large sum of money that they knew didn't belong to them. Jail sounds right to me.

Dirk

[puckstr]

Say you thought it was a stimulus package or the Federal bank bailout package

[modette99]

I just do not see a Jury of working men and women actually convicting them. The only Jail they will end up with is until they go to trial.

Like it was said, I just say I was praying for some money and next thing I knew it was in my account.

Jail is for people that are a danger to society, these people are not as far as we know within that article. So instead of letting them keep $177K you rather spend that per year or more keeping them behind bars...yeah they are such a danger.

[modette99]

Say you thought it was a stimulus package or the Federal bank bailout package

Nah, I heard that comes with a free Cadillac with 24" rims.

[McVaaahhh]

Yes, they can be convicted of theft. They knew it wasn't theirs and they took it and ran.

I remember reading about this a couple of years ago so the details are fuzzy but it has to do with unlawfully benefiting from the mistake. Yes it sucks... if someone made this mistake in my account I would want to keep the money as well. But in the end, it's not their money and they have no right to it.

So if I find $1000 on the street and take it and run, I could be charged with a felony? I'm not sure...

[hcr25]

"Jail is for people that are a danger to society"

So if someone hacked into your bank account and drained it, they shouldnt do any jail time because they are not a threat to society?

[salsashark]

So if I find $1000 on the street and take it and run, I could be charged with a felony? I'm not sure...

check out the links that Modette provided. It explains the difference between finding money on the street... of which, there is no expectation of ownership because there is no obvious owner, and money deposited into accounts by mistake. You know that it doesn't belong to you and so does the bank. There is an expectation of knowledge of ownership.

[hcr25]

So if I find $1000 on the street and take it and run, I could be charged with a felony? I'm not sure...

Lol, finding money on the street and withdrawing money that you know is not yours are not really the same.

I am to slow!

[McVaaahhh]

You're probably right Salsa, just kind of a grey area.

I think it'd be hard to actually convict them and throw them in jail, which IMHO would be a bit overkill. However, it'd be perfectly acceptable to make them pay the money back.

[salsashark]

In one of the cases modette linked to, they made the person repay the money plus a 500 dollar fine.

I know it would be tough to not run with it... but it wasn't theirs and they knew it. I guess taking it's a moral issue... getting it back is a legal one.

[McVaaahhh]

"Jail is for people that are a danger to society"

So if someone hacking into your bank account and drained, they shouldnt do any jail time because they are not a threat to society?

Hacking into an account and taking money is different than waking up one day and it's there.


All I'm saying is the people didn't set out to steal money so I don't really think they are criminals. They probably just thought they couldn't get in trouble and tough shit for the bank.

[Foolds]

Our Business bank made a 990k error once giving us a million dollars, but we called and they promptly fixed that problem

[dirkterrell]

Jail is for people that are a danger to society, these people are not as far as we know within that article. So instead of letting them keep $177K you rather spend that per year or more keeping them behind bars...yeah they are such a danger.

So, if you made the mistake of leaving your key in the bike in the parking lot and someone walked up and rode off on it, that would be ok? The person who happened to see the key probably wouldn't have been out to steal a bike but, hey, it was sitting there and it was the owner that screwed up, right?

Dirk

[McVaaahhh]

So, if you made the mistake of leaving your key in the bike in the parking lot and someone walked up and rode off on it, that would be ok? The person who happened to see the key probably wouldn't have been out to steal a bike but, hey, it was sitting there and it was the owner that screwed up, right?

Dirk

To complete the analogy Dirk, don't you mean if you opened someones garage and parked your bike in there with the key in it and the signed title in the trunk, closed the garage and walked away?

[dirkterrell]

To complete the analogy Dirk, don't you mean if you opened someones garage and parked your bike in there with the key in it and the signed title in the trunk, closed the garage and walked away?

No, that wouldn't be an honest mistake. The bank didn't say "here, you won some money" and later try to take it back. They made a mistake that put money in someone's account. When the mistake was discovered, the ethical thing to do was to bring it to the bank's attention. I'm amazed that people are having trouble seeing that.

Dirk

[~Barn~]

I take it back. I would take the $$ to Vegas and play craps.