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O.K I just had my mind blown at the bank!

7K views 40 replies 34 participants last post by  Harvester2 
#1 ·
Warning... this post is for entertainment purposes only. Ok I sent my wife in the bank with 2 postal money orders for 1000.00 each to deposit in her account. When they cleared she was going to pay off a c.c. account. She was not asking for any cash back. I was sitting in the car in parking lot and here comes the wife with the money orders in her hand. She says they won't accept them because the can't verify them until 48 hours. Uhhh... ok so I go back in, wait to see manager, he didn't know what to do either! I'm telling him "we are not in a hurry they can put a hold on it if it makes them feel better. I was sitting in his office and I could hear the teller explaining to him how people counterfeit postal money orders. I realize there is a lot of fraud but it seems like the banksters are getting dumber by the day! Ok that was my rant, resume all financial discussions.
 
#7 ·
Postal money order fakes were really good 20 yrs ago and likely even better today. Take the Postal Money Orders to the Post Office if you don't want to wait. Any relatively busy PO is more alert to counterfeit MO's and will probably catch a fake one. Actually I don't blame the bank for wanting to make sure.
 
#9 ·
Unless you are wedded to that bank, I'd open an account at another one close my accounts with them.

I had a bank which I had used for 12 years tell me that they wanted me to fingerprint one of my own checks that I wanted to cash at the window. I reminded the cashier that I was a longtime customer and that she had personally helped me many times. SHe said that this was their new policy. I asked for the manager.

The manager thought she was going to be cute and told that there was nothing that she could do. I told that yes there was: I'm closing my accounts with (checking and savings) and you can cut me a check for them. She changed her tune then (I'm not rich, but I did have a lot of money in their) but she'd already ****ed me off.

That was 10 years ago and I haven't had any similar problems with my current bank.
 
#12 ·
I have seen the decline in the service and the knowledge of Bank employees in the last 20 years.

I have received many USPS Money Orders back when I sold stuff on eBay in the late 90's and they used to be able to give me cash when I went to get my money. But with the amount of fakes out there, they will no longer do this.

You would think that they would have a list of fake serial numbers being used and be able to cross check them with the ones on the Money Orders that are presented to them

I got tired of all of the changes in the bank that I had been at for several years. The last straw was when my "free checking" account was no longer free. I closed my 3 accounts and went to a Credit Union. Much better service and they have much lower fees for certain things. Now with the shared branches with other Credit Unions, I can go into many locations and conduct my banking business where before I would have had to drive to a particular Credit Union.

I have not tried to pullout more than $2500 at one time since changing to a Credit Union, but most banks will have a limit of $2500 for each account or account holder. This made it difficult for me to buy a vehicle for $3500 and the person wanted it in cash. This really got me mad since I had over $6K in that account. After raising a big stink, they did give it to me. I was almost tempted to go to 3 branches and pull out all $6K in three $2K transactions.
 
#13 ·
Lonewolf - there IS something funky going on at the banks. I've had a couple strange things happen to me, too. Part of it is they're being overly paranoid about fraud and cyberattacks. Part of it is new regulations - and that's where I'd look for new bank policies coming at the banks.

Changing the rules without informing their clients? I have a hard time believing that institutions that exist only because of their relationships with their customers would change rules midstream without telling us -- unless there was another reason.
 
#14 ·
Years ago I opened an account at a bank that opened up in Walmart. I used to get lots of rebate checks for computer software, it was usually free after rebate. It would not be uncommon for me to have 10-15 checks, ranging from $10-$50. One of the reasons for opening an account at that bank was because at that time I was in Walmart about once a week anyway, and the bank was open until like 7 or 8pm.

I went in one day with 7 or 8 checks. All I was doing is depositing them. I didn't ask for any cash back. The lady said she'd need to call the banks on the checks to make sure they were real. Well, of course since it was after 5 there was no one there. She told me she couldn't take them and I'd have to come back in the morning. !!!!?!??!?!?! I immediately closed my account.
 
#16 ·
It's odd how when we bring a check to a bank, even if it is a Postal Money Order, or a check from someone who banks at that SAME bank, a hold gets placed on it, gotta wait, sometimes fingerprints blah blah blah......

I go to Wal-Mart etc. and write a check, they zip it through that machine, by the time I get home the funds have been moved.

Just like debit card refunds, those takes time lol, but when it's going the other way.......modern efficiency :D:
 
#17 ·
Slightly off topic, but regarding how sketchy banks are getting these days.... Last time I went to the bank a few months ago to pull some cash, they had a hard time scrounging up the measly $900 I had withdrew! The cashier told me I should call in a day ahead when withdrawing larger amounts, and this was a large national bank!. I scratched my head, as $900 isn't all that much money... If they are having a hard time finding $900 cash, they have a bigger problem.
 
#18 ·
I make deposits a couple times a week and have never had a check or money order refused. If the check or money order I deposit is no good I get charged a 20.00 fee per check or money order.

When this happens I call the person who wrote me the check or gave me the money order and have them bring me another check +40.00 cash. If they refuse I hand it over to the district attorney and get a warrant signed out on the person after 30 days. They don't get out of jail until they pay the original check + a crap load of fees.
 
#20 ·
I work with quite a few money orders. What happens is the money order is written and the #'s on the check are logged into the machine. At the end of the business day or up to 36 hours later, all the check numbers and amounts are sent to a central computer that any business that has a account can call up and verify the check number and amount. If the MO were less than 24-36 hours old then the numbers might not be in the central computer so your bank could not verify the numbers and amounts.
 
#21 ·
Money orders, cashier's checks, traveler's checks and checks cashed from the same bank's customers USED to be treated just like cash. If the rules changed, and they value their customers, why wasn't there any notice of this? And if they claim there was notice, was it in print larger than 6 pt type?

It was SOP to accept all deposits - and it was at the bank's discretion whether and how long they might "hold" that deposit as pending, until such time as it was cleared at the issuing institution.

Since my recent experience, I've been turning over some rocks to see what I can find. And what it looks like (since I'm not finding any recent changes) is that there is a lot of institutional paranoia about how many acts of fraud and money laundering happen on a daily basis. We are looked at suspicious, when we simply transact our normal business, exactly as we have been doing for some time... much less, if you have something out of the ordinary.

When someone asks for a large amount of cash (used to be $10k; but apparently anything over $2k gets scruntinized now too)... the bank is required to report this to the IRS and some other agency and they are NOT allowed to inform you that the report is being made. This regulation has been around for quite some time, as a means of triggering possible money laundering violations.

I think maybe someone hasn't adjusted the amounts of the triggers, to accommodate for the UNofficial - but real - rate of inflation. OOPS.

This is one reason (I suspect) we're all being herded into using digital money - because they can snoop to their heart's content about what we spend money on, all the while raising the bar for each of us - whether it's unwritten banking rules or online security - to access our own money. Credit Unions are subject to the same rules as the banks, as far as I know - so that's no miracle solution, even if there are advantages and it's "not as bad".

Cash is the currency of black markets, too. And isn't "snoopable" from a tech perspective. Perhaps this is something else that keeps these insufferable busybodies who assume we're all guilty of financial crimes up late at night trying to find ways to fulfill their own prophecy/fear... of a bank run.
 
#22 ·
The banks have also started charging to cash checks. I did a side job and was paid with a check. I needed the cash so I went to the bank to cash the check. They wanted $3.00 to cash it since I didn't bank with them. The check was only for $300.00. They wouldn't honor a check drawn on their bank from a long time customer of theirs. Just because you deposit money in a bank does not make the money theirs. They are a holding facility for your cash. If you have a debt and write a check to pay theft debt, shouldn't they have to honor it.
 
#25 ·
they do honor it. The check cashing service costs money, since you arent a customer they want you to pay for it.

I recently worked on a banking system which decomposed the costs of a bank down to very granular levels. For example, when you deposit a check, it costs the bank 3 cents to scan the check, there is labor associated with the transaction, computer systems which hold the check etc.

Banks then essentially create a profit and loss for each transaction, for each account, for account types, for customers etc.

teller services are very expensive, since you dont bank there, you cant use their teller services without paying. If you took it to your own bank where you are paying fees, you would have been fine.

The other day I tried to go into a bank that I dont bank at and get change for a $20 (in dimes). They wouldnt do it because I was not a customer.
 
#23 ·
Just because you deposit money in a bank does not make the money theirs.
No, it's not theirs. However:

LEGALLY they can do what they want with that money. Their only obligation to you - per the agreements you sign when you open an account - is to return your money to you, upon demand (plus any interest specified in the contract; less any fees for the account).

The contract doesn't specify how or when your money is returned to you upon demand. And of course, the gov is involved in all manner of rules/regulations about what banks can/can't do... "for our protection". LOL....

Remember the Ally Bank commercial from awhile back - when a total stranger is asked to hold a briefcase full of money, while someone runs an errand? And the "punchline" is: if you can't trust your bank any further than you'd trust a total stranger... you need an "ally"...
 
#24 ·
I do alot of business with companies outside the US. About six years ago, my old bank got a new manager. I received several wire transfers for parts and equipment, but the bank manager decided to wait for them to clear. Ok, this is not a paper check, its a wire transfer. I went in and talked to the manager, explained how the previous manager had never had a problem with wire transfers. Unfortunately, he ****** me off and I closed all of my accounts with that bank. I then called the regional office and explained my reason for closing the accounts. I was told that the manager was new and that this was his first posting as a manager.

When my youngest sister went into the bank the next week, she noticed that the new manager had been demoted to teller.
 
#26 ·
They spout the benefits of the whole all electronic system, but then announce on almost a daily basis how yet another retailer was hacked and stole your information. Seems to me they are gonna really have to do something to fix this issue or it will never happen.

Banks really have gotten out of hand. Now cashiers checks have a 10 day hold, might as well just write a personal check then. I remember long ago going to BofA, where I had an account, with a postal money order, they wanted to put a hold on it. The only money order they would cash on the spot was a BofA money order, that was $4 at the time. I guess it would work great if BofA was the only bank, but if every bank starts saying they will only cash theirs, then not much point in even having money orders anymore.

You cant take out large sums of cash, cant put in large sums of cash. Any check or money order you bring is going to require a hold on it. My savings account right now gets all of .25% interest. Their networks arent secure. What exactly is the point of a bank anymore?
 
#27 ·
hey thats no problem.. aside from not casing money orders, the local post office will now dould as your bank...that should give you a warm and fuzzy feeling...
you know the post office that is about to go broke.. yeah. the government wants to set them up as banks now... what could go wrong?
 
#28 ·
Another "stupid banker" true story happened to my step mom about a year ago. She got a refund check for something like $27 in the mail for something and stuck it in her purse for the next time she went to the bank. One day when she and my dad were out running errands, she remembers she has it in her purse and has my dad stop by the bank so she can cash it. She signs it, hands it to the teller and he asks her what bills she would like her cash in, she thought he was joking so she says "hundreds". He walks away, talks to his manager and comes back with 27 bills, counts them out to her while she's talking on her cell phone, puts them in an envelope and tells her to have a nice day. She puts the envelope in her purse and goes about her day. When they got home she took the money out of the envelope and there was 27 $100 bills in it! She took it right back to the bank and told them what had happened. She wasn't too impressed with their customer service, didn't even get a thank you for being honest about their $2673 mistake.
 
#29 ·
One more aspect about the banking experience, to chew on:

I'm reading that a lot of the long-time, experienced people are retiring, quitting, getting out of their jobs right now. (The ones that aren't "suicided" that is.) Which means there are a lot of "wet behind the ears" people, raised in our wack-job public schools and indoctrinating higher ed system, in those jobs now.

They're trained to passionately support "causes", never question what they're told, and to keep drinking the kool-aid daily, for their paychecks. Anything out of sync with the "pattern of normal" will completely upset their reality, make them suspicious and invoke the gods of paranoid, self-appointed "power".
 
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