I had it happen a few months back. Also at the drive in. I had two deposits, two checks on separate tickets and one was to get cash back. I was half way home when it hit me that I didn't get any cash back. I went back and went into the bank. The teller remembered me, another teller looked at her records and said you didn't cash out and she said she think it seemed right since they were identical. I got my cash. She didn't apologize, but several others did! I've been banking with them for over 25 years and have had good service, and I realize that mistakes happen. I didn't get too worked up over it.

Good for you. He should have apologized, but then that would be an acknowledgement of his error and he probably didn't want that! Anyway, he would have been "over" at the end of the day.

Yesterday a policeman went through a crosswalk while I was crossing. That's a big no-no in California. He circled around the block, caught me while I was still walking, and deeply apologized. I was nice and said I'd probably done it a time or two myself.

I was just today! Only by 40 cents or so though. They gave me my bills, but not the change. I didn't feel like getting back in line to get it, so I guess they got a tip today!

Once, I did have the opposite happen, when I cashed a very large check.
I just asked the teller to count the cash again, and she still miscounted. when I insisted that she count it a third time, this time slowly and out loud...until she realized her mistake and almost fell over.
She had shorted the bank something like 2-300 dollars, counting 50's as 20's...and thanked me several times.

Wow, how rude. I have been shorted too, not by nearly that much, maybe $10 or $20. Found the error after I had pulled out, (stupid, I know-Lauren was counting when I was driving away). By the time I made it around the block and back to the window the teller had put my name on an envelope with my name on it, because she had caught her own mistake. She appoligized too.

No, but one time I went in the bank and deposited a check and instead of depositing the two hundered or so dollars, the teller deposited an amount that equaled my checking account number....well over two thousand dollars. I got out to the car and looked at it and saw her mistake and went right back in and showed it to her.

As a former bank teller,(now retired), I have made mistakes, got upset, been yelled at mostly by my supervisor, but I always tried to tell the customer I was so sorry about the mistake. Too many times we get interupted by our surroundings, including other employes we do make mistakes but I agree, DO NOT take it out on the customers.

One of my dear friends who works in a bank taught me, DO NOT LEAVE THE WINDOW/DRIVE THRU UNTIL YOU HAVE COUNTED YOUR MONEY!!!!!! So I do, it has cut down on mistakes, mine and theirs.
Also, at the ATM I make sure I count my $ so the camera can see me. never had a mistake there, but if there is it will be on film!
Once I deposited $350, it went in as $35,000. Went back to the bank and the teller thanked me profusely, she would have spent hours trying to proof her drawer!
At the grocery store, at one of the lanes where you check yourself out, I used my debit card and asked for $50 back. Well, it came out of the machine, but I forgot to grab it. two hours later I realized my mistake and went back to store. Thankfully, someone turned it in. Good people still out there.
Kathy G in MI

I was shorted at the drive in window at a bank and I marched inside and closed out all my accounts. I knew the teller had pocketed it.

At another bank I was twice shorted the entire amount of interest on a CD when I tried to cash it out. The first time I fought it and they finally gave me my money due. NO APOLOGY. The second time they pulled this stunt I went to the State Banking Commission as I knew then, that they were thieves if this happened twice to me. I got my money and NO APOLOGY. Because of this I decided to close out my checking account with them when all my checks cleared. Do you know that they tried to cheat me again!!!!!! I KNEW how much money I had in the account and the girl wanted me to sign for $30. I said I was going to the Banking Commission again and immediately a supervisor came over and quietly gave me another paper to sign and I got all the money that I knew was in my account. NO APOLOGY. I was so riled that I did not look at the "cents" in the amount they gave me - only the hundreds of dollars I knew was due to me. I signed the paper. Would you believe two weeks later they sent me a letter saying my closed account was twenty-five CENTS overdrawn!!!! They picked the amount they gave me and made the mistake. Then they charged my closed account thirty bucks and since it was a closed account they were turning it over to to the law for fraud!! I think my neighbors heard me screaming on the phone to them. They said they would clear the matter and of course, NO APOLOGY. I still have the letter about the 25 cents to show people and the copy of the form they had me sign when I closed it out.

Another bank decided to just start sending all my statements and canceled checks to some apartment in another city. This caused some real problems for me. The bank kept insisting they would not have done so if I had not come into the bank and sign a change of address form. What liars. I must have made fifty calls trying to straighten this out. It took months to battle that one. They had no change of address signature to show me when I demanded to see it. They screwed up and I got.......NO APOLOGY.

Another bank had their supervisor show up at the counter when I was doing some routine banking demanding the money "for my late fees on the mortgage I had with them". I demanded to see the mortgage and the list of late fees. The supervisor got huffy and nasty and stomped off to get them. He never came back. You know why? It was because I did not have a mortgage with the bank! So it would be impossible to have late fees on one. I demanded he come back to talk to me and he was sheepish and said he couldn't find a mortgage late fee. NO APOLOGY.

I took a bunch of savings bonds to a bank and they tried to give me half the money they were worth based on their calculations. What is wrong with banks?!?!

Banks will try to cheat you at every turn. I have more stories of attempted theft by banks. But my blood is beginning to boil over.

Well well Dilly Dally...
I suppose you now hold all your money in a sock under the mattress..
That's alot of banking mishaps for one person.

As a former employee of a Savings & Loan and then the larger GLOBAL bank that bought them out..I've never once shorted someone (in 8 years behind a window) but I'm sure I made some mistakes and if there was an error on my part an apology was always given. But that's just me....

Savings bonds aren't worth face value until maturity. Which can take quite alot of years!
There is a form put out every year by the Fed that "caculates" it for you/them.

And I'm suprised that drive up windows are allowing more than one transaction/slip per car. It holds up the "speedy" line and does often cause some craziness..because some banks no longer employ ONLY a drive up window teller..she/he may also be running a window within the bank, or whoever does not have someone at their window inside grabs the drive up.
Drive up windows are for quick transactions..Deposit, check cash, payment.

Glenda, he was doing his job..trying to move the line along. It's good to be on top of any money changing hands. I always double check very quickly myself. And yes I agree, a quick sorry for the mistake would have been appropriate.
Being a bank teller has gotten to be a not so fun job..
Once I left banking..I decided to never go back..the job changed, the priorities change..and it's no longer about customer service..it's about sales and making money.

And back to Dilly Dally...
Bank's don't have to steal $30 from you..or anyone else..
They have these things called fees..overdraft fees, transfer fees, NSF fees...blah blah blah..Those are legal means that allow the banks to make plenty of money off customers. I believe most banks charge atleast $30 for OD or NSF...There are plenty of people out there that have a few of those a month...That's basically FREE money to a bank..

Wow. Dilly Dally has had major problems at at least five banks. I think that's a record.

I know to check my money and the record slips before leaving, just like I know to check my "food" order at a drive up window. But occasionally when in a hurry I don't right away. And someone named "Murphy" has a law about when you'll have problems!

People should slso keep in mind that banks make money numerous ways. And no, I don't know of any bank that wants a dishonest teller. They need to balance out daily and it causes havoc when they don't.

Small rantOne of my frustrations is the double-dipping they do on checks. Person A writes Business B a bad check. They not only charge Person A a fee, but also Business B gets charged a fee and if it's a small business, the fees are higher. Actually, they then triple dip by presenting it twice and charge Person A a second time and even fourple dip and hit Business B a second time, so the business folks are out 2x the fee plus the amount of the check, plus the item, plus what they paid for the item to have it in stock!

Next rant: Person A writes check to person B. The bank will EFT the money from the other bank but withhold access to that money for two weeks. That's called kiting and it's legal for the bank but not for the poor schmuck trying to make ends meet.

Last but not least. People deposit a "certified" check. Check turns out to be forged, unknown to the depositor. Bank can take weeks or months before deciding it's fake and then goes after the depositor. To me, if they hold it for two weeks and then release it, they've acquiesced to its validity and the bank should be responsible. But, that's not how it is.

End of rant Sorry, wasn't as short as I thought.

I'm not trying to bash banks. Most do a good job. But I don't like some of the things they are able to do.

I was a bank teller and that was one of my very favorite jobs! If I ever made a mistake, I extended an apology.

Back in 1976 or '77 I gave $100.00 too much back to a customer (who had the LARGEST weekly paycheck of all our customers). I was EXTREMELY certain it was given to that person so I called her to ask her to verify the cashback. She asked if the error would come out of my pocket. When I said no, she said "you gave me the correct cash back". I made VERY few cash errors and prided myself in balancing to the penny so she left quite a bad taste in my mouth.

I am speechless about what to say about dilly dally...perhaps there is a lack of banking knowledge there.

Also, cynic - your use of the term "kiting" is not correct. Wikipedia has a good definition.

Anyways, Glenda - sorry you got no apology but glad you got your cash! There are much fewer apologies from tellers, cashiers and the general public now days.

I worked for Wells Fargo for almost 12 years. I never knowingly kept anyones money or shorted anyone.If a teller has a loss, she will be terminated. So your money isn't worth stealing.

Every night each teller must balance before anyone can go home. If for any reason they don't balance, then all your co workers start going through their work to find your error. NOT a position anyone wants to be in!

If someone were to come in and say they were shorted, the teller had to her window and cash out to balance. there was no other way for a teller to make sure. So believe me, no teller would deliberately short anyone. It is just too much work!

By the way, we always politely explained," the drive up is a express window, for multiple transactions, please come inside."

And friends wonder why I quit banking with ulcers! If one more cranky customer came in and complained I was at fault for their banking problems, because they wrote checks before depositing funds, or didn't bother balancing their checkbooks, or.... so just once in awhile, wish your teller a good day, as she thanks you.
Kathy

No, but I have a great bank teller story. DH went to the bank and withdrew $400 in cash, stuck it in an envelope and walked away from the teller. Got home and couldn't find the envelope. $400 gone! I drove by the bank, went to the same teller and said "My husband lost someting...' She held up the envelope "Was it this?" She was honest-she could have kept it and no one would ever have known!

Well, well well terri_pacnw

"Savings bonds aren't worth face value until maturity. Which can take quite alot of years!"

I think thirty year old savings Series E bonds have reached maturity. Duh. In fact at thirty years they reach *final maturity* and no longer earn interest which was why I was cashing them out. BTW the first bank I tried to cash them at told me that they "go right on earning interest" and that I was wrong to think they did not. I decided I did not need to bank at a place where they told lies like that.

"There is a form put out every year by the Fed that "caculates" it for you/them."

Exactly. That is the method I used. I don't know what the teller was using. Why does it have to be a battle to get banks to do things right? In every case I got my money.

"And back to Dilly Dally...
Bank's don't have to steal $30 from you..or anyone else..
They have these things called fees..overdraft fees, transfer fees, NSF fees...blah blah blah..Those are legal means that allow the banks to make plenty of money off customers. I believe most banks charge at least $30 for OD or NSF...There are plenty of people out there that have a few of those a month...That's basically FREE money to a bank."

No wonder you don't work in banking anymore. You see, you should READ my post. I NEVER HAD AN OVERDRAFT! Duh. The bank tried to steal money through trickery. When I closed my account THEY picked the amount of $879.63. (This was after they tried to cheat me by trying to give me only $30 which they silently corrected after I balked.) I signed for the amount as it looked to be correct. THEY then said two weeks later that the closed account was overdrawn by TWENTY FIVE CENTS and I owed them. They set me up for this scam. I suppose you are going to say I should have been more diligent and scrutinized the forms that they gave me to see if they were trying to bamboozle me out of money. That this is all my fault. I am a big dope.

Houstonmoms says: "I am speechless about what to say about dilly dally...perhaps there is a lack of banking knowledge there."

No, actually I have great "banking knowledge", which is why IN EVERY SINGLE CASE I got the money they tried to cheat me out of. They didn't just give me money to "be nice". It doesn't work that way.

You see, what banks will do is try to make you look like a forgetful fool. In the case of the interest on the CDs they refused to give me when I tried to cash them out, they said they were sending me quarterly checks with the interest for years. Hahah. Of course this was a big lie. They even tried to sweet talk me with "Were you getting checks in the mail and cashing them, not knowing where the money was coming from??" Yeah right. When I refused to leave the bank without my money they threatened to call the police and have me arrested for "being disruptive". No need to! I was going to go to the both the police and the State Banking Commission and reporting them to their own corporate headquarters. And I did. And I got my money. Believe me they didn't just decide to give me tens of thousands of dollars just to make me go away. I was right. They could not produce any "canceled checks" nor was my paperwork filled out that the interest would be dispersed that way. And the fact that I had to go through with this nonsense TWICE is ridiculous.

The excuse they gave me for sending all my statements and canceled checks to some strangers home in another city was that "my account got mingled with someone else's". How does something like that happen? This is not due to "my lack of banking knowledge".

Want to hear another bad banking experience? I was cashing out at another bank and they gave me a big check. At this time I KNEW to check the amount, even the CENTS so there would be no nightmare. I peeked into the envelope and the amount was correct. What I did not check was THE NAME on the check. Yup. They got it wrong. I had presented it at another bank to put into my account there and they refused to take it. The check was worthless to me. I was shocked. I was back at home screaming on the phone to the bank that did this. Time was of the essence as I was closing on a house the next day and they were not going to want to hear that I had a "problem with my bank". At least in this case the bank saw the error and bent over backwards to correct it. This was only after going through a talking to a whole bunch of employees and getting supervisor after supervisor who did not understand how banking works. I had to explain to them how banking works. I had to explain to them what *POD* means. Yup. They had put my brother's name on the check. Don't they TRAIN these people before they let them loose handling money and chacks? When I had gotten married I took my husband's paycheck, which he had signed on the back, to my bank to be deposited in my checking account. The bank refused to deposit it in my account "because it was made out to someone else". Geesh. They should have a school to train tellers.

But how, HOW does this stuff happen?? It really makes me wonder about bank "error" that I don't catch. My parents are very elderly and I wonder if they are being scammed by banks and do not realize it?

The only problem i remember having with a bank was one time when i went and deposited dh paycheck.Thankfully i always keep all my receipts.About a week later we started getting those insufficient funds letters.We got 3 in one day.So i called the bank and asked what was going on,and told them of my deposit.They insisted there was no deposit made.We only had one car then so i had to wait for dh to come home.

We took my receipt and went to the bank,and asked for the manager.They still insisted that they saw no deposit on record,.They proceeded to ask me if i was sure i was at that bank~~~~~~~~~~~~What?? I of course said yes,as i don't go to any of the other branches.

What they ended up finding out was that they had posted my deposit to someone in another towns account.Don't know how they managed that!! They said they would reimburse us for the NSF amounts,and i said what about all those places we wrote checks to and you bounced them,makes us look bad.They said just send them a note,and they'll understand.
I almost lost it then,and i told them why should i write it,it wasn't my fault.Better yet i told them,you have someone here type up a letter on your stationary,make copies and i'll send it to them.

This was on a saturday that we were hashing this out,and the bank was crowded.DH wanted to leave as he hates confrontations,but i refused.Told them i wasn't leaving til i had the letters,So he had the secrectary type it up,just so he could get rid of me.

Don't mess with my money,that's my motto.
Kathi

I was shorted $97. on a CD dividend just last week. I guess they don't know people can multiply, and it was an easy one--4% on $30,000. for 6 mos. They gave me $503. The manager said oops! I got the $97. They acted sorry and there was no problem. When you have it in black and white and proof, it's pretty easy. It also helps to be mean as a junk yard dog!! (LOL) just kidding.

Of course banks make mistakes. Just like supermarkets, department stores, restaurants, utility companies and everybody else. And of course it is very upsetting when there is a mistake, but there's no way you'll convince me my bank is out to "cheat" me. I used to be a bank teller and I'm glad I didn't have customers like dilly dally screaming at me.

The screaming only comes AFTER nicely telling them that there is an error.

When reasoning is not working.

When facts are not working.

When they tell a lie to cover up the theft.

Screaming is the only way to get it through their heads that you are not not going to lie down and take it. That, and going to the State Banking Commissioner.

Dilly Dally...I am astounded at how terrible it is that all those banks have tried to cheat you out of all that money...in your words, thousands and thousands...and it has happened so many times!
I feel so sorry for you, why do you think they single you out for all those theft attempts?

As someone above posted, bank tellers are required to settle their drawers every night before they go home. Shorting a customer would cause their paperwork to be out of balance...they can be fired for this. And a drawer over (too much cash) is just as bad, because most banks realize that an over drawer means there is probably an angry customer, one that might be so angry that they come in and move their accounts elsewhere. Most banks want customers to be happy.

Although I do realize that there are instances where a teller might literally be trying to steal from a customer, I believe that most mistakes made are just that, mistakes, with no malice intended.

Personally, I do not use the drive through for any sort of cash transactions; if I had to use the drive through, I would make sure to verify everything before I drove away from the tube.

But whether you transact inside or outside, you should always check your cash received and, just as important, check that the paperwork you received, such as deposit slip, has not only the right deposited $s, but was posted to the correct account number. It is a snap to fix a mistake just after it is make, it is quite a challenge to fix it after you've gotten home.

And if you do realize the mistake after you leave the parking lot, go back and go straight to the branch manager first.

Banking has changed so much over the years and being a retired banker --they are the worst!!! Even though we don't know the current rules, basically regulations have not changed that much. Some branches accept the signature on the back of the check (husband) some don't and try to insist he come in and sign it in front of them and I just quiety ask for the branch manager because you can sign a spouse's name as long as it goes to the jount account==except the state of CA requires personal endorsment on their refund checks--or they use to--don't know about now. Most tellers today are just trained to accept the deposits and not know much about the mechanics of the system. I started out filing checks, and of course we knew most of the customers. Loans were made at the brance etc. Now it is so different. The loan people are trained to match everythin you put on on there little magic list--no customer relations at all.
They are also trained to sell services and the raises depend on that, along with very few working 32 hours plus to get benefits.

Posted by monica_pa: Dilly Dally...I am astounded at how terrible it is that all those banks have tried to cheat you out of all that money...in your words, thousands and thousands...and it has happened so many times! I feel so sorry for you, why do you think they single you out for all those theft attempts?

Yes, I warn people about banks all the time. The banking industry is terrible. I agree. You must not let your guard down when dealing with banks! Actually I feel sorry for you. You probably have been ripped off by banks and never even noticed. Maybe for thousands and thousands of dollars. I am smart enough to catch it, and strong enough to stand up to them.

-------------------

Mariend: "They are also trained to sell services and the raises depend on that, along with very few working 32 hours plus to get benefits."

Don't even get me started on that stuff. One time, and one time only, I went to avail myself of the financial consulting services of a bank. I explained my investments and waited for advice. Her advice? It was to take out (PMI) Private Mortgage Insurance! She said they could make the arrangements. How helpful! When I curtly informed her that I did not have to pay PMI as I had put down more than 20 percent down payment and PMI would do NOTHING to help me, and only protects the bank, not me, she whimpered that I was right, and I got up and WALKED OUT. I wonder what her commission would have been on that? How many people who do not make themselves informed consumers would have fallen for that one? How many elderly or immigrant persons would have been hoodwinked?

Here is a link that might be useful: PMI

Wow, I am old, and never had a bank mistake I didn't make myself.
I don't spend much time at banks either in all fairness. All my money is stashed at the corner grocery store. :)

Trin