Well I learned a hard banking lesson the day before yesterday. I frequently use an ATM that is part of a bank that is right near my home; a bank that I do not belong to as a member. It’s just convenient because it’s so much closer than my bank.
Anyway, I was in a hurry and I just grabbed a bit of quick cash and I inadvertantly forgot my card in the ATM and drove off without it. I remembered my mistake about an hour later and hurried back up to this bank before it closed.
I went inside and informed a teller of the situation and inquired as to what I needed to do to get my card back. After confirming that they did have my card, the teller informed me that they were unable to give me my card back-as I was not a member at their bank. She said they had no way of verifying why the machine “captured” my card-even though I told her I simply forgot it and I had my identification readily available.
I asked to speak to the manager and I was greeted with the same stonewalling. When I asked what the possible reasons might be for them to be unwilling to give me my card back, the manager said, “Well, the card could be stolen or something.” But I then said “Would not my ID take care of that concern?” Her response: “I’m sorry sir”.
And she also kept saying that if I was a member, then they would be able to give me my card back. How would that change anything? They said that then they would be able to verify the reason that the card was captured by the ATM. But I don’t understand this, what possible reasons, other than a stolen card or a forgotten card would result in the card being captured? And every single transaction is logged on the ATM, regardless of whether the user is a member or not. This manager was unwilling (or unable) to explain any of this to me.
Out of desperation, yesterday I went back to my bank in hopes that they may be able to help by contacting the other bank and explaining why the card was captured. However, by the time I contacted the bank that had my card, they informed me that, per banking policy, the card had already been destroyed. :smack:
So just because I, being in a hurry, forgot my ATM card in the machine, I am being forced to cancel the card and have my bank issue me a brand new card. This means being without my card for however long it takes for this card to be issued and come in the mail; and all the inconvenience and headache that goes along with not having that card in the meantime.
Either I am missing something here or this fucking policy is nonsense.