I am a cheque-bouncing moron.

The BBQ Pit
21

Here, it is necessary to apply for overdraft protection in the same manner you would use to apply for a loan (since it is a loan). I chose not to (overdraft protection is costly and would tempt me). As I mentioned before, I did flake out once and the bank chose to honour the transaction anyway and only charge me $5 as a handling fee, rather than $20 and reject the transaction. I was extremely pleased (although I have heard people bitch about being charged $5 too). Had they charged me $20 and rejected the transaction, I would have been upset that I had caused that to happen. I probably still would have politely asked if we could work this out based on my previously clean record but understood if not.

It never hurts to plead your case politely. It never hurts to shop around for best rates and reasonable fees. Just accept responsibility for your own actions.

/Ms Cyros

22

Well, you have to balance politeness with firmness. If you’re too polite, sometimes nothing will happen. Just don’t take “no” for an answer, and if the person helping you isn’t really helping, ask to see a supervisor.

I can’t keep track of all the fucking bank changes and service changes that come along. I started banking ten years ago with NBD, which then became First Chicago, which then became Bank One, which is now still called Bank One, but really is JP Morgan. Over the last ten years, changes have applied, ever other year. When I signed up with the bank, the bank processed smallest checks first. When my check bounced, the largest checks went through first. Also, how the fuck was I supposed to know that withdrawals are processed before deposits? And how the heck was I supposed to know that when I made withdrawals over the weekend, they would not have been automatically processed for that day? It’s all done with computers these days, so I naturally assume that a withdrawal on Saturday is recorded and debited on Saturday, not the following Monday when it ends up a larger, later, withdrawal clears first and bounces all of the other withdrawal.

To illustrate, the situation is thus: Friday I have $75 in checking. I deposit $200 after business close Friday in an ATM. My bank slip says I have an available balance of $275. The bank instantly makes this amount “available” to me, since I’ve been a long-time customer of theirs. Immediately, I withdraw $20. Saturday, I make two more withdrawals of $20 each. Sunday, I withdraw $100.

What happens? Monday morning comes, and they pretend the weekend didn’t happen. Minus the deposit, I had $75, and the first three transactions took me down to $15. The fourth would have bounced. Now, since this is all done on ATMs and is instantaneous, requiring no human to process the transaction, one would think those first three transactions went through and would be accounted for on the actual day of transaction.

But no. On Monday, they process the largest (and last) transaction, $100, first. It bounces, but they cover. And then they process my next three transactions, covering every one and applying $30 services charges along the way. Then they process the deposit. $120 in service charges racked up. At the very most, I will accept responsibility for the deposit not being in over the weekend (even though my ATM slip counted it in my available balance.) But there’s no excuse for them not to chronologically debit my $20, $20, $20, and $100 withdrawal. None whatsoever. I mean, there’s fucking computers with time stamps and shit that can faithfully record the actual date of the transaction. It’s purely a money-making scheme.

I mean, seriously, does that make any sense whatsoever?

23

Gosh, here in the first world, all I have to do is ask to link my checking accont to my savings account, and poof! instant overdraft protection; no loan involved. You can’t do that up there?

24

Not all banks do there here, Fear. I bank with Wells Fargo and do not have sufficient credit to obtain overdraft protection. Never mind that my savings account is fairly decently sized. The way I work around it is by online transferring funds.

FWIW, tears have worked for me in the past with NSF’s. The last major snafu (many years ago) caused me to bring in every available penny I could find 'neath the couch cushions and break down in front of my banker. She deleted 3 of the 5 NSF fees, allowing to me have $30 to get through the week.

25

Fear, if you have a sizable nest egg, that can be dangerous. Dudes can & do steal your checks or your account number. Having your checking account stripped for a couple of weeks while the bank figures it out is really fucking annoying. Having both emptied could well be a disaster.

26

Wife #1, bounced checks like superballs…I made tons 'o money…she ruined our credit, I think she even bounced a money order, then after 12yrs. she dumps me, changes her name back to maiden name and does the same crap!

Wife#2, meticulous book keeper, conversationalist, back-rubber..I, upgraded!
27

savannah,

is it possible for you to make a $100 deposit and “forget” it is in your account so that you will always have a bit of a cushion to prevent this from happening?

i bounced exactly one check in my life. about 20 years ago i overdrew my checking account by .19 cents, and the bank returned my very first rent check to my new landlord. what a great first impression.

i went in to the branch and explained that i had recorded a deposit twice in my register and the end result was that a check had been returned and i had been charged a $20 overdraft fee, and would appreciate the fee being reversed as i had been a good customer for 5 years and that the fee was, imho, excessive for a .19 cent overdraft. the customer service reps response was: “that’s not my problem”.

long story short, he actually started screaming at me after i told him that although he had the right to say no to my request to have the nsf fee reversed, he had no right at all to speak to me the way he did. i told him i wanted to close my other accounts and he flat out refused. it seems the bank had a rarely used 30 day notice for withdrawals policy that the customer service rep i dealt with invoked because he chose to be a dickhead. this guy lasted about a week at that job. i ended up with an apology from the branch manager and a cashiers check the next day.

28

Slightly off topic, but how often do you have reason to write cheques? Everything I do is electronic. My pay is direct deposited, my rent is auto-debited, I pay all my bills through my bank’s website, I can transfer money from one account to another online (or over the phone) or even email money to anyone in Canada using a major bank. Most stores here won’t even take cheques anymore, favouring debit cards issued by your bank. (Our debit cards are simply ATM cards with a PIN, not Visa / Mastercard branded cards. 95% of all retailers accept them. Far fewer will accept a cheque).

Just curious!

/Ms Cyros

29

I write a check once a month or so, because the lady who does my hair only takes checks or cash and it’s easier for me to remember to keep my checkbook in my car than it is to remember to stop by the ATM before an appointment. That’s about it, though.

30

Actually, I think they should do exactly that. Shouldn’t the bank be making its money from loans and other investments, and not from dinging the customer at every damn opportunity. I don’t have a problem with them penalizing people who just don’t have the money, in that bank, period, to cover their checks, on the other hand.

31

Perhaps they should, but the truth is, they’re not. NSF fees, for example, account for about one third of checking account revenues. For example, a major international bank grew its deposit service charges at an annual rate of 10%, while its deposit balances increased only 3%. The fact that low-balance banking consumers are bearing the brunt of the transaction costs of banking has not gone unnoticed by regulators. The current system will be difficult to sustain.