My incredible growing bank account (MPSIMS but with a GQ at the end)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I recently moved to Alabama from Georgia. Since I have a bunch of little mosquito debts that I want to pay off and since medical bills wiped out my savings and I’m tired of being broke and I want to start another nest egg, I opted to take the tax penalties and cash out my 401K (which is actually not a 401K but the non-profit version of same, but anyway…)

To say they drug their feet in transferring it to me is to say that Stephen Hawking’s not much of a team player in Ultimate Frisbee, but finally after three months I got it. And got it again. And again.

Because the account was in different parts for the different schools I had worked at and the different components (real estate, portfolio, bonds, etc.), in came in to my account in increments. It first started last week- I’d notice an extra $1,200 then the next day an extra $1,300, etc…

Yesterday I stopped to check my bank balance. The account was more than I’d expected. In fact it was more than I had in my retirement account.

By about $24,000. (I don’t want to give my exact financial situation, but that’s a shitload more than was in the account.)

I got a print-out of the account’s deposits (by the way, the cute gay teller looks at you a lot more longingly when you have a checking account that’s enough to buy a car- he doesn’t know it’s not really yours) and I saw where deposits for the same amount had been made about six times, and where another “what the hell is that amount?” deposit had been made. In short it was a Boleyne Sisters Specialty (i.e. royalty and multiply f*cked).

I called the retirement company (whose number is on my speed dial I’ve had to call them so often during the cash out process) and reported this. The completely disinterested sounding woman said “Hmmm… yeah… looks like we overpaid… we’ll reverse it out of there… thanks for your honesty… we might not have caught it.” I was torn between images of ripping out my tongue with a pair of plyers and going off on her completely non-chalant attitude when I’d just reported to her than her company has dished out $24,000 of somebody’s money to someone whose it ain’t.

So this evening I checked my balance and it had been adjusted. It’s now $31,000 more than it should be. I don’t have a frigging clue what’s happening, but this is one hell of a money market.

Anybody ever had anything like this happen? It’s damned tempting of course to close the account, but I’m pretty sure I’d wind up saying wedding vows to a Wisconsinite Nazi on an episode of OZ.

Also- I gave them written permission to make a direct deposit into my account, but I never gave them permission to debit my account. While I acknowledge that the $31,000 they overpaid me is not by rights my money, it’s troubling to me that they can take it out. Can they do this? (I don’t mind writing them a check or even getting a cashier’s check [for the $31,000+ amount of the overage minus the bank fee for the cashier’s check, which I’m sure will hopelessly screw up their records], but I’m not comfortable with the idea that they can access and deduct from my account, especially since it’s already evident that counting isn’t what they do well.)

2

If you know the amount that is supposed to be in that account I’d deduct all but one dollar of that amount and move that to another account.

Then I’d leave the other money and see what happens. Don’t touch it and don’t call the other bank. Just let it sit there for a bit.

If anything it will sit there for a few months and then go back to the bank. But you might earn a few bucks on interest. :wink:

3

Having dealt with a variety of weird financial things over the years, if I was in your situation, I’d not to anything for a few months. It has been my experience that “they” almost always catch their errors eventually, especially where money is concerned, and for some reason, it goes smoother when they catch the error and contact you rather than you telling them.

So, I’d wait till the activity stops and the smoke clears, then give them a couple-three months. Then I’d contact them and try to straighten things out.

Whatever you do, I’d suggest keeping a detailed log of who you called, when, and what was said - just as CYA. Oh, and don’t spend the extra - that would be bad.

As to being able to take out what they put in, after my husband left a job, he got an additional paycheck directly deposited on their payday, then 3 days later, it was yanked back out again. So there apparently exists a mechanism to do just that.

4

As to why it has continued to increase after the phone call, there were probably deposits still “in the pipeline” betwenn the company’s accounts and yours.

I agree they will catch on eventually. I also suggest a CYA registered letter to the company so you can better document that you informed them of the problem.

5

I was inadvertently overpaid by several thousand dollars for some project work I did, acting in a higher position. I went along and told personnel and paid back the difference. It was so much that I had to withdraw it in bits from my account to repay it. Later someone in HR mentioned that if I had not told them about it the error would never have been spotted because it had already passed the audit checks before I received it.

So make haste slowly.

6

Have you already paid or set aside the taxes on the cashout? If not, make sure you save enough to cover them. I’m not sure of the rate, but it’s pretty significant, I believe.

7

Transfer the error to my accounts!

8

IANAL and this is purely my advice as a fellow citizen, but:

A registered letter to whoever is supposed to be in charge at the GA office supposed to be settling your NFP-pseudo-401(k) notifying them that you believe you have been overpaid, and that they have ten business days to correct any errors. (Select a figure that suits you, but you need to give them reasonable time to do so.) Registered copy to your own bank, along with firm instructions that Georgia State Numerically Challenged Financial Managers, LLC, is to be permitted to make withdrawals not exceeding $31,000 (or the right amount) from your account until 04/05/05 or whatever the proper date works out to, and is not permitted to do so after that date. If they have not corrected their mistakes by the deadline, they’ve been notified and given reasonable time to do so.

And document this whole screwup, by correspondence with your local bank branch manager, against any IRS audit down the road. Explain to him in your letter that you want to make clear what’s going on with the account and why; ask him to confirm the transactions in a return letter, so that you have written record of the times and circumstances regarding the odd deposits and withdrawals to your account.