Sigh... why don't people learn?

MrsManda

I contacted my bank again this morning as the money is still in my account.
Apparently, because it was sent via Faster Payment rather than BACS it cannot be automatically sent back to the originating bank account as it cannot go through as a recall payment. Therefore I was told that if I wanted it removed I needed to write a letter formally requesting that the money is sent back.

The advisor was very apologetic and did say that I'd put myself out enough and that if I chose not to write a letter then that would be acceptable, the money would remain in my account until such time someone requests it and hopefully the senders will learn this time.

The senders have to convince their bank that it was an unavoidable error and ask them to request the money back, their bank has to write to my bank who then have to write to me to ask permission to take the money out of my account.

Joe_Bloggs

This does sound like the banks are further dragging their feet in making faster payments a fully working system by being obstructive in the handling of customer errors from all sides of a faster payments mistake.
I would have trouble sleeping if I knew I had someone's money, by mistake, and could not give it back.
J_B.

nzseries1

Joe_Bloggs wrote: »

I would have trouble sleeping if I knew I had someone's money, by mistake, and could not give it back.

While I do agree, I would have more trouble sleeping if I knew that the £6,000 sent to me via faster payments by the guy who just bought my car could be recalled by him any time he felt like it simply by him telling his bank that he "made a mistake".

I understand that you're looking at the story with the roles reversed, but for me to have faith in the faster payments I think there needs to be a very good reason to reverse a payment

dlk

Joe_Bloggs wrote: »

This does sound like the banks are further dragging their feet in making faster payments a fully working system by being obstructive in the handling of customer errors from all sides of a faster payments mistake.
I would have trouble sleeping if I knew I had someone's money, by mistake, and could not give it back.
J_B.

If the receiving bank were to send the money back without the original sender having asked for it what is to stop the person later claiming the money back claiming they are independent transactions. It makes perfect sense that the sender would have to question the error first and like a previous poster said they then ask the receiving bank to ask the customer permission to send it back.

In a similar situation I asked my bank to change my rent payments from £650 to £600 and they incorrectly sent both sums. As it was a bank error they put the money straight back into my account from one of their miscellaneous accounts before having to claim it back from my landlords bank. Although it may seem a convoluted process they clearly wouldn't be purposely dragging their feet as in this case it was them who were temporarily out of pocket.

System

DavidHayton wrote: »

I did once find a substantial sum of money and handed it in. I dutifully went back to the police station 30 days later. Nobody had claimed it, and it was mine. Apparantly according to an Alliance and Leicester survey, a couple of years ago, 40% of folks would do the same.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/blog/2009/feb/27/found-money-dilemma

David

me and my friend once found £100 in a wallet years ago, with a driving license, so we called the number and there was no answer

we handed it in to the police, they said they would contact them but if they didn't get in touch after a month. my friend checked after 2 weeks nothing, then after 3 weeks and a bit...nothing

then a month later, the person had conveniently contacted the police just the day before and claimed it :rotfl:

did you feel bad at all spending the money, or were you okay with it?

[Deleted User]

LooieENG wrote: »

me and my friend once found £100 in a wallet years ago, with a driving license, so we called the number and there was no answer

we handed it in to the police, they said they would contact them but if they didn't get in touch after a month. my friend checked after 2 weeks nothing, then after 3 weeks and a bit...nothing

then a month later, the person had conveniently contacted the police just the day before and claimed it :rotfl:

did you feel bad at all spending the money, or were you okay with it?

that person is damn lucky
could be playing games

ffacoffipawb

LooieENG wrote: »

me and my friend once found £100 in a wallet years ago, with a driving license, so we called the number and there was no answer

we handed it in to the police, they said they would contact them but if they didn't get in touch after a month. my friend checked after 2 weeks nothing, then after 3 weeks and a bit...nothing

then a month later, the person had conveniently contacted the police just the day before and claimed it :rotfl:

Oh I remember that day, that was the day the local doughnut shop had record takings.