Problems With Natwest.......,again!!!!

gwz

Hi all,
i recently transfered my business account from natwest to abbey because of a useless and unhelpful "business manager".
unfortunately i still have a savings account with them, this is where the problem lies....., please advise.

i recently deposited £192 in cheques into my bank account, it was checked and the book stamped by the teller.
i received a letter tuesday morning saying:

"please note when you check your statement that we have changed the amount you paid in on 24th march from your total of £192 to £92.
we have done this for the following reasons;
incorrect addition of cheques"


i got onto the phone straight away and reminded them that i watched the teller add up the cheques and stamped my book, how do i know you haven't lost a cheque??????
the young girl on the phone said "i'll ring you back when i've checked with my supervisor".
this was tuesday, i haven't heard anything.
DO I HAVE A LEG TO STAND ON?????

Please advise ....(no wise cracks- thanks)

Jay-Jay_4

Cheques are processed automatically by machines. Ususlly the cheques will all go through first and are added together giving a credit balance on the machine, then the credit is added and the balance is then 'zero proof'. This happens incredibly quickly and thousands of cheques are processed every minute.

If the credit and debits don't add up the machine spits them out. If the cheques have become mixed up in another bundle you would expect that bundle not to 'balance' too. This is probably where the problem has occured.

Either another credit has been altered 'up' by £100 or one of your cheques could be stuck to the back of another. There are lots of ways that you and the bank can resolve this.

Have you got the details of the cheques that you paid in? You can contact the drawer and ask if the cheque for £100 has been debited. If you can manage to find out the drawers bank, account number and sort code you're halfway there to getting this resolved.

The bank can look at cheques that went through 'around' your cheques to see if there is one for £100 that matches. This can be verified by them looking at a copy of the cheque.

If you paid in a cheque for £100 has it been processed as £1? Get them to check how many cheques went through with your credit slip. Is that number correct?

If the amount of cheques paid in is correct, get them to order copies of ALL of the cheques. It may be down to illegible handwriting. If the cashier has stamped and circled the box with 'amount of items paid in' on your credit, get them to check that this is correct.


Let us know how you get on

HTH x

Walletwatch

The previous reply is very helpful and fairly detailed. Just to give you the perspective from a layman's (non-banker's) perspective - the following are the likely things that have gone wrong:

1. One of your cheques has got misplaced (if you deposited multiple chqs) - especially if one of them was for £100.

2. There have been compensating differences, where you've been credited £100 less and somebody else has been credited £100 more, as a result of compensating differences in the outward chqs (chqs deposited at the bank, which are processed and sent to the clearing house)

As the previous poster has already pointed out, best thing is if you have details of chqs from the issuer - that would help you track down the chq and dispute the changed amount in the credit given by the Bank.

Finally, while it is too late on this occasion, I always take a photocopy of any chqs that I deposit for such an eventuality - maybe you could start this, for future chqs you deposit.