"I'm never shopping THERE again!" Share your story!

[magicdomino]

My great-nephew has an extraordinary interest in investing, for someone who is not quite 8. He would save every bit of money he got for gifts, and finally his parents had to introduce him to the concept of CDs because they were uneasy about him keeping large sums of money sitting around the house.    He was thrilled when his GiGi (my mother) gave him her old attache case, and he uses it to carry his deposits into the bank. You can imagine how a bank reacts when a 6 year old comes marching in with a briefcase, announces that he wants to purchase a CD, and then opens the case to pull out the cash to do so.

Behold, the next Warren Buffet.   

[Virg]

Shoo wrote:

"This is really good to know.  I have always assumed that a check made out to my husband had to be signed by him before I could deposit it into our joint account.  Many a check has been left waiting on my desk to be deposited because I kept forgetting to ask him to sign it!"

As I said, check with your bank before you assume anything.  Your particular bank may indeed require your DH's signature on deposits without some sort of written agreement, and when it comes to getting money into your account it's always better to be safe than sorry.  Ask them directly what their rules are and get it in writing if at all possible.  Even if they don't allow it in general, most banks will have a form you can fill out to allow it.  Also keep in mind that endorsement by proxy can delay clearing a check (it's rare, but it happens) so for something that's going to be used to pay the mortgage, it's best to get a payee endorsement.

Virg

[mmswm]

On endorsing checks..

One day I got a notice from the bank that one of my accounts was overdrawn by more than $100.

I keep only a tiny bit of pocket change in that particular account. It doesn't have a debit card or checks tied to it, so the only way to get money in and out is to transfer it online or go directly to the bank. I went online and checked the account, and found that the overdraft was due to a check. My bank posts images of the checks online, so I clicked on the image and it was for an entirely different account, with someone else's name and account number. I was rather angry about it, so I called the bank and demanded to know what in the holy heck happened, that they cashed someone else's check from my account?

Apparently the person who endorsed the check wrote below the "do not write below this line" line on the back when they endorsed it, and doing that can cause the little check reader machine to flip out and post the check to the wrong account.

I've mentioned before that I worked for a large bank.  My whole job was to research items that were contested for reasons other than fraud.  This included things like missing deposits, misposted checks, missing/incorrect loan payments and other things of that nature. Most banks have a system of checks and balances that prevent that sort of thing, but between the MICR flipping out, teller errors, "piggybacking" documents, and scanning errors, misposted checks do happen.  At the end of the day, banks are run by humans and humans make errors.  Computers are not fail-proof.  Most banks should be more than happy to research the item in question and reverse any fees that were caused by their errors. 

[2littlemonkeys]

A friend of mine had great fun going in to buy a car carrying a briefcase.  She negotiated  her deal on the car, and then when they tried to set up financing, she told them she wanted to pay for the car up front.  In cash.  Actual cash.  The briefcase was full of it.    She told us later she had been tempted to point out that they were "non-consecutive bills" but thought that might be pushing it.  They did not know what to do, and ended up calling in several extra car salesman to help count the money (she'd had it organized, of course, but they had to verify).

My great-nephew has an extraordinary interest in investing, for someone who is not quite 8. He would save every bit of money he got for gifts, and finally his parents had to introduce him to the concept of CDs because they were uneasy about him keeping large sums of money sitting around the house.    He was thrilled when his GiGi (my mother) gave him her old attache case, and he uses it to carry his deposits into the bank. You can imagine how a bank reacts when a 6 year old comes marching in with a briefcase, announces that he wants to purchase a CD, and then opens the case to pull out the cash to do so.

HAHAHAHA!  For those of you who watch "Modern Family," I immediately thought of Manny while reading this story.

[MommyPenguin]

My bank is pretty picky about checks.  My grandmother once wrote a check for my daughter's birthday.  Sweet, right?  Problem was that my daughter was 3 at the time.  She had no account in her name.  We didn't *want* one in her name.  My bank?  Would not accept a check that was signed by her parent (me) to put into my account.  I could sign it if it went into *her* account, but I could not sign it and put it into mine.  I ended up having to talk to customer service at my old bank, which I rarely use but still maintain an account with, and they were willing to accept the check from my signing it as long as I included documentation that I was her parent (I think they needed a copy of her birth certificate or something).  I *think* either bank would have taken it if I'd been able to go in in person, but we're military and move around a lot and both banks were in other states.  It was a huge pain, and much as I hated to do it because I worried it would make her feel bad, I asked my grandmother if she could write future checks out to myself and I would give my daughter the cash.  Fortunately, she was fine with it.

I also sigh when I get a check that says "<PenguinHusband> and <MommyPenguin>," because my bank requires both of us to sign in those circumstances.  If it says "<PenguinHusband> or <MommyPenguin>," they're fine with one signature from just one of us.  I do have a PoA for my husband, so I can sign in his place when I need to, but then I need to include/file documentation showing that I have PoA and all that and it complicates things.

[Luci45]

Wow! We got involved with this banking thing that I forgot what this thread it supposed to be about!

[Sirius]

On endorsing checks..

One day I got a notice from the bank that one of my accounts was overdrawn by more than $100.

I keep only a tiny bit of pocket change in that particular account. It doesn't have a debit card or checks tied to it, so the only way to get money in and out is to transfer it online or go directly to the bank. I went online and checked the account, and found that the overdraft was due to a check. My bank posts images of the checks online, so I clicked on the image and it was for an entirely different account, with someone else's name and account number. I was rather angry about it, so I called the bank and demanded to know what in the holy heck happened, that they cashed someone else's check from my account?

Apparently the person who endorsed the check wrote below the "do not write below this line" line on the back when they endorsed it, and doing that can cause the little check reader machine to flip out and post the check to the wrong account.

This happened to my parents many years ago.  My dad and I went to the bank, and he asked to see the check.  The check that he was shown had my parents' account number written on the back, but the check was neither to them or from them.  (I'd like to think it was a mistake on the part of the person cashing the check rather than fraud.)  About a half dozen of my parents' checks had bounced, and my dad was told by a manager that he'd have to pay the check charges.  In one of the few times my shy father rose to the occasion, he flatly told the manager that the mistake was theirs and he wasn't paying any bad check charges.  They didn't have to pay, and the bank straightened out the mess with my parents' checks. 

[rose red]

Wow! We got involved with this banking thing that I forgot what this thread it supposed to be about!

Me too.  Perhaps there should be a spin-off thread unless the story is about never using that bank again.

[Sirius]

Back to the thread.

Years ago I went into an auto parts store to buy a spark plug socket wrench.  I had learned how to do my own tune-ups, and since I didn't have a lot of money during that era anything I could do for myself helped. 

I got up to the cash register, and the cashier, who appeared to be a 17-year-old guy, asked me, "Are you sure you know how to use that?"  I assured him I did, all the while thinking that it made a good weapon to smack someone with.  Not that I would have done it, but it wasn't his place to ask me if I knew what I was buying.  I don't think I ever went back to that store, as I was referred to a store where the personnel never treated me as though I was stupid just because I was a woman.

I still have that socket wrench, by the way.

[jedikaiti]

Wow! We got involved with this banking thing that I forgot what this thread it supposed to be about!

Me too.  Perhaps there should be a spin-off thread unless the story is about never using that bank again.

I used to bank with an outfit that had a branch just a block from my office at the time. It was handy, people were friendly, and there were no bizarre or outrageous fees. Then they got bought out by SunTrust - and suddenly whenever I had to call them with a question, I got longer hold times and a lot more attitude. They also started assessing a $2 fee every time you saw a teller. No problem, I usually used the ATM anyway. Then I wrote a check to a co-worker, who took it to that same bank to cash it (she may well have had an account there, quite a few of us in that office did). You guessed it - I suddenly had a random $2 fee hit my account. I called, and the CSR explained that it was for a teller transaction. I explained that I hadn't been to a teller in quite some time. They replied that the fee was for cashing check #whatever on my account. I explained that I didn't cash the check, I WROTE the check to someone else, and had no control over where they went to cash it. After a bit more back and forth, they grudgingly refunded my $2. As soon as my company got approved to join a credit union, I ran to close my SunTrust account and moved my money to the credit union. Been with them ever since.

[BB-VA]

Back to the thread.

Years ago I went into an auto parts store to buy a spark plug socket wrench.  I had learned how to do my own tune-ups, and since I didn't have a lot of money during that era anything I could do for myself helped. 

I got up to the cash register, and the cashier, who appeared to be a 17-year-old guy, asked me, "Are you sure you know how to use that?"  I assured him I did, all the while thinking that it made a good weapon to smack someone with.  Not that I would have done it, but it wasn't his place to ask me if I knew what I was buying.  I don't think I ever went back to that store, as I was referred to a store where the personnel never treated me as though I was stupid just because I was a woman.

I still have that socket wrench, by the way.

I can sort of combine this with the banking thing, and maybe a touch of Professional Darwinism.

At the time my story begins, I was working at a bank.  I was required to have an account so that my pay could be deposited, and I set it up as a joint account with my husband - but I was the primary and my name was printed first on the checks.

We had ordered a part at an auto parts store, and I stopped in to pick it up.  Not only did the guy give me a little bit of grief (are you SURE about this part?) but he was reluctant to take my check - he had never HEARD of such a thing as a WOMAN'S name coming first on a check!!

He didn't last too long.

[Barney girl]

My parents always had their accounts with different banks, but decided to put them in joint names to make it easier for my mother to deal with both when father could no longer get about. She was livid when she discovered that her bank, with whom she'd banked for many decades, put his name first on the account. She soon sorted that out.

[nuit93]

Back to the thread.

Years ago I went into an auto parts store to buy a spark plug socket wrench.  I had learned how to do my own tune-ups, and since I didn't have a lot of money during that era anything I could do for myself helped. 

I got up to the cash register, and the cashier, who appeared to be a 17-year-old guy, asked me, "Are you sure you know how to use that?"  I assured him I did, all the while thinking that it made a good weapon to smack someone with.  Not that I would have done it, but it wasn't his place to ask me if I knew what I was buying.  I don't think I ever went back to that store, as I was referred to a store where the personnel never treated me as though I was stupid just because I was a woman.

I still have that socket wrench, by the way.

I got that one buying motor oil for my car (older vehicle, so it leaked).  The guy at the checkout offered to do it for me.  When I told him "No thanks, I can do it", he said "you sure?  my girlfriend once put motor oil in the radiator by mistake."

I gave him a big smile and said, "well, my MOM taught me how to do this years ago, so I'm fine".

[Diane AKA Traska]

Back to the thread.

Years ago I went into an auto parts store to buy a spark plug socket wrench.  I had learned how to do my own tune-ups, and since I didn't have a lot of money during that era anything I could do for myself helped. 

I got up to the cash register, and the cashier, who appeared to be a 17-year-old guy, asked me, "Are you sure you know how to use that?"  I assured him I did, all the while thinking that it made a good weapon to smack someone with.  Not that I would have done it, but it wasn't his place to ask me if I knew what I was buying.  I don't think I ever went back to that store, as I was referred to a store where the personnel never treated me as though I was stupid just because I was a woman.

I still have that socket wrench, by the way.

I got that one buying motor oil for my car (older vehicle, so it leaked).  The guy at the checkout offered to do it for me.  When I told him "No thanks, I can do it", he said "you sure?  my girlfriend once put motor oil in the radiator by mistake."

I gave him a big smile and said, "well, my MOM taught me how to do this years ago, so I'm fine".

What kills me is the statement would be leagues better if he replaced "girlfriend" with "brother".

[wheeitsme]

Back to the thread.

Years ago I went into an auto parts store to buy a spark plug socket wrench.  I had learned how to do my own tune-ups, and since I didn't have a lot of money during that era anything I could do for myself helped. 

I got up to the cash register, and the cashier, who appeared to be a 17-year-old guy, asked me, "Are you sure you know how to use that?"  I assured him I did, all the while thinking that it made a good weapon to smack someone with.  Not that I would have done it, but it wasn't his place to ask me if I knew what I was buying.  I don't think I ever went back to that store, as I was referred to a store where the personnel never treated me as though I was stupid just because I was a woman.

I still have that socket wrench, by the way.

I got that one buying motor oil for my car (older vehicle, so it leaked).  The guy at the checkout offered to do it for me.  When I told him "No thanks, I can do it", he said "you sure?  my girlfriend once put motor oil in the radiator by mistake."

I gave him a big smile and said, "well, my MOM taught me how to do this years ago, so I'm fine".

What kills me is the statement would be leagues better if he replaced "girlfriend" with "brother".

Well, to give him the benefit of the doubt...he actually knew somebody who had put motor oil in the radiator(!).  If you didn't know someone and wanted to be nice, and you realized that something like that could actually happen, it was nice of him to offer.  If the fella accepted your response in good humor, then I'd say he's in the clear.