Check21 - from the files of "Yet another reason I hate Banks"

[dmp]

Big time law - another way for "The Man" to stick it to the little guy...

I can't beleive this kind of bullshit would fly under the radar without some seriously pissed off ppl.

I've highlighted the part which pisses me off the most:

SEATTLE - Say goodbye to the float. From now on when you write a check, you'd better be sure you have the money in your account to cover it.

A new federal law, the "Check Cashing for the 21st Century Act," takes effect on Thursday, October 28.

Check 21, as it's called, allows banks to process all checks electronically, without physically moving them from bank to bank, as they do now.

"For consumers this means that your checks you write will clear more quickly," explains Gail Hillebrand, Senior Attorney with the Consumer's Union office in San Francisco. She says under the new law checks can clear in hours rather than days.

While you lose the float, banks will not be required to process your deposits any more quickly.

"Your bank will still be able to wait the same amount of time they make you wait now to get your deposits," Hillebrand says, "but the checks you write will leave your account more quickly."

Which is why consumer groups are worried that bounced checks and bounced check fees-- which can run as much as $35 -- will skyrocket.

The best way to protect yourself is to make sure you have enough money in your account to cover that check at the time you write it.

This policy is NOTHING MORE than an effort for the bank to get more money from its customers. It's about generating revenue for the bank Its about the bank being better able to 'catch' customers playing tricks with THEIR money. It's only purpose is to allow the bank to send out more 'insufficient funds fees'.

A few years ago, my bank would process our account this way:

Each day, the bank would account for all the deposits we make, then run thru all the debits. Without letting us know, they changed the order to first subtract all the debits, THEN add the deposits. For example, I have a balance of $10 in my bank. The same day I write a check for $15 and submit a deposit for $50. My account would be processed like this:

$10 - $15 check (+ $35 underage Fee) = balance -$40 + $50 deposit = $10 balance, INSTEAD of

$10 + $50 = $60 - $15 check = $45 balance.

When we called our bank, I asked the lady "What drove this policy change?" -

The answer? The bank wanted to increase its profits.

This Check21 is simply a license to find ways to steal more money from otherwise honest people.


There are a few things I hate.

Banks.
Insurance Companies.
Family Court Laws.
Speedling Laws.

 

[Sandy73]

Maybe storing your cash under the mattress isn't such a bad thing afterall.

 

[dmp]

Maybe storing your cash under the mattress isn't such a bad thing afterall.

it just may come to that - until we become a cashless society, where we can only buy and sell based on some sort of mark implanted in our hands or forheads.

 

[Bug]

*tunes off Art Bell*

 

[Sandy73]

it just may come to that - until we become a cashless society, where we can only buy and sell based on some sort of mark implanted in our hands or forheads.

Just like it states in the Bible .

 

[dmp]

Just like it states in the Bible .

...and various news organizations.


It'll happen...

 

[Sandy73]

...and various news organizations.


It'll happen...

I think within the next 50 yrs..

 

[fuzzykitten99]

Big time law - another way for "The Man" to stick it to the little guy...

I can't beleive this kind of bullshit would fly under the radar without some seriously pissed off ppl.

I've highlighted the part which pisses me off the most:



This policy is NOTHING MORE than an effort for the bank to get more money from its customers. It's about generating revenue for the bank Its about the bank being better able to 'catch' customers playing tricks with THEIR money. It's only purpose is to allow the bank to send out more 'insufficient funds fees'.

A few years ago, my bank would process our account this way:

Each day, the bank would account for all the deposits we make, then run thru all the debits. Without letting us know, they changed the order to first subtract all the debits, THEN add the deposits. For example, I have a balance of $10 in my bank. The same day I write a check for $15 and submit a deposit for $50. My account would be processed like this:

$10 - $15 check (+ $35 underage Fee) = balance -$40 + $50 deposit = $10 balance, INSTEAD of

$10 + $50 = $60 - $15 check = $45 balance.

When we called our bank, I asked the lady "What drove this policy change?" -

The answer? The bank wanted to increase its profits.

This Check21 is simply a license to find ways to steal more money from otherwise honest people.


There are a few things I hate.

Banks.
Insurance Companies.
Family Court Laws.
Speedling Laws.

umm...this is designed to help MERCHANTS lose less money from NSF charges. I hate it when people blame banks for their own financial problems. You are responsible for your balance in your account. Writing checks on an account with less than the amount of funds to cover it is actually a crime. I worked for a bank for 2 years. You wouldn't believe how many people think we are STEALING when it says in their account contract that they signed to open the account, if you bounce a check, we have EVERY RIGHT to charge you because YOU didn't have the funds to cover it. And so does the merchant you wrote the bad check to in the first place. THEY lose money in fees and such in their accounts all because you thought you could play "beat the bank".

Think about how many customers the bank has...is it THEIR responsibility to monitor each and every account? They are NOT your personal accountant. You need to take responsibility for your own money.

As far as deposits, they are mostly entered by computer unless you use a real teller to deposit the money. If you can, get direct deposit for your paycheck. it is guaranteed in the account ON the day it is deposited. 99.999999% of banks have a cutoff time for processing and crediting manual deposits for the same day, usually 3pm. if you get there at 3:30 pm...tough shit.

NEVER try to play beat the bank. you won't win.

 

[dmp]

umm...this is designed to help MERCHANTS lose less money from NSF charges. I hate it when people blame banks for their own financial problems. You are responsible for your balance in your account. Writing checks on an account with less than the amount of funds to cover it is actually a crime. I worked for a bank for 2 years. You wouldn't believe how many people think we are STEALING when it says in their account contract that they signed to open the account, if you bounce a check, we have EVERY RIGHT to charge you because YOU didn't have the funds to cover it. And so does the merchant you wrote the bad check to in the first place. THEY lose money in fees and such in their accounts all because you thought you could play "beat the bank".

Think about how many customers the bank has...is it THEIR responsibility to monitor each and every account? They are NOT your personal accountant. You need to take responsibility for your own money.

As far as deposits, they are mostly entered by computer unless you use a real teller to deposit the money. If you can, get direct deposit for your paycheck. it is guaranteed in the account ON the day it is deposited. 99.999999% of banks have a cutoff time for processing and crediting manual deposits for the same day, usually 3pm. if you get there at 3:30 pm...tough shit.

NEVER try to play beat the bank. you won't win.

I am quite versed on how banks work - my wife's last job was as the #1 assistant branch manager for a bank. This is NOT about protecting businesses so much as it's about the ideas I stated. Of course banks will spin it that way, as if the 'millions we'll make by charging the average joe' is just a nice side-effect.

:-/

It's not about beating the bank. It's about what is 'right'. It's just not right how banks only serve to steal, legally, as much money as they can from people. This is just one MORE method banks have to get richer. God bless Capitalism.

 

[Joz]

it just may come to that - until we become a cashless society, where we can only buy and sell based on some sort of mark implanted in our hands or forheads.

It's not far off. If you can 'chip' your animals.....
What about instead of giving bracelets to both mother & child at the birth?

 

[Merlin1047]

umm...this is designed to help MERCHANTS lose less money from NSF charges. I hate it when people blame banks for their own financial problems. You are responsible for your balance in your account. Writing checks on an account with less than the amount of funds to cover it is actually a crime. I worked for a bank for 2 years. You wouldn't believe how many people think we are STEALING when it says in their account contract that they signed to open the account, if you bounce a check, we have EVERY RIGHT to charge you because YOU didn't have the funds to cover it. And so does the merchant you wrote the bad check to in the first place. THEY lose money in fees and such in their accounts all because you thought you could play "beat the bank".

Think about how many customers the bank has...is it THEIR responsibility to monitor each and every account? They are NOT your personal accountant. You need to take responsibility for your own money.

As far as deposits, they are mostly entered by computer unless you use a real teller to deposit the money. If you can, get direct deposit for your paycheck. it is guaranteed in the account ON the day it is deposited. 99.999999% of banks have a cutoff time for processing and crediting manual deposits for the same day, usually 3pm. if you get there at 3:30 pm...tough shit.

NEVER try to play beat the bank. you won't win.

LOL Fuzzy. Did D strike a nerve?

I have to side with D on this. While I agree with your statement regarding fiscal responsibility, this is also an issue of fairness.

The sequence of accounting which D's bank used is grossly unfair. Likewise, if banks can process my checks at Warp 9, why do they continue to process deposits at such a pedestrian pace?

Another example - the bank I used while I owned a business changed their policy and began to debit MY account whenever a customer wrote a bad check. Just exactly where the hell do they come off holding me responsible for the inability of a customer to add, subtract or manage a checking account properly? Needless to say, I objected and after getting no satisfaction, closed not only my business accounts, but all my personal accounts as well. Then, just to flip them the finger, I talked my family and my wife's family into closing their accounts as well. Then I started writing letters to the editor and taking out ads in the local paper detailing the bank's practice. I don't know how much impact I had, but I'll bet they were cussing me every day.

And you can play to beat the banks. You just have to get a regulator on your side.

 

[fuzzykitten99]

LOL Fuzzy. Did D strike a nerve?

just a tad. try working at a bank for more than a month, and you will hear this same bitching on a daily basis. i am surprised that i lasted 2 years.

the thing with the order the banks cash checks is they are NOT processed by hand. they are sent to the localfederal reserve who then records and debits the account for the check. so the issue of fairness on the order the banks process checks is moot. it's really a game of beat the federal reserve if you wanna get techical.

when i transferred into the mortgage area of the bank, i would get people who would yell at me that we cashed their check too early. ok, the federal reserve does not look at the date. the post office does not know you want your check cashed on a certain day. if you send a check or use one at a store, be prepared to have it clear within 24 hours. you could put the date as january 1 2022, and they would still cash it. why? because no HUMAN processes the country's checks. they all go into a sorter and are fed by machine. the only human job is putting the checks IN the machine.

remember. the bank is providing a SERVICE to you that is optional. don't like their service? go to another bank. you can pay bills without using a bank account, but it is not as easy. money orders are accepted by most companies. some companies offer a western union/moneygram option.

if you have an issue with depositing money before the cutoff time, see if you can deposit at an ATM run by your bank. most major banks allow this, and in doing so, you have an extended time for getting your account credited that day. Personally, I use Wells Fargo. Their ATM's allow me to deposit up to 6pm monday thru friday, and be credited that day. i can deposit $ in nearly any ATM owned by WF.

bottom line is that the federal reseve does not know whether or not your account has the money or you have made a deposit to your account. all they do is process the checks-it's not their job to make sure the deposit was made or credited first. if you didn't have the money in the first place, you should not have wrote the check. you signed a contract for your account when you opened it. therefore you are held to it.

 

[sagegirl]

I agree with "Fuzzy" on this and we dont agree much. Ronald Reagan was responsible for deregulation of the banking system so you can thank him.

 

[Mr. P]

All of the above posts are exactly why I use a Credit Union.

And Fuzzy....The Banks are CROOKS!
If I make a deposit it's credited immediately....not in 7-10 days or tomorrow if after 2p,
it doesn't matter what time of day it is. What do you think they do with that money during that time?
Yep, they loan it out and make money on it while you wait for credit. They know within 24 hours
if a check is good, not days.

My credit union doesn't charge me to keep my money either, no service charge.
Nope, no per check charges, no minimum check charge and no minimum balance,
no limit on the number of checks per month.

They make their money okay, but not by screwing their customers.

 

[Merlin1047]

the thing with the order the banks cash checks is they are NOT processed by hand. they are sent to the localfederal reserve who then records and debits the account for the check. so the issue of fairness on the order the banks process checks is moot. it's really a game of beat the federal reserve if you wanna get techical.

Fuzzy since I've owned a business and dealt with the public there is little you can tell me which would surprise me about the stupidity of what I refer to as "that ten percent". Without a doubt, that ten percent of the public can be an exasparating pack of troglodytes. I invited customers to take their bullshit elsewhere on average of once every two years - and frankly I think my restraint was remarkable.

But you cannot explain the workings of a bank and conclude that that's just the way it is, like it or leave. Your view is biased in favor of the institution. You apparently forget that the ultimate purpose of any business, including banks, is to serve the customer. Too often when businesses turn into huge bureaucracies they fall into the trap of placing the needs of the institution and its processes above service to the customer. If customers have a legitimate complaint, a successful institution responds to it by implementing changes - not by explaining "that's just how we do things".

Also, I noted that you ignored my point about my former bank charging me for bad checks that others wrote to my business. How do you justify that practice?

 

[dmp]

It's like Banks don't use the Ballanced Scorecard...it's all about 'financial bottom line' with them.

 

[Trinity]

Banks are out to screw anybody they can. I know this from first hand experiance I had written a check and I had forgotten to write this check in my register, yep my bad, i forgot, so ok I'll pay the fee. However what the bank did was they put this check thru first which was larger then the others i had written out, which then wiped out the account and then charged me for 5 bounced checks. When I called the bank about this they said, oh that is our policy we always put the largest check to smallest thru first. bottom line we'll we could have been nice and just bounced one but then hey we wouldn't have made over $125.00 on this. This was US bank and I believe that all of the banks practice this kind of screw the customer now. needless to say I no longer bank with US bank.

 

[dmp]

Banks are out to screw anybody they can. I know this from first hand experiance I had written a check and I had forgotten to write this check in my register, yep my bad, i forgot, so ok I'll pay the fee. However what the bank did was they put this check thru first which was larger then the others i had written out, which then wiped out the account and then charged me for 5 bounced checks. When I called the bank about this they said, oh that is our policy we always put the largest check to smallest thru first. bottom line we'll we could have been nice and just bounced one but then hey we wouldn't have made over $125.00 on this. This was US bank and I believe that all of the banks practice this kind of screw the customer now. needless to say I no longer bank with US bank.

We have US Bank...and we hate it.

 

[-Cp]

We have US Bank...and we hate it.

We had US Bank too - I can honestly say that I believe them to be a bunch of Saigon WHORES - I HATE THAT BANK!! They have fees for their fees...

We switched to WAMU and have been much happier...

 

[dmp]

We had US Bank too - I can honestly say that I believe them to be a bunch of Saigon WHORES - I HATE THAT BANK!! They have fees for their fees...

We switched to WAMU and have been much happier...

We'll switch to WAMU soon enough.. :-/

As luck would have it Mary bet me that I'd not read 'Saigon Whores' today...I declined... Could have made $20.