overdraft fees

[acmb05]

What is the name of your state? Tennessee

I had a bank account at Amsouth Bank for almost 2 years. Last year I had my account information stolen and they charged over 1100 dollars in stuff off the internet to my acocunt. When that went thru and I saw the charges(I check my bank every day online for charges) I immediately went to the bank and filed a complaint. I was told that I would have all of my money returned when they finished their investigation within 10 days. Well they did return my money and closed that acocunt however I had personal checks come thru during that time that they sent back because the account was overdrawn by the thief. They stated they could not close the account until it was at a zero balance.

Also some of the transactions the thief did were sent back. All of my money was returned to me and I thought that was the end of it. I went to a new bank and opened an account there. Now I have been notified by Amsouth thet I owe them almost 600 dollars in overdraft fees because even though they returned my stolen money they do not give credit for overdrafts because of the theft. They have reported me to the Nation check registry so I cant cash a check anywhere and now my utility company refuses to take a check from me. Amsouth said since it was a checking acount it was reported as bad checks not paid.

I have spoken to someone at the bank several times now and each time they tell me they will look into it and have it taken off my record and call me to let me know when it is done. They never have called me back and the last time I went to that bank the lady I had been dealing with was transferred to another state so I had to start this process all over again.

Do I have any legal recourse to have this taken off of my record and have my name removed from the check registry?

 

[dcatz]

There MAY be a partial remedy, but you need to provide some clarification.

I owe them almost 600 dollars in overdraft fees because even though they returned my stolen money they do not give credit for overdrafts because of the theft.

Does the $600 represent fees charged to you for the bank’s handling of only your valid checks during the period when problems related to the theft were being resolved?

Rather than adopting the Uniform Commercial Code in its entirety, your state has adopted parts and incorporated those in your Codes. The relevant part of Article IV is at Tennessee Code - Title 47:

Tennessee Code - Title 47 Commercial Instruments And Transactions
47-4-401. When bank may charge customer’s account
(a) A bank may charge against the account of a customer an item that is properly payable from that account even though the charge creates an overdraft. An item is properly payable if it is authorized by the customer and is in accordance with any agreement between the customer and the bank.
(b) A customer is not liable for the amount of an overdraft if the customer neither signed the item nor benefited from the proceeds of the item.

But, if the $600 is for the bank paying on your checks during a period when the account was deficient, that’s subject to your customer agreement with the bank, and it is, in all probability, a charge that the bank can impose.

Were you reported for checks on your account bouncing or were you reported for not paying the $600? Because none of your valid checks bounced or you wouldn’t be charged the fee. In that case, dispute it to whomever has “the record”.

Which leads to the last point of clarification: who/what is the National Check Registry and who maintains this database? (Wasn't aware of a national registry.)

 

[acmb05]

I am not sure if the name

Is National Check Registry its just what I call it. But anyway whenever you go to a store and right a check they can run it thru a thing called check systems and if you are on thier list then noone will accept a check from you and you cannot even open a new account at any other bank.

The charges that I was charged are return check fees. I will see if I can explain a little.

There were 19 charges to my bank thru electronic check to a gambling site and some purchases for items. The ones to the gambling site were 100.00 and 200.00 dollar deposits to that site for gambling online. Since I only had about 300.00 in the bank at the time only 2 items went thru the other 17 were sent back and I was charged 34.00 for each one as a return check charge. Since that made my account overdrawn the 5 checks that I had written for bills were also returned.

The places I wrote them to did not charge me thier regular fee cause I had something from the bank saying there was fraud on my account.

All of my money that waas taken from my account was returned to me by the fraud department. However they do not reverse the return check fees. So now I have 22 return check charges which add up to 748.00 But the bank says I owe a little over 600.00

When I asked her why there was a discrepency in the charge total she did not know. All she could say was maybe I was not charged for a couple of them.

Anyway the bank is now refusing to take these charges off of my account and now I am trying to open a business account and my bank now wont let me even though I have a checking and savings account with them that was opened before my name went on this list. I went to 3 different banks and thay all said the same thing, as long as I am on the check systems database I cant open any new accounts.

 

[dcatz]

Shall we just start completely over again? Feels like we just went Through The Looking-Glass. You can give words any meaning that you'd like but it makes effective communication just a little bit harder.

A rose is a rose is a rose, but an overdraft fee is not a returned check charge. It's not clear from your second post, but it's more probable that the charge was imposed by the merchant for the failed EFT than that it was imposed by your bank. I, for one, don't need to know. Those charges are your responsibility.

There are companies that offer payment authorization and guarantee services to the merchant community, principally for point-of-sale transactions. The largest comprise a nucleus of about half a dozen. The focus is on checks, not credit cards (which are handled in other ways through other media). They are also used by banks to "evaluate" new accounts. They maintain their own databases to support their own services. They aren't credit reporting agencies. They don't share and they don't, collectively, constitute a national registry. (There isn't one. Practical and legal considerations preclude/prohibit it.)

Particularly if one of the companies "guaranteed" your check transactions, clearing the bounced checks and all related charges is the only way that that you'll get clearance. Your option is to deal exclusively with banks and merchants that don't use the services and do it for at least a couple of years.

 

[acmb05]

All banks use check systems now

Anytime you try to open an account at a bnak they will run your name and SS thru this database. If you have any outstanding charges against you they cannot open the account.

The fees are the bank fees that they charged my account for the bounced checks that someone else wrote. I dont see how they can give me all my money back that was stolen from me but not credit the fees they charge when they were returned.

When you write a check and it bounces the merchant you wrote the check to usually charges you a return check fee. The bank also charges you a return check fee on their end. Those are the charges that they will not take off of my account even though I proved I did not make any of the transactions.

So if the account was overdrawn because of fraud how can they then turn around and charge me the fee's for that fraud.

The bank turned it in to check systems as an account that is overdrawn and money owed to. Basicaly unless I pay the bank the 600.00 and some change it will remain an unpaid account and I will remain in the sytem.

I don't think it is right that they can do this and just wanted to know if I could possibly sue them to have it removed.

Just wanted to add that going to another state does no good. I went to Michigan where I used to live but still have a residence and was told the same thing. I could not open an account there either.

I should add that if you owe money to a bank and do not pay it within 30 days you WILL be put into this database.

 

[acmb05]

This is what I am talking about

(b) A customer is not liable for the amount of an overdraft if the customer neither signed the item nor benefited from the proceeds of the item.

I did not sign anything nor did I benefit from the transaction but they are still holding me liable by charging ME the fees for the overdrafts.

 

[dcatz]

OP - I'm familiar with the services and the providers and the mechanics. But I think that your question has been asked and answered. It's an open forum; continue to invite input.

I did not sign anything nor did I benefit from the transaction but they are still holding me liable by charging ME the fees for the overdrafts.

They are not holding you liable for the overdraft. They refunded that money. They are holding you liable for the *associated* charges - call them "processing charges" if you wish. If their right to do that is anywhere, it's in your service agreement with the bank. Look there before you sue and then decide. Have you read it or asked about it? I referred to it in the first response.

If the charges are your bank's - and you confirm that they are - your bank can waive them. But you advise that it won't (or hasn't yet or whatever). You're looking for a legal justification to get around this. I don't have it to give.

don't think it is right that they can do this and just wanted to know if I could possibly sue them to have it removed.

Due respect to what you think is right and the substantial majority might agree, but until you can prove that it's not proper-authorized-legal, you won't get far with your suit. Again, see if you voluntarily obligated yourself to this arrangement when you established your account.

Anytime you try to open an account at a bnak they will run your name and SS thru this database. If you have any outstanding charges against you they cannot open the account.

And probably check your driver's license too. I know. The bank doesn't want to send you out the door with a book of blank checks, if you already have what it considers a bad track record elsewhere.

Just wanted to add that going to another state does no good.

I know. All of the *majors* have a national reach.

When you write a check and it bounces the merchant you wrote the check to usually charges you a return check fee.

Ironically, THOSE are the charges that you might have been able to fight. The theory behind the merchant's right is that the fee is part of an implied contract created when it agreed to accept your check. When the transaction is EFT, that's a harder rationale to use, because you're not physically present to enter into the contract.

 

[Veronica1228]

This a very confusing thread, but I have a couple of comments/suggestions to make.

First of all, Chex is a reporting agency for FIs. Only banks and credit unions are able to see if someone is reported to Chex and can deny a new account based on those grounds. As far as I know, and I admit it has been a couple of years since I've been in Retail Banking, Chex is not used by merchants in the manner you described. There are other reporting agencies such as Telecheck that do provide that kind of service, but Chex does not. If you Google the words "Chex Systems" there are a lot of sites out there that may be able to help you with that aspect of your situation.

As for the fees, I agree that legally your bank CAN charge these NSF/OD fees to your account. However, after being the industry for a number of years, I am shocked that they wouldn't be more sensitive to your plight. I suggest that you go up the chain of command to the branch manager, the district manager, the regional manager, etc., until you find someone who will help you. At my bank this would have been a done deal long ago.

 

[dcatz]

Agree on all points but now would make only one further distinction.

Since it was getting confusing (we changed horses mid-stream) and the OP doesn't know the *registry* to which he referred, it didn't seem that productive to try and distinguish the likes of Chex, Telecheck, CheckMate, Telecredit (the first - now Certegy) and CheckSystems (once servicing FDIC banks), but the merchant providers also sold to banks, when they could.

As you note, the OP's bank could let him off the hook as an accommodation. It hasn't. I don't see that it can be compelled, but one would think that he could make progress going up the food chain.

My only point of distinction would be with regard to the reference to "reporting agencies" and the possibility of that causing confusion. I have no direct knowledge of Chex being scrutinized, but the merchant providers were reviewed for the possible need for FCRA compliance. Some, like Telecredit, pre-dated the FCRA. It was determined that they were not CRAs within the definition of the statute and, accordingly, their record retention periods need not be consistent with that statutory mandate.

 

[acmb05]

sorry for the confusion

I am not real knowledgeable on all the names of these places.

 

[scootertramp]

screw those banks, same thing happened , snowballin. 5 yrs. before I could open another bank acct. anywhere, but, after 1 yr. you take the reciept from your last bank that you paid and they will override it and allow you to open an acct. I paid way to much od charges and i had overdraft protection , my own money . GET A PRE-PAID MASTERCARD AT WWW.MYMCCARD.COM OR YOUR LOCAL DRUG STORE AND USE IT LIKE A BANK ACCT.