Banks on Personal Responsibility
September 29, 2005
I had two bank accounts to keep certain funds segregated - accounts A (active) and NI (now inactive). Months (maybe even a year) ago I closed account NI. Last week I opened a statement indicating that account A had been assessed fees because account I had been overdrawn. How could a closed account be overdrawn? The bank never closed account NI.
Thus, because I didn't put any money into account NI, it lacked the funds to pay the $8/month account fee. Because my account became overdrawn when they charged me fees on the closed account, I was charged more fees! So not only did they wrongfully charge me account-maintenance fees, they also charged me overdraft fees.
How did I learn this? I noticed a peculiar charge to my account for $17. Upon investigation, I learned that they had been debiting my active account $10 or so dollars a month for the last eight months. A ten-dollar transaction is enough to fly below my radar, so I hadn't noticed the previous charges. When they charged me $17, they screwed up, since $17 is big money to me.
Being a reasonable guy, I appealed to reason, and wrote:
Why have I been charged for this: DR-RIGHT OF SETOFF TO ACCT XXXXXXX $17.00
I received a notice in the mail indicating that another account was overdrawn. What other account? I only have one account (my checking account). A LONG time ago I had an additional account ("The Wedding Account"), but I closed that one a very long time ago. Looking at my history, I see this charge has been assessed previously. Why? How can I be overdrawn on an account that does not exist?
Their (non)response:
A "Right of Setoff" transaction occurs when the bank withdraws funds from one of your accounts to cover a negative balance on another of your accounts. On 09/19/05, we transferred funds from account number XXXXX to offset the overdraft in your account number XXXX.
When I told them,
I closed the wedding account almost a year ago. When I log into [Bank], the account doesn't show up. That's why I don't understand these offet fees. I closed the wedding account already. I behaved as if the account was closed. I neither deposited nor withdrew money.
Why would I keep open an account without any money in it? It doesn't make any sense. So, I would like the funds that were wrongly taken from my account to offet a negative balance in the non-existent account as soon as possible. It's not fair that although I closed the account months ago, I've been charged because someone at the bank messed up and left it open.
Screw off, they told me. So I replied:
First, I closed the account a long time ago. Indeed, when I log into [Bank], only one account shows up on the screen. I behaved as if I only had one account. I never transferred or deposited any money into it. I'm sure this has happened to many others, and I'm prepared to file a class action.
They played the tort reformer's card:
It was your responsibility to pay attention to the many statements that have been mailed to you.
Got that? When a bank steals from my account, it's my fault for not noticing. I should just take personal responsibility and eat the bank's fees. Wow.