Natwest Paid cheques into wrong back account

[deejaykelly]

Hi everyone, apologies if this isn't in the right place on here but as you can see I'm new to this forum and I'm just after some quick advise about an issue that has occured between myself, my girlfriend and NatWest.

It's abit of a long story but basically my girlfriend paid 3 cheques into one of those quick deposit boxes at a NatWest branch on the 16th of August. One cheque was written by myself for £88, the second cheque was written by my girlfriends Dad for £100 and the thrid cheque was from GE money for £25. In total thats £213. After about two weeks my girlfriend still hadn't received any of this money in her account even though the money had left my account, her Dad's and presumably GE money's aswell. She contacted the bank and she was assured that it would be credited soon. We then went abroad on holiday so we couldn't check to see if the money had entered her account but as soon as we got back we checked and suprise suprise, the £213 still wasn't in her account. She decided to go into the branch and find out what was going on, so they investigated and it turns out the £213 was paid into MY account and not hers. In other words I had effectively written a cheque to myself for £88 not to mention the other two cheques. I didn't believe this at first as I knew that my online statement for my bank account had never shown a deposit of £213 at any point in August or September, but all of a sudden I noticed a new entry on the 18th of August for that amount. I can tell you now that I am almost 100% sure that entry on my statement had been added after the 18th, so in other words NatWest had effectively edited my statement at a later date. This got me realy angry because NatWest had technically lied to myself and my girlfriend (a bank lying to it's customers!! Who'd have thought it). My girlfriend then told me that one of the members of staff at the branch in question, asked her for my bank details!!! Erm, correct me if I'm wrong but that's an offense under the Data Protection Act. Now I was fuming and started thinking that NatWest are completely to blame for this situation so why don't they reimburse my girlfriend the £213 into her account without taking it out of mine. I'm not trying to make money here at all by keeping the original amount of money put in my account by accident, I'm just sick of being messed about by banks and based on the fact that the whole situation is their fault I don't see why I should have to resolve the situation.
A very long story I know but could anyone shed some light on where I stand on this. Like I said before, if I have to transfer the money to my girlfriends account I will. I just don't see why NatWest shouldn't just reimburse my girlfriend with the amount because of the masive errors they have made, not to mention the lies, the delays and the fact they asked her for my bank details.

Thanks for reading this essay, I appreciate any advise you may be able to give me.

[barracad]

I assume there was a paying in slip with the cheques? If so, do you still have the stub? Is it for your account or your girlfriend's?

[yourbank]

Originally Posted by deejaykelly

Hi everyone, apologies if this isn't in the right place on here but as you can see I'm new to this forum and I'm just after some quick advise about an issue that has occured between myself, my girlfriend and NatWest. Welcome to CAG and my specialised subject...

It's abit of a long story but basically my girlfriend paid 3 cheques into one of those quick deposit boxes at a NatWest branch on the 16th of August. One cheque was written by myself for £88, the second cheque was written by my girlfriends Dad for £100 and the thrid cheque was from GE money for £25. In total thats £213. After about two weeks my girlfriend still hadn't received any of this money in her account even though the money had left my account, her Dad's and presumably GE money's aswell. She contacted the bank and she was assured that it would be credited soon.
It initially sounds like they were investigating it.
We then went abroad on holiday so we couldn't check to see if the money had entered her account but as soon as we got back we checked and suprise suprise, the £213 still wasn't in her account. She decided to go into the branch and find out what was going on, so they investigated and it turns out the £213 was paid into MY account and not hers. In other words I had effectively written a cheque to myself for £88 not to mention the other two cheques. I didn't believe this at first as I knew that my online statement for my bank account had never shown a deposit of £213 at any point in August or September, but all of a sudden I noticed a new entry on the 18th of August for that amount. I can tell you now that I am almost 100% sure that entry on my statement had been added after the 18th, so in other words NatWest had effectively edited my statement at a later date. That isn't actually possible to do. If it was I would know and I;m not known for keeping my mouth shut under those circumstances. This got me realy angry because NatWest had technically lied to myself and my girlfriend (a bank lying to it's customers!! Who'd have thought it).
How did they lie?
My girlfriend then told me that one of the members of staff at the branch in question, asked her for my bank details!!! Erm, correct me if I'm wrong but that's an offense under the Data Protection Act.
They were trying to trace where YOUR cheque had been credited to, ie when the cheques are processed through Voucher Processing centres, account number and sort codes and amounts are traceable. Unless your cheque was the only amount of £88 paid through the branch on that day, it would be difficult to trace where the funds were.
Now I was fuming and started thinking that NatWest are completely to blame for this situation so why don't they reimburse my girlfriend the £213 into her account without taking it out of mine. If they did that then you would benefit to the tune of £125(the value of the two other cheques excluding yours).

I'm not trying to make money here at all by keeping the original amount of money put in my account by accident, I'm just sick of being messed about by banks and based on the fact that the whole situation is their fault I don't see why I should have to resolve the situation.
Have the bank asked you for permission to debit your account? Should your girlfriend lose the money. What if the money was from someone else, ie not someone connected to you, would it be fair to them that you keep the money?
A very long story I know but could anyone shed some light on where I stand on this. Like I said before, if I have to transfer the money to my girlfriends account I will. I just don't see why NatWest shouldn't just reimburse my girlfriend with the amount because of the masive errors they have made, not to mention the lies, the delays and the fact they asked her for my bank details.
I hope I have covered all bases but feel free to follow this up.
Thanks for reading this essay, I appreciate any advise you may be able to give me.

Hope it helps.

[deejaykelly]

Basically the cheques were supposed to go into my girlfriends account not mine. She does still have the receipt that she filled out and detached from the paying in envelope. When you use the quick deposit boxes this slip of paper you fill in yourself is classed as the receipt

[barracad]

You would have filled in a paying-in slip of some description - either a preprinted one, or one where you manually fill in your account details. I'm no fan of the banks but it does sound to me like your girlfriend is at fault, not NatWest.

The only logical explanation is that she either used one of your paying in slips, or she completed your account number etc on the paying in slip, not hers. If it was an error and they had somehow credited the wrong account then it would be a massive coincidence that they just happened to credit the account of somebody she knew!

Happy to be corrected, so please provide any further background info if possible.

[yourbank]

NO paying in slip was used barracad. 3 cheques put into envelope, you can put either account number/sort code or PAN number on evelope.

Tear off slip from envelope acts as receipt.

[deejaykelly]

Thanks for that yourbank,

1. Maybe the entry was on ym statement, like I said I thought I was almost sure but the reason I was a little doubtful was because I wasn't sure whether it was actually possible to alter a customers statement. As you've now said its not, I'm clearly wrong on that one.

2. In terms of them lying, it was how they kept telling girlfriend that they cheques would clear. I mean after two weeks even the guys at NatWest saying this must have thought something was wrong. I just get annoyed that they can't be honest about it. If theres a problem then just say so and explain whats happened. I understand that they were investigating it and thats fair enough, but they should have explained that in the first place.

3. I'm more than happy to provide them with my bank details to solve the problem, I just thought that they should contact me personally to get hold of my details, not ask my girlfriend.

4. As of yet the bank haven't asked me to debit my account. They have left me a voicemail to contact them which I have tried to do several times but as of yet they haven't answered. I also had the exact same thought as you, it's lucky that the money went into my account and not into someone elses that my girlfriend doesn't know or can contact easily. Like I said before I'm not trying to make money from this, so I will happily give the money to my girlfriend. Even if it wasn't my girlfriend I would still give the money back, at the end of the day no one likes seeing their money dissapear for no apparent reason.

I think I've answered your queries, I hope that makes it all a little clearer

[barracad]

Account number, sort code etc needs to be put somewhere - if not on paying in slip then there must be some record otherwise they wouldn't know whose account to credit! The point is it sounds like the wrong account number has been quoted, rather than an error by the bank.

[deejaykelly]

barracad, my girlfriend wrote her details onto the paying in slip attached to the envelope in the bank. They are blank and you enter your details on them. The people at the branch wern't 100% sure but they said whoever processed the cheques looked at the cheque I had written and entered those details into the system and not my girlfriends details on the envelope. Hope that makes sense

[yourbank]

Thank DJKElly for clarifying the points.
I think I do know how it could have occurred and it may not, as barracad has stated, an error by your girlfriend but by bank staff. ie, crediting the amount of the cheques into the details on your NatWest cheque. It is an error, but as to who made the error, I would say the jury is out on that point.

On point 2, I am not entirely sure what bank staff was telling your girlfriend.
On point 4, as you can tell it kinda answers part 3 as they have tried to contact you. At the end of the day, time is important in tracing what has happened to the cheques.

[barracad]

Originally Posted by deejaykelly

Hope that makes sense

Makes more sense now but does seem a little odd and prone to mistakes! I thought usual practice was to enclose a paying in slip inside the envelope - seems NatWest want to be different!

[deejaykelly]

It does seem abit odd doesn't it, I mean there is quite a difference between a cheque and a paying in envelope but I suppose mistakes get made. Ah well, I'll just have to go into the branch with my girlfriend to sort the whole mess out, I'm looking forward to that.
Thanks for the info guys, at least now I can go in and argue my case abit more convincingly

[yourbank]

Originally Posted by barracad

Makes more sense now but does seem a little odd and prone to mistakes! I thought usual practice was to enclose a paying in slip inside the envelope - seems NatWest want to be different!

It would be boring if everything was the same. With NatWest you can either use the envelope mentioned, with the PAN number and expiry date on or put the pan number and expiry date on the back of the cheque, OR pay in via the ATM(Halifax does that I think). Convenience in a "I hate queueing society(I hate it as well).

[raydetinu]

Easy way out just write another cheque to your girlfriend for the £213 or do it over the phone or on line! job done. lucky it just didnt disappear into the ether, has been known.

[ForestChav]

Originally Posted by barracad

Makes more sense now but does seem a little odd and prone to mistakes! I thought usual practice was to enclose a paying in slip inside the envelope - seems NatWest want to be different!

You can do either. I prefer to put a completed payin slip inside the quick deposit envelope rather than filling in the details on the outside.