Mysterious deposit into my checking acct UPDATE p2

[teller80]

A few weeks ago I got a deposit into my checking account for $194.76, and for the life of me I can't figure out why. I asked at the branch when I was there, they looked into it for a day and said they didn't know and I should call the main 800 number. Did that and they can't tell me where it came from either.

Part of me says "who cares, it's a bonus!" but the other part of me is curious.

What should the bank be able to tell me about this deposit? Would a supervisor be able to get more info than the first person I speak to? If it helps, the description says "benefit payment".

TIA.

 

[Kimberle]

It could be a mistake. In which case, they will reverse the deposit.

 

[leebee]

I wouldn't include the money as part of my balance. Just ignore it, and consider it to be "overdraft insurance!" You KNOW that money doesn't suddenly appear out of thin air! My bank always shows my checking account balance to be $180.02 more than I do. It's been that way for over a decade. I never could find where from or how that money came into being. I just ignore it and consider it a cushion in case I overdraw.

 

[gwynne]

A few weeks ago I got a deposit into my checking account for $194.76, and for the life of me I can't figure out why. I asked at the branch when I was there, they looked into it for a day and said they didn't know and I should call the main 800 number. Did that and they can't tell me where it came from either.

Part of me says "who cares, it's a bonus!" but the other part of me is curious.

What should the bank be able to tell me about this deposit? Would a supervisor be able to get more info than the first person I speak to? If it helps, the description says "benefit payment".

TIA.

Your bank should be able to help you figure this out.
It's not a bonus unless you are entitled to it. If you aren't it may disappear at any time.

 

[JaxDad]

That was your second quarter DIS poster dividend. Haven't you been getting those?

 

[anniemae]

I would get to the bottom of it. It is obviously a mistake if you did not deposit it. It's up to the bank to figure out what happened. They should be able to tell where and what time it was deposited. Banks have cameras so they should be able to see what happened if someone physically deposited it. I would go straight to a supervisor.

 

[Malibustyle23]

Was it direct deposited, cash, check? When I look at my account online I can click the link on the deposit and see the slip that shows what was deposited in what form.

The bank has to know if they deposited it or someone else did. It could be from your bank for some reason but they'd have to know that.

Do you do direct deposit from your work?

I would continue with the m until I got an answer. There have to be details to be traced and honestly if there aren't I'd switch banks because that doesn't sound very safe and secure for my money.

 

[pryncess527]

I'd call the bank back (or go in person depending on what size bank you are dealing with) and see if you can speak to a supervisor. Since it was called "benefit payment" then I'd also do my own investigation of any possible benefit/HRA/insurance/retirement/stock/dividend accounts I have to see if any of them issued a payment while I waited for the bank to investigate.

 

[threeboysmom]

Mistakes do happen. If that deposit isn't yours, I bet someone else is missing theirs. Sounds like the bank deposited it into the wrong account.

A few months ago, I paid $500 on my Citi card which didn't show on my account when I checked later. Took 2 months for Citi to investigate and realize they had made a mistake and applied it towards someone else's account. Stinks to be them, lol - bet they were excited to have $500 taken off their account only to have it back on their balance 2 months later!

 

[JimMIA]

I would become a pest until the bank figures out what happened. If it's a simple error of a teller deposit being applied to the wrong account, that's one thing. But if someone made an electronic deposit to your account, it's possible they could also have the ability to make a withdrawal...like paying their bills out of your account.

I would get to the bottom of it.

 

[lizabu]

Benefit payment sounds like something tax or government related. Is there a government office you can call to ask? I live in Canada and my stepson had something like this happen. It turns out that he had forgotten he had signed up to receive his GST refund in on yearly lump payment and that's what it was.

 

[kimblebee]

Ed McMahon is finally coming through!

 

[cjbcam]

Did you claim something (medical, dental etc) we will get a benefit check from my DH work if we claim something.

 

[gwynne]

Ed McMahon is finally coming through!

And all the way from the other side! Impressive!

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

There is no way that the bank doesn't know where it came from.

They should be able to trace that deposit back to either a counter deposit, direct deposit or a transfer.

And they can tell you where it came from. You just have to find someone willing to look it up.

 

[jdb in AZ]

I waited several months for a bank error to resolve itself. When I still had a mysterious $200 in my account I finally called the bank and was told that they had been bought out, and all the accounts had been reconciled/closed, and regardless of where the mistake had occurred, the $200 was mine. oh darn.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

You need to talk to someone who can actually help you. Banks are like anywhere else - some employees do the bare minimum and never really learn the ins and outs of their jobs. Others are willing to do the research needed to figure this out. There is still a lot of room for human error in banks, so it could be a keying error or something like that. If so, someone else is missing that money. If it is a mistake and the bank figures it out, they will take the money back from your account without notice.

I would go to the bank and speak to one of the people with desks. The person who is in charge of the tellers is probably the best researcher, though not all branches have that position.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

From the description it sounds like an ACH deposit. I would call the customer service line for the bank and ask them to pull the ACH report and acquire the embedded sender information. Sometimes there is a contact phone included. Other times the bank may need to make an inquiry to acquire a contact phone. There is ALWAYS information on the originator of the ACH even if the sending institution refuses to provide a contact phone. You can use the information provided to investigate further if you do not recognize the originator of the deposit.

Best of luck!

 

[Skippy918]

Did you submit a flex spending claim? It could be a reimbursement from that. The bank should be able to tell you where it came from with some research. In the meantime, log into your insurance company website and see if you can figure it out from your end.

 

[Goofy_Disney_Dad]