Was Supposed to Have Left But Bank MAching Ate my ATM Card

[peanutsmommy10]

We were supposed to have left this morning for our disney vacation. I have a prepaid debit card with cash on there. I had $98 left on my card. I left the card in the machine for 30 seconds while I was counting the first portion of the money I had taken out(I had to take out 2 separate transactions or was going to) and when I went to grab the card the machine grabbed it and I pressed cancel/clear everything and it wouldn't return it. This was at 8:30 am. I waited until the bank opened and they told me I may or may not get my card back, depending on whether or not its been shredded. The manager didn't think it has been as of yet but she said she has to get permission from higher up to give it back. Basically I have to prove I am who I say I am, which I can, no problem, but it's at their discretion to give me back my card. Now $98 won't make or break me but I don't want to leave my card in the machine. I can cancel it and get another one but that'll be 5-10 days and I won't have it for Disney. I also don't like people have my information since I've been a victim of identiity theft. I know this may sound absurd. I've never had this happen before but I'm wondering if anyone has ever lost a card in an atm machine and how did you get it back if it was a non bank card? We're leaving tonight now rather than this morning which stinks and now I'm sitting around all day waiting for this lady to call that she's even gotten the amoured truck to retrieve the card. This has been a nightmare! Thanks.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Over $98!! Go to Disney! Hopefully you'll get your card back but I wouldn't wait around for it.

 

[Swimalie]

We had a friend visiting from 3000 miles away using a bank atm but not his home bank. The atm ate his card as well on a Sunday. We called the next day and were told the same thing, the card might have been shredded or it might be returned to him. About a week later he got a new card in the mail from his bank. No issues of identity theft in his case. If you can live without the money, go to Disney and have fun.

 

[Dr.Girlfriend]

I wouldn't have cancelled leaving if I left my $98 card in an ATM.

 

[angierae]

While I would have been disappointed to not have the $98, I wouldn't have postponed leaving on my trip over it.

 

[STLDisney_Freak]

My husband had a card ate by an ATM machine. They didn't give the card back. They cancelled it and ordered a new one. I would have left this morning for Disney and certainly not stayed over $98 dollars.

 

[LilyWDW]

Yea... $98 not worth leaving late for Disney. The bank will follow their procedures. Most likely the machine recognized that the card had be "left". After a specific period of time, it takes it back in case the owner actually did leave it. It is most likely a safety measure to keep the card holder safe.

 

[Havana]

I would have been upset over the situation, but I don't think it would have delayed me leaving. I hope you can leave soon, and have a great trip!

 

[Avery&Todd]

We were supposed to have left this morning for our disney vacation. I have a prepaid debit card with cash on there. I had $98 left on my card.

I think a few PPs read the above statement wrong....according to the OP - it was not her regular debit card, but a "Prepaid" debit card with $98 left on the prepaid card that was eaten by the teller machine...

so, my question is..if this teller machine keeps her card, how does she get the $98 off the prepaid debit card back??

I can see the bank sending her a new checking account debit card, but what about a prepaid card? Aren't those generic??

to me it sounds like she's just SOL....

 

[PatMcDuck]

Weird, it just happened to my son too, about 2 weeks ago. His replacement card came in about a week.

 

[Mom23Disneybelievers]

It stinks to have something to stress about when you are supposed to leave for vacation...but you should still leave for vacation!

You can stay in contact with the bank via cellphone, but don't delay your family's fun.

Disney vacations aren't cheap...so any Disney time wasted will cost you more than $98.

Go and Have Fun!!!!

 

[angierae]

I think a few PPs read the above statement wrong....according to the OP - it was not her regular debit card, but a "Prepaid" debit card with $98 left on the prepaid card that was eaten by the teller machine...

so, my question is..if this teller machine keeps her card, how does she get the $98 off the prepaid debit card back??

I can see the bank sending her a new checking account debit card, but what about a prepaid card? Aren't those generic??

to me it sounds like she's just SOL....

I read it. She said she could contact the issuer of the card and they'd send her another one. They could cancel that prepaid card and issue another one (providing she knows the number.)

Either way, I wouldn't have delayed going on my trip. I can call the bank and whatnot just as easily from the road as I can sitting at home. (Assuming the OP has a cell phone.)

 

[kelleigh1]

And a good lesson to everyone...don't leave the card sitting in the slot. Pull it out if you want to take the time to count out the $$ you've gotten.

 

[RitaE]

I can't even remember the last time I saw an ATM machine that has the slots where the card goes completely into the machine. All the machines here (at least the ones I use) you swipe the card and it remains in your hand.

What kind of card is this again? I don't know how a "pre-paid debit card" is different than a regular debit card. Here a debit card is just a card that is connected to your deposit accounts. They are all pre-paid I guess in that they withdraw from your own money, rather than a credit card which charges against a line of credit.

Is it like those Visa Gift Cards you buy?

 

[SevsOnlyGirl]

Awww, that's a bummer! When it happened to me I was using my regular bank debit card at a different bank. They told me that the machine automatically shreds them inside the machine when they are retracted. I had to get a new one.

 

[ziggystardust]

I was in france and while getting money out to pay for a cab, the machine ate my card. It was the wrong type of card for that machine apparently and I wasn't aware. That was my only source of cash while I was there for a month.

The next morning I woke up super early, grabbed my fluently french speaking friend and rushed down to the bank at opening. They pulled out an entire box of cards, so it looked like it happened often. They said that if I hadn't gotten there at opening the card would have been sent to the main office to be shredded, but luckily I got there.

Not that this helps, but it happens. I wouldn't wait along much longer. Go enjoy your vacation. Disney is that one place that all the outside troubles tend to fly away as soon as you walk in.

 

[peanutsmommy10]

thank you all. Well we wasted an entire day and got NOWHERE! The manager of the branch didn't care obviously and I feel as though she deliberately strung me along. She still hasn't returned my card so I've gone ahead and cancelled it and a new one is coming, and the money should hopefully still be on it. We will just add a day onto our vacation, which makes my kids happy After this everyone needs it I am just frustrated and angry because she should have been up front and honest and said ok odds are you're NOT getting the card back so I don't think you should wait instead of saying well maybe it's worth waiting, give me your number and I'll call you. Then when I've been calling she gets angry for my asking.

 

[plummer925]

thank you all. Well we wasted an entire day and got NOWHERE! The manager of the branch didn't care obviously and I feel as though she deliberately strung me along. She still hasn't returned my card so I've gone ahead and cancelled it and a new one is coming, and the money should hopefully still be on it. We will just add a day onto our vacation, which makes my kids happy After this everyone needs it I am just frustrated and angry because she should have been up front and honest and said ok odds are you're NOT getting the card back so I don't think you should wait instead of saying well maybe it's worth waiting, give me your number and I'll call you. Then when I've been calling she gets angry for my asking.

I'd simply never use that bank again...but, to look at it from her perspective - if you had called once and stuff I'm sure she wouldn't have been angry, but you said "I've been calling" which sounds like you called several times - if she couldn't do anything, she couldn't do anything and you calling her over and over might have frustrated her - no - she shouldn't have let you know, but just wanted to point out out a different way for you to look at it!

 

[nunzia]

I can't even remember the last time I saw an ATM machine that has the slots where the card goes completely into the machine. All the machines here (at least the ones I use) you swipe the card and it remains in your hand.

What kind of card is this again? I don't know how a "pre-paid debit card" is different than a regular debit card. Here a debit card is just a card that is connected to your deposit accounts. They are all pre-paid I guess in that they withdraw from your own money, rather than a credit card which charges against a line of credit.

Is it like those Visa Gift Cards you buy?

and see,I have never seen one that you DON'T put your card into...still..I would certainly not delay a Disney trip because of this..it'll sort out, but as someone else said, a day lost at Disney will cost you much more than $98.

 

[kim929]

The manager might not have the access to the machine. A lot of times even though the atm is attached to the bank, they are serviced by an outside company. Some machines do shred them as the are pulled back in to avoid someone being able to open the machine and get the cards.