I have worked for three different companies over the past ten years. Each one had a specific bank that they wanted me to use for direct deposit. Every time I started with each company I would be required to open an account with the bank they used. When I moved from one company to another, I stopped using the previous bank, as it was only for direct deposit of my salary.
Do I have to close these three current accounts, as all three are empty now, and I no longer work for the three companies? I am afraid I might be charged some penalty since they are open and empty, or is it ok, since there is a time limit to how long an account can stay open and empty? Perhaps they have been cancelled automatically?
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It's likely that the account will have aged off into closed status. However, your concerns are not unwarranted. Banks have been known to run up large overdraftfee balances after a service charge on a zero-balance account took the account negative. The best course of action is to contact the banks involved and ask whether the accounts are still open.
You didn't ask, but next time an employer tries to dictate which bank you can use for direct deposit of payroll, you can argue with the knowledge that the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Federal Reserve Board Regulation E state "No financial institution or other person may require a consumer to establish an account for receipt of electronic fund transfers with a particular institution as a condition of employment or receipt of a government benefit." Your employer can mandate the use of direct deposit if you get to choose where. You can also be given the choice of only one bank if your employer provides another method of payment.
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It's likely that the account will have aged off into closed status. However, your concerns are not unwarranted. Banks have been known to run up large 