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Double Processing - Bank Error?
I wrote a check to major auto dealer. It was posted twice to my bank account. My bank claims that it was presented as a check and as an ACH, so I was asked to sign a stop payment to have the money credited back. Meanwhile, my other checks might be bouncing, charged NSF fees and also a stop payment fee. Why should I pay a stop payment fee, when this is clearly a banking processing issue. Shouldn't my bank protect my interest when both payments came in with the very same check number and amount?
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 There is most definitely something wrong here. A stop payment is for things that have not yet happened, not things that have already happened one time too many! You need to make your bank make this right quickly!
You are entitled to reimbursement for the double-dip to your account, and your bank should take care of it without delay. The bank has the ability to return the ACH conversion of the check, but will need you to sign a Written Statement Under Penalty of Perjury that the original check was paid. The statement is for the other bank; your bank has the evidence plainly in its own records.
If your banker can't figure out what to do, suggest that the bank send the ACH item back with a "Return Reason Code R37." That should help them look in the right place for guidance. Don't delay, because there are time limits imposed on the bank to recover the funds.
Make sure the bank refunds the stop payment fee, if it charged you. You should not be charged anything for asking the bank to correct its double-payment of the item, and if you incur any other fees, such as overdraft fees, or lose any interest because of the error, your bank should make you whole. In the ideal world, banks would have systems that could detect double payments like this, since both the paper check and the ACH item should have had information (the check number, amount, account number, etc.) that would enable to the bank to flag whichever of the payments arrived last, but not all bank systems have that capability.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 8/01/08
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