Accidently Sent Thousands of Dollars to a Random Person. Any Advice?

watupman on 07/01/2021 - 12:28
Last edited 07/01/2021 - 14:19 by 1 other user

Hi guys,

I've sent the money to a wrong account. I am such a silly sausage:(

I've contacted my bank, they took about a month to reply and and said the receiver's bank declined our request to recall as no response from their customer.

I asked them to investigate it again and 5 weeks later my bank said 'their bank again declined our request to recall the funds due to no response from their customer', 'I can confirm that we are not liable to cover for any loss incurred'. My bank said there was nothing else they could do from now on.

I thought they would have offered me other options since I've been their customer for almost 20 years and currently hold fairly large amount in their savings account. However, I also understand it is 100% my fault for sending money to a wrong account. I'm thinking of changing bank after this incident. Other banks offer much better interest rate anyways.

Fortunately, after months of researching, I finally found out my money was sent to a travel company.

I want to be fully prepared before I approach this company. what should I do? I've printed out my bank statement and that is all about it.

Should I visit his bank first?
Should I tell my bank? If so, what can my bank do?
Should I report to ombudsman NSW or police first?

Sorry for having so many questions. I am extremely worry that travel company will have an attitude of "sorry we can't give you money back since it's your mistake, not ours". They may even create fake invoice to say I was their customer (I dont' even know if that's possible haha).

I read some articles about people getting charged with a theft or going to jail after they spending the money that was mistakenly sent to their bank account.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated guys. Thank you :)

Love you all !

Financial

Comments

- - watupman on 12/01/2021 - 18:38
    
    I agree with you. I'm a one silly sausage :(
- watupman on 12/01/2021 - 18:37
  
  Thanks my friend! I got my money back with ease. Much easier than I thought. Thank you very very much for helping me out yeah
BeamMeUp on 08/01/2021 - 08:34

+2

I accidentally did a refund to the wrong person using PayPal for an eBay sale. Totally my fault. Many messages to the person asking to send the money back remained unanswered, it as a reasonable amount. I didn’t think PayPal would do much but contacting them was the answer. Not sure what they did but I got the money back and a bit of a shallow apology message from the person for the delay.
MontyMacaw on 08/01/2021 - 09:24

+6

Banks don’t recognise 20 years of loyalty. Period. I bet none of the staff you deal with have been there more than 5.
- GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 10:36
  
  +5
  
  Everything you said is correct, but not relevant.
- DiscoJango on 10/01/2021 - 10:40
  
  Everyone is just a number nowdays, no such thing as being a 'person' or 'valued customer'.
Waltervp on 08/01/2021 - 09:44

+10

When I was a teenager my card got swallowed by an ATM. I called up and was told I was accused of stealing money. Days later was summoned to the 3rd floor to see a manager who gave me harsh words about spending $100 that was accidentally deposited on my account!! The balance was under $100 and I had to pay the money immediately or they would pass the matter to the police. !!! I paid them immediately and explained i had no idea. The manage told me they didn't need customers like me. It was pre internet banking, and at some local Canberra 'building society'…. Welcome to the unfair banking world of huge profits and terrible service. Was a good lesson to learn in bank ethics and attitudes.
- IanC on 10/01/2021 - 20:41
  
  +1
  
  Recently had $9800 paid incorrectly to MY account.
  
  Reported it to the bank after the usual 30 min on hold and being diverted to two wrong departments.
  
  Took them less than one hour to investigate and remove the $9800 from the account.
  
  They then charged a $5.00 fee for the exercise which took
  
  18 days to reverse.
  
  Welcome to the banking world.
  
  The deposit was actually Term Deposit interest from the bank itself lol.
OzHunterNSW on 08/01/2021 - 09:51

-6

Something wrong… GO to your bank…. ask to have the funds STOPPED… Ask to have the funds returned….

If they say they can not do anything…. threat… then do anyway… notify the POLICE.

If the bank wrongly deposited money into your Acc, the money is not yours… it is the banks.

The receiver is in possession of an illegal amount of money.

Ask the POLICE to investigate.
- smartazz104 on 08/01/2021 - 17:00
  
  The police won't do jack shit if you got robbed of a thousand, why would they investigate a mistake made by the OP?
- rt1111 on 08/01/2021 - 18:51
  
  Police won't do anything, it's a civil not criminal matter.
Loopholio on 08/01/2021 - 10:28

+1

So it's been 21 hours and in that time you've had some fantastic information given to you. What have you done so far?

Never leave important tasks like this until Monday. If you do it now, it's done.
82norm on 08/01/2021 - 11:59

+2

Can I ask how much money you’re talking here?
- cbastien on 09/01/2021 - 09:04
  
  +1
  
  I was thinking the same. I know OP name from previous post and also I was able to deduce the travel agency thx to details he gave in this post. If only I can have the amount of money involved and I should be able to get the refund before him. /s
dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 12:18

-5

Absolutely change banks. That response is crap. You're their customer and they're not providing you service you are entitled to
- GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 13:30
  
  +2
  
  Which service did the bank not provide?
  - dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 13:45
    
    -1
    
    Following up the incorrect transfer and getting the funds returned.
    - GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 14:04
      
      +6
      
      OP created the transfer, reviewed it and authorised it. The bank made the transfer as instructed.
      The bank did not send it to an incorrect bank account.
      - dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 15:07
        
        -3
        
        @GG57: So by your logic, the person who received the money is entitled to it because the OP authorised it.
        
        GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 15:14
        
        @dmbminaret: That is not what I said; you raised the topic of the bank's actions.
        No mention of the recipient.
        
        dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 15:39
        
        +2
        
        @GG57: No, it's not what you said but is same logic. If you're saying because OP authorised transaction and therefore bank doesn't have to do anything, then by that same logic, recipient is entitled to the funds by authorization but we know that is not the case. So why should the bank(s) say, meh…too hard basket. Keep the bastards honest and make some noise.
        
        GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 16:16
        
        @dmbminaret: No. Not the same logic.
        The bank(s) have done everything they were required to do. That is what your comment referred to.
        
        It has been discussed elsewhere here that the recipient can be in trouble legally, depending on what they do with the money (if it is proven they were not entitled to it).
    - brendanm on 08/01/2021 - 14:27
      
      +1
      
      Once it leaves the ops bank and goes to another, it is out of their hands.
      - dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 15:41
        
        -1
        
        @brendanm: Then it is the other bank that needs to liase with OPs bank. It's 2021, I'm sure they can send an email?
        
        brendanm on 08/01/2021 - 15:47
        
        +3
        
        @dmbminaret: They already have, did you read the op?
- pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:21
  
  So another bank would do differently or give him compensation for his mistake?
  
  which bank would that be, please tell.
dmbminaret on 08/01/2021 - 13:49

Why is anyone who is saying the bank has a duty here getting down voted? Sure it gets harder as the time gets on, but they can't just fob you off. If it's sitting somewhere, you're their customer and they need to act on your behalf to get it returned.
- GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 14:41
  
  +3
  
  I think that OP's bank has acted; it is detailed in OP's post.
  All they can do is request the other bank to contact the account holder and request return of the funds. It would be unreasonable to expect banks to just take the funds back based on the word of one party; how many forum posts would there be on here re ebay sales / payments or businesses complaining they are not paid?
  The whole funds transfer bank account to bank account process is built around getting the money to the account (BSB / Account Number) that was provided by the sender.
  I'm pretty sure that all banks are like mine; every time I want to transfer money to another account I am prompted to review and authorise the details.
- gromit on 09/01/2021 - 15:54
  
  +1
  
  Because the bank has already done their duty, Their duly followed his instructions to the letter to transfer the money. They even assisted by contacting the other bank and asking for the money to be returned (multiple times), what the hell else can they do? what duty does the bank have that they have not performed?
- bmerigan on 09/01/2021 - 22:41
  
  +1
  
  The bank doesn't have it. Bank transfer goes in a single direction. There's no circumstances where a bank can pull money out of another bank's account, it has to be 'pushed' back.
minniethemoocher on 08/01/2021 - 13:50

+1

A previous post about someone who received funds accidentally. The police were involved. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/491264
- GG57 on 08/01/2021 - 14:06
  
  Yep, it is "theft by finding". They should not have used the money.
  - JennyLong on 08/01/2021 - 14:19
    
    Yeah the Mens Rea got her.
- Autonomic on 11/01/2021 - 12:45
  
  In that case it looks like the bank deposited the money by accident. If it was a customer who deposited it then they wouldn't have gotten in trouble.
JennyLong on 08/01/2021 - 14:09

Don't you confirm and check funds were moved to another account? Was it supposed to transfer to your own account or was it someone else's account?

If it was someone else's money, then did you call them to ask whether they have received the funds?

It's going to look so dodgy when you go to the ombudsman and tell them you just chose the wrong payee, but at what point were you supposed to find out there was an error? A few days? A week? Never?
Brendoo on 08/01/2021 - 14:45

-1

Just curious, did you give the Account Name of the company/person you intended to send the money to, but just made a typo on the BSB and/or Account Number? In other words Account Name did not match the BSB/Account Number? But the funds were still successfully transferred although the Account Name did not match?

I always thought that both Account Name and BSB/Account Number all had to match or the payment would be rejected. Maybe I'm wrong.

I assume you did not already have this travel company as a payee listed in you internet banking and chose them by mistake, otherwise you wouldn't have been searching for a long time to work out who the money went to.
- Settero on 08/01/2021 - 18:30
  
  +2
  
  No. Your bank has no way of checking recipient account name. They only use bsb/acc number. It's like sending a letter with the wrong name , if the address exists it will get there.
  - pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:23
    
    +1
    
    It's like a post office, they don't know what name is right or wrong.
    They just send letter to the address
    
    It is up to the owner to decide if the letter is actually for them or not.
- bmerigan on 09/01/2021 - 22:38
  
  Name is not used at all
chrisd262 on 08/01/2021 - 17:23

Happened to me once - comm bank - account number was not valid at receiving bank hence got money back in a few days.

I note now that you are warned to ensure details are correct before transferring.

I believe there is no legal requirement for money to be returned - bank will try as a customer service but not to blame.
Oz em on 08/01/2021 - 18:29

+1

I called the bank straight away when I did this (much smaller amount) and they completed a form over the phone for it to be refunded within 5-10 working days.I suspect the issue is that you took so long to contact that they were unable to reverse the transaction.
- pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:24
  
  which bank?
T1OOO on 08/01/2021 - 18:35

There are laws around this.

Unjust enrichment.
anonymous-grad on 08/01/2021 - 18:36

+1

hey mate, you mentioned NAB so before you contact ombudsman or AFCA, maybe try reaching out to NAB Resolve 1800 152 015. They are the second line of defence for customers whose dispute cases get rejected.

If resolve reject your case, then you can reach out to AFCA. If that fails, then the last line of defence is the ombudsman.

However, I feel NAB resolve should be able to help you out.

Cheers
- bmerigan on 09/01/2021 - 22:37
  
  +1
  
  The bank does not owe him money.
  - pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:26
    
    +1
    
    Maybe if the money was small change, they might have just reimburse him
    
    Wonder how much he actually sent?
    -1k+
    -10k+,
T1OOO on 08/01/2021 - 18:36

+2

This sort of thing is go into branch immediately or call speak and escalate. That’s prob the more silly thing u did wait for a generic automated response.
neosin on 08/01/2021 - 18:37

-6

I don't believe you tbh!

Hear me out before anyone negs me!

To make a successful transfer, both BSB and ACCOUNT no. needs to match.

If you entered a wrong account number, the account you entered actually has to exist. In the event that it does exist, that very account would have had to be opened in the SAME BRANCH as you, aka BSB.

The chances of an account exisiting with the typo and being opened at the same location as you would be like winning the lotto imo!
- [Deactivated] on 08/01/2021 - 18:58
  
  +2
  
  Not really, most online banks only have one BSB. Take ING for example.
- khomeini on 08/01/2021 - 19:00
  
  Interesting point. However, some banks (eg. BoQ in Vic) may only have one BSB for all of Vic rather than multiple branches.
  
  Regardless, an unfortunate incident.
- deme on 08/01/2021 - 19:33
  
  Account numbers and BSB are not random
  - fillit on 09/01/2021 - 15:57
    
    BSB are not random but account numbers are generally not sequential for this very reason. Ie. someone making a one digit error.
    - deme on 09/01/2021 - 16:46
      
      Bank account numbers were originally sequential at all banks, now it differs. I have accounts at two banks where the account number differs by a single digit.
- neosin on 08/01/2021 - 19:36
  
  Interesting…did not know some banks only have 1 BSB…
  
  Surely the name would have to be checked then as it would be very easy for anyone to make 1 mistake with 1 digit?
  
  The whole point of having 2 matching numbers as a safeguard is to avoid this very situation…
  - gromit on 08/01/2021 - 20:16
    
    +1
    
    From his description and the fact he has a partial company name on the transfer. I think it is likely this is a company he has dealt with before and it was accidentally selected from Bpay/transfer list. banks don't do lookups of the remote bank when you transfer to provide a name.
  - [Deactivated] on 09/01/2021 - 12:20
    
    Names are never checked with bank transfers. I give people a fake name whenever I don't want to be identified and the payment still goes through fine.
picklewizard on 08/01/2021 - 18:54

Call the police.

If someone accidentally drops $1000 in front of me and I pick it up and refuse to return it upon request, I am guilty of theft.

If someone accidentally puts $1000 in my account and I refuse to return it upon request, I am guilty of theft.

I'm open to any interpretation of how the above two scenarios are in any way different!
- TheBird on 08/01/2021 - 22:46
  
  +1
  
  Are you aware of any proof that the receiptant has refused to return the funds? Or is even aware of these funds?
  
  The act of picking up or refusing are overt acts.
  
  If the receiptant is aware and has refused, it's the same as your second example.
  - chriskq on 10/01/2021 - 06:23
    
    Agreed, but surely cant the banks pull rank. E.G. NAB contact other bank an other bank asks for proof from party that incorrectly receives funds if they are not willing to transfer back themselves ?
    - TheBird on 10/01/2021 - 12:07
      
      +1
      
      I'd imagine they could pull on a lot of things.
      
      Lets also be clear, the other bank received the funds correctly. It was sent incorrectly.
      
      Think of it like this. Your neighbour has a package due today and comes over to your place and accuses you of receiving their package and keeping it. You tell them you never saw their package. They demand proof you chase it down and deliver it. It's not your responsibility to fix their issue.
      
      This is an issue between the receiver and sender of the funds. The banks are facilitators. They have a set of rules they must abide by. They may choose to help further than they're responsible, but they have no obligation to go any further. Just like you. You can choose to help your neighbour chase down this package, but you have no responsibility for it, no matter how long you've been neighbours or how much they insist.
      - pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:28
        
        @TheBird: How would you chase it down if you only got the Account number?
        
        Don't think banks give out personal info to anyone..
        
        Also what then?
        
        TheBird on 11/01/2021 - 02:39
        
        @pinkybrain: The OP has the name of the company.
        
        Why not use the information that is available? I don't see any good reason you'd want to handicap yourself the way you're suggesting.
        
        If you weren't lucky enough to have that information, I'd guess you'd need a court order.
kindra on 08/01/2021 - 20:31

Banks are pretty useless at getting funds back. Once I transferred money to an account accidentally. Tried to get westpac to reverse the funds. Luckily it turned out to be an old account I had with Suncorp. I was able to contact them and transfer the funds back. Good luck.
- pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:30
  
  They are pretty fast and ruthless if they were the one that deposited the incorrect amount.
Dreamcast on 08/01/2021 - 20:55

-2

Tracy Grimshaw
- RSmith on 08/01/2021 - 21:09
  
  She's not the random person OP was talking about.
minniethemoocher on 09/01/2021 - 00:16

Personally I would contact the business. You may be able to sort this out faster than relying on third parties,
- pinkybrain on 10/01/2021 - 23:31
  
  -1
  
  And if the business denies receiving the money then what?
  - minniethemoocher on 13/01/2021 - 17:15
    
    Well you won’t know that unless you contact them would you?
fredk1000 on 09/01/2021 - 00:51

I hope it was not sent to a travel company that has gone bust.
Good luck.
AustriaBargain on 09/01/2021 - 04:01

If someone sent me thousands of dollars I'd assume it was a bad debt that was randomly paid. Months ago? I would have spent it by now after routinely emptying my incoming account.
D6C1 on 09/01/2021 - 07:11

How many thousands are we talking about
pegasusx on 09/01/2021 - 10:54

Jeez this happen to me before, but on the receiving side. Had multiple deposits of $1500 and only noticed after 3 months (back when paper statements were the norm). Thought it was a scam and notified CBA. The Fed police got me involved and I had to make a statement / stat dec.
This went on for another 3 months with me stressing out and paranoid that bikies would somehow turn up at my house. Lol.

Ended up with the bank closing the account and seperating accounts with my money and the unknown deposits. Only heard back from them that it was resolved. Never got to know who deposited the money I guess due to privacy reasons.
yeetasaur on 09/01/2021 - 11:10

+12

Hey man,

I've worked for a bank before in internal and external dispute resolution (IDR and EDR, internal directly with customers and external with AFCA ), so I know the approach the bank and AFCA will take to this.

At the end of the day, you've genuinely submitted the payment and all the banks have taken pre-emptive steps in their online banking process to provide warnings. These warnings clearly state that the moment you submit a payment, it may not be recoverable hence the onus is on you to accept the risk of submitting the payment, no matter the reason you make it in the first place.

Hence, that first step will be viewed as no bank error.

Then they will look at when you reported the mistaken internet payment to the bank, and what actions the bank took next. If it has been identified that there were bank errors i.e. failure/delay to lodge a recovery service request, then they may consider compensating you a partial or the full amount. However, things such as delays in receiving and sending subsequent follow-ups to the recipient bank does not make a difference to the chances of recovery anyways, since you can only get your funds if the recipient approves your request.

Now you're lucky that you somehow were able to find out who exactly you sent the funds to, hence the best option to seek recovery of your funds would be somehow contacting them directly and taking it further there. Worst case scenario is threatening legal action, and following through with it - but is the amount you sent them worth the legal fees?

AFCA can basically rule the case in the bank's favour and not warrant any payments of compensation towards you, as the bank has not done anything wrong.

The only reason the bank may consider a goodwill gesture depends on how much exactly you sent and may consider your other factors when making this decision.

At the end of the day, I've seen your situation many times and have talked directly to people that have been through the same. I tell them to use this as a learning experience, because other circumstances of non-recoverable online payments include:
- when people pay for something first and think the seller will post out a product i.e. stuff on gumtree, a puppy/pet, stuff on facebook etc. I always recommend private sales to be exchanged in person with cash to make it easier
- paying someone for an invoice for something and they screw you over - this unfortunately is out of the hands of the bank to force the money back from the recipient since again, the payment was genuinely submitted. This situation can only be resolved legally through a civil matter.

Hope this helps you understand.
- watupman on 12/01/2021 - 18:42
  
  +1
  
  Thank you so much for putting your time to write such a descriptive post. I really appreciate it. You are a very good person and I can only hope I will be able to help people like you. Thanks lots :)
madster09 on 09/01/2021 - 12:37

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https:/…
vinni9284 on 09/01/2021 - 12:47

-2

It seems to me that Banks want to save every little penny, closing branches, ATM's disappearing, etc DIY and more and more onus are hand-balled to the customer with no recourse. More chat bots with no human interaction are next.
- Ughhh on 09/01/2021 - 16:20
  
  +2
  
  What could the bank do more to prevent you from entering wrong bank account details in internet banking?
  - vinni9284 on 09/01/2021 - 16:31
    
    +1
    
    Well…. once upon a time, in a Bank, they used to have employees called tellers that used to undertake the transactions for us (i.e conduct further checks/human interaction). And, if any discrepancies occurred, the bank had more liability/accountability to recover lost funds but now it's all DIY and the onus and running around is your issue. So if you enter an incorrect digit, (DIY) then you wear it. More and more hand-balling and the bank coffers love it.
    - Ughhh on 09/01/2021 - 17:01
      
      +3
      
      Banks still offer this, problem is that why the hell would you waste time driving to the bank and lining up just to do something that only takes a few mins on your bed?
      
      If you went to the bank, and told them the wrong bank account details, are you still going to blame them?
    - bmerigan on 09/01/2021 - 22:33
      
      I don't see why the outcome would be any different if he told a bank teller to do the transfer?
    - serpserpserp on 10/01/2021 - 08:24
      
      once upon a time, in a Bank, they used to have employees called tellers that used to undertake the transactions for us
      
      Yep and if you gave them the wrong details it would still be your fault.
      
      Except they probably would have had multiple visits from the person who made the error moaning about it and wasting everyone's time.
      
      I guess this productivity loss might be a reason we have less branches now. They've just become a human complaints centre.
CalmLemons on 09/01/2021 - 12:55

Travel company has probably gone bust bruh. wait in line behind all the other creditors lol
tomlikesbeetroot on 09/01/2021 - 13:38

+2

I've done this before for a small 4 figure sum.
I just contacted the business who I accidently sent the money to, they were more than happy to give it back to me. In my case it was a small IT business, but any reputable company should be more than willing to help you out.

Don't start worrying unnecessarily, just give them a call or shoot them an email.
Trying2SaveABuck on 09/01/2021 - 17:52

+2

Credit where it is due for losing thousands of dollars you seem to be quite calm
Kenny Powers on 09/01/2021 - 19:40

+1

Oh you silly sausage!
Kranbone on 09/01/2021 - 21:46

-2

You've made an error. Neither bank is liable for your error. Accept the loss as a lesson to be more diligent and careful and move on.
- DiscoJango on 10/01/2021 - 10:43
  
  -1
  
  yeh im sure if it was you who lost several thousand dollars you would just go, oh, ok, never mind, its all good.
  - Kranbone on 10/01/2021 - 22:16
    
    I wouldn't be happy with it at all but I wouldn't be looking to force someone else or another party to cover the cost of MY error.
    
    Several things of note;
    1// You've got to keep in mind, banks now use 2 way authentication and offer numerous steps to check and confirm details. Not a fan of the banks, really, but why should they foot the bill for the error of something they aren't at fault of.
    2// Furthermore, if the OP was reimbursed at the banks expense, what's to stop others from doing the same?
bmerigan on 09/01/2021 - 22:32

+1

Seriously just ask the travel agent for it back. Why have you not done that?!
Travel agents get money deposited by customers regularly so it wouldn't stand out to them.
[Deactivated] on 10/01/2021 - 01:36

They should be giving you a holiday package. You've paid for one! Immediately after they agree and it's all signed, demand a refund less whatever % they keep for such things.

Or stand outside their shopfront and rubbish them to people about to walk in until they return your money. If they're that crooked to keep someone's money then they're probably ripping off customers blind too. And crooks always have no money. They'll only need to lose a few customers and they'll be sobbing in their petty cash drawer, eager to get rid of you. In fact, get a few friends to go in, line up a really expensive holiday, walk in and warn them like you've never seen them. They stand up, say if you're going to keep this guy's money I certainly can't trust you with mine! Then stand outside and talk to people about to enter. This should drive the point home real fast.
serpserpserp on 10/01/2021 - 08:20

I thought they would have offered me other options since I've been their customer for almost 20 years and currently hold fairly large amount in their savings account

What options did you think they would offer you?

Unless you were holding an 8 or 9 figure sum in a long term term deposit, I'm not sure they'd really care.
bingsta on 10/01/2021 - 10:59

Banks couldn't give a chit if it's ur error but if it's theirs, they'll come after ya…

https://finance.nine.com.au/executive-suite/nab-accidently-p…

"Curiously, if you were to mistakenly transfer your money to the wrong recipient, the ease at which you could recover your money depends on how quickly you report the mistake to your bank.

If you report the mistaken payment within 10 business days, the payment will be returned to you. If you were to report it between 10 business days and 7 months, the recipient's bank will freeze the funds and the recipient will have 10 days to prove they are entitled to your money.

If you only notice your error after a period of seven months, the funds will only ever be returned to you if the other person agrees."
flyboysyd on 10/01/2021 - 11:02

Accidently Sent Thousands of Dollars to a Random Person ?? No that's a Donald Trump fact.
You sent the money to a payee already saved in your online banking payee list - that's not a random person.

You must have had dealings with them before (maybe even booked a trip from them ?), so surely this can be easily resolved by talking to them and showing them the evidence of mistaken transfer.
Fier2 on 10/01/2021 - 12:21

This is interesting. Everytime i do a bank transfer, if the recipient is someone i never send to before, the funds will be block for 24h-48h to make sure that it s not a mistake or unauthorized transactions. So how long did it take you to realized your mistake? I doubt they can't reverse it unless the person on the other end went on shopping spree or withdraw the whole amount as soon as they got it…
Butt Scratcher on 10/01/2021 - 12:53

I want to be fully prepared before I approach this company. what should I do? I've printed out my bank statement and that is all about it.

Should I visit his bank first?
Should I tell my bank? If so, what can my bank do?
Should I report to ombudsman NSW or police first?

You simply approach them and ask for your money back. Then take it from there
sauce2k on 10/01/2021 - 18:42

sorry to hear! let us know how it goes!
b_sean on 10/01/2021 - 18:43

+1

Interesting article on this - https://www.moneymag.com.au/what-to-do-transfer-money-wrong-…
jayzee on 11/01/2021 - 01:37

I've posted a similar incident that happened to my friend (not the imaginary one) on the forum almost two years ago, there were about 70 followers.

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/439443

Here is the final outcome after contacted AFCA, the friend's bank didn't want to participate in the meeting setup by AFCA to resolve the issue, so AFCA made the decision without the bank participation, it ruled that the bank (my friend's bank, not the bank that received the money) has to refund one of the 11 transfer back to my friend, as it took too long to act for the last transfer, which my friend reported within days after discovery of the erroneous periodic auto transfer. He couldn't take it further as he couldn't find the address of the recipient, and couldn't start a civil case to get money back.

Also, from a person with working knowledge in a bank, if a bank has accidentally sent money to wrong persons, they would try to get the money back as soon as possible. But if the transaction has been settled, the receiving bank has to request consent of its customer (who received the money) before taking money back. If the customer ignore it, the bank got it wrong in the first place won't get back its money. Of course, they will send threatening legal letter, not sure how they would get recipient's address in first place, as the other bank is not supposed to disclose it to them, but the customer can keep ignore them, until the bank takes it to court and summon the wrong recipient to attend court. Here is the interesting thing, the bank may not go to court for some small amounts, they may decide to drop it and write it off as it would take more money to get back what they want to recover. If the bank decides to write it off, the recipient will get keep those money not theirs in the first place.

Don't take it as the advice to keep the money that's wrongly sent to you, always do the right thing to return it when requested. This should be the advice for whoever sending the money out, check, double check and triple check if the BSB and Acct No. are correct, if the money is sent to wrong person, that's very HARD to get them back, even for the BANK itself.

Accidently Sent Thousands of Dollars to a Random Person. Any Advice?

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