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I am so dumb! Gah!

Submitted by on Fri, 09/19/2008 - 20:29
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Ok, this is hard for me. And I tend to write a lot. Sorry.

I would write a check for my husband from the same account and deposit it into the ATM when the overdrafts got out of hand then it would buy me a day to get enough money to cover it. I hated doing it, but felt like it was the only way to stem the tide. I'd done it several different times and never got reported, a letter, or anything. The closest it got was that the check was deposited and then cleared on the same day. One time the check was actually NSF and went through the whole rigamarole and nothing was ever said about it.

So then in my latest battle, a check went through to a different bank on the same day, which I thought I would have until Monday before it went through. That made my account in the hole, but WF didn't tell me until Monday and I had purchased stuff during the weekend. So then I was left with tons of overdrafts and nearly $1k in the hole. I wrote a check to my husband to cover it and the 3 remaining checks out. The next day I wrote an even bigger check because none of the other checks went through, but I was working hard to cover the check the next day. In the morning, my husband said his card was declined so I went online and it said that there was an empty envelope in the ATM. I didn't think too much of it. I just figured that they'd caught me and my check floating, so I went in and talked to a banker and told her what had happened. She then looked at my account and talked about the empty envelope being immediate grounds for account closure. She said that there was nothing any of them could do to stop the account closure, but that the empty envelope could be disputed. She was very kind. The first nice person I've encountered at WF. Sad.

Later on in the day I found that they had put a hold on the second check I'd deposited. It left my account being $1k in the hole. I talked to several banks that day about the empty envelope situation. I may have written a dubious check, but I know I did deposit it. I made a deposit claim for the ATM deposit, not knowing if that was a good or bad thing on my part, for my side of things. Then I went in and gave WF $700 cash to cover me being in the hole because of the hold, which is actually a check to myself, basically. I told the nice lady I would be in on Monday to give the other $300 and she was like, "It's ok, no hurry."

Does anyone know what's going to happen with this check on hold? Will the funds try to come out? Because basically when I give them the $300, everything will be even. They said that the two remaining checks I had out... both of which were for my kids' school... oops... will be returned, but what will happen with this one? What will happen with the deposit investigation? Will I go to jail?

I found out about chexsystems from another bank I was considering opening an account with, but I didn't want them to summarily kick me out if WF did eventually post negatives to my record. I have a bank account open several states away and my husband has a savings account and a loan with a credit union in town, so I think we'll go with one of them. The local credit union said that they initially check with chexsystems, but then they don't check again thereafter. So it seems I'll be ok there some how, some way.


So the check you wrote to yourself and put in the ATM envelope is missing? Maybe you'll be lucky and it won't show up at all!

Writing a check that you know is bad is considered fraud, and possibly you could go to jail. But the person that you wrote the bad check to is actually your husband, and he isn't going to prosecute you. I'm not sure whether WF could prosecute you or not because the check wasn't actually written to them. Can you close the WF account right away? If you did that, and if the check is found, then maybe it would be returned (to you) as "account closed." Of course, you probably can't close the account as long as the balance is negative.

Maybe someone with more knowledge of the banking industry will be able to help you with some better advice!


Submitted by alias1958 on Fri, 09/19/2008 - 22:50

alias1958

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The check I wrote "to myself" the bank says wasn't in the envelope. The guy on the phone said that it looked like a deposit slip instead of a check. If that is true that part was totally unintentional. I know I've done a bad thing... that's what kills me. But I told my husband all about what's going on and he's being very helpful and supportive. We are meeting with a couple on Monday to get on the same page about our finances and get a plan going so we never, ever have to have anything like this again. The truth really does set you free.

My WF account is closed. Or some said, "in the process of closing." I have -$302 in there and will wrap that up on Monday, but there's still the whole check on hold thing. Gah!


Submitted by on Fri, 09/19/2008 - 23:57

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An empty envelope they tell me is grounds for immediate closure of your account that cannot be undone. I can still log into my account online, but can't purchase or deposit anything but cash.... I guess I'll just be taking this one step at a time.


Submitted by on Sat, 09/20/2008 - 00:03

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Your husband's credit union that only checks chex one time sounds like a good option if you open it right away (hopefully before anything gets reported to chex).

Since WF isn't going to pay any more checks against your account, maybe the "on hold" check will just end up getting returned to you as "account closed"??

Keep us posted!


Submitted by alias1958 on Sat, 09/20/2008 - 08:57

alias1958

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I am going to try an open a BoA account and keep my nose all clean especially since they are just as bad as WF. It actually feels good to be in control of money again. I haven't had so much cash in my life! I'll let you know how this all turns out!


Submitted by on Sat, 09/20/2008 - 11:01

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I just checked to see if there were any changes on my account and they had posted the on hold check as NSF and returned it for a $7 fee. I tried to deposit money yesterday into the bank and they would let me, even though I had cash. The lady I have been working with wasn't there yesterday, so I guess she's the only one who knows what the heck to do. Even the branch manager came over and told me the only thing I could do is call their main customer service line. Dumb.


Submitted by on Tue, 09/23/2008 - 03:52

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When you were told the empty envelope could be disputed, this is true but if I have to guess, at some point, they will close this account. If they investigate the deposits being made, they will realize that you are check kiting.

If a bank suspects this activity, they will close your account and report you to chexsystems for fraud very fast


Check fraud refers to a category of criminal acts that involve making the unlawful use of one or more check or checking accounts in order to illegally acquire or borrow funds that do not exist within the account balance or account-holder's legal ownership. Most methods that are used by violator involve taking advantage of the float (the time between the negotiation of the check and its clearance at the check-writer's bank) to draw out these funds. Such acts are often colloquially referred to as check kiting or paper hanging.

If they leave the account opened, you would have to stop this situaton from happening again.

Although it is against the law, I am sure they will not file criminal charges and they will simply close your account and report it to chexsystems. They may contact the other banks/credit unions where the checks were wrote from and those accounts may be closed as well. But no I don't believe you will go to jail.

I would definitely consider opening a new account before these accounts are closed. It may be harder once you are reported. I will keep my fingers crossed for you in hopes that they do not close your accounts.


Submitted by Mary Adkins Matthews on Fri, 09/26/2008 - 04:09

Mary Adkins Matthews

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We officially opened our new BoA account today. They didn't have the information for my husband so we had to go in and change it. I also received my Chexsystems report in the mail yesterday and it had no negative information on it whatsoever. My Wells Fargo is still open at this point. Thanks for the information everyone. I will never, ever write a check I don't have the money in the account for ever, ever again. I am thinking I really like this whole cash thing now that I have to deal with cash only.


Submitted by on Sat, 09/27/2008 - 12:15

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