[csateesh]

@aeroamit

I agree with most of the points raised by fellow T-bhpian's.

At any cost do not deal with the person who deposited the check. The bank is at fault for incorrectly closing the loan and not verifying the credential while depositing the check

Suggest you use the services of Banking Ombudsman if you feel it is heading the wrong path.

Regards

Sateesh

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by ike

I don't quite understand how you can launder money using dormant accounts. Anyone can deposit money into any account but withdrawal or transfer cannot be done without the account holder's consent. And that is why the bank is playing truant here.

A person with the help of the bank (very senior officials) can credit "black money" in to random accounts which have been dormant. They break the amount into smaller amounts and deposit to several dormant accounts and then transfer/withdraw randomly. Obviously such transferred/withdrawn money is legal.

[StarrySky]

I do not suspect any foul play here either from the bank or from the other party. But, there has certainly been a human error somewhere in the process. As others have suggested, it may be that the other party asked someone in the bank for the loan account number and the wrong account number may have been provided to him due to similarity in the names.

It doesn't strike me as odd that the other party took 9 months to realize the mistake. I think he wasn't trying to close his car loan, but to pre-pay Rs.2L to get the number of pending EMIs down. The EMI amount would've remained unchanged anyway, so he would not have realized the mistake the very next month. He might have calculated that with the pre-payment of 2L to the principal, his loan could be closed in another 9 months and he made the inquiry about the loan 9 months later. I have closed my car loan with SBI much earlier than the loan term by regularly paying some amount over and above the EMI every month. But, I kept a tab on the accounts online. Maybe the poor soul who deposited the money in your car loan account isn't subscribed to net banking.

From bank's point of view, they received a cheque to be deposited into your account and they did just that. I guess they will have a deposit slip to prove that. Again, the person who deposited the money is in trouble, unless he can prove somehow that someone in the bank gave him the wrong account number. Even then, it is finally the depositor's responsibility to ensure that the right account number is put on the deposit slip.

So, I am not sure if the bank can be held responsible for this situation and whether going to the ombudsman will help.

I think you can ask the bank to give you an affidavit stating the circumstances that led to the closing of your loan account, the name, address as on record and loan account number of the other party. Then you may give the bank a crossed cheque for Rs.2L to be deposited to the other party's car loan account only. But do take legal opinion before proceeding.

[vikram_d]

Somebody in the bank gave the other person an account number is an assumption we are all making and I agree it is a valid one. What I cannot understand is how the bank official gave him an account number just on the basis of his name. To iilustrate my point here is an episode that happened with me.

I used to have a Standard Chartered credit card on which my expenses had gone quit high so I had opted for their offer to convert the balance to EMIs'. When this happened I destroyed my credit card and had noted down the card number in a document file on my phone. Once when I had gone there to make a payment, I had forgotten my phone at home and didn't remember my card number. So I approached a lady official and she helped me get the card number. But she only gave me the number after she had verified all my details like home address, office address, mobile number and lastly date of birth. Only when all of these matched with the bank's records did she give me the number.

So I am baffled as to how somebody in a bank can give an account number just based on the name of the account holder.

[Warwithwheels]

Originally Posted by vikram_d

Somebody in the bank gave the other person an account number is an assumption we are all making and I agree it is a valid one. What I cannot understand is how the bank official gave him an account number just on the basis of his name. To iilustrate my point here is an episode that happened with me.

I used to have a Standard Chartered credit card on which my expenses had gone quit high so I had opted for their offer to convert the balance to EMIs'. When this happened I destroyed my credit card and had noted down the card number in a document file on my phone. Once when I had gone there to make a payment, I had forgotten my phone at home and didn't remember my card number. So I approached a lady official and she helped me get the card number. But she only gave me the number after she had verified all my details like home address, office address, mobile number and lastly date of birth. Only when all of these matched with the bank's records did she give me the number.

So I am baffled as to how somebody in a bank can give an account number just based on the name of the account holder.

That's precisely the line that seperates global private banks from the rest. Getting an account number OTC is a childs play.

[srishiva]

What if you did not have 2 lakhs to give to the other person? The problem lies with the person who deposited it and the Bank Manager should help atleast personally.

[ant_vas]

do not suspect any foul play here either from the bank or from the other party. But, there has certainly been a human error somewhere in the process. As others have suggested, it may be that the other party asked someone in the bank for the loan account number and the wrong account number may have been provided to him due to similarity in the names.

It doesn't strike me as odd that the other party took 9 months to realize the mistake. I think he wasn't trying to close his car loan, but to pre-pay Rs.2L to get the number of pending EMIs down. The EMI amount would've remained unchanged anyway, so he would not have realized the mistake the very next month. He might have calculated that with the pre-payment of 2L to the principal, his loan could be closed in another 9 months and he made the inquiry about the loan 9 months later. I have closed my car loan with SBI much earlier than the loan term by regularly paying some amount over and above the EMI every month. But, I kept a tab on the accounts online. Maybe the poor soul who deposited the money in your car loan account isn't subscribed to net banking.

From bank's point of view, they received a cheque to be deposited into your account and they did just that. I guess they will have a deposit slip to prove that. Again, the person who deposited the money is in trouble, unless he can prove somehow that someone in the bank gave him the wrong account number. Even then, it is finally the depositor's responsibility to ensure that the right account number is put on the deposit slip.

So, I am not sure if the bank can be held responsible for this situation and whether going to the ombudsman will help.

I completely agree with this. Amit, may be its just a human error, why dont you ask the bank to pass on your contact details to the other customer and have a talk with him. As the EMI was not deducted from your account, i presume you have the cash to pay the other party. Without knowing the position of the other customer and not willing to talk to the customer directly wont help any one. Just go ahead and talk to the other person and find out the circumstances when he made that payment. you can find out details like: was that 2L for part or full payment, how did he get the loan account number, why he took so long to realize that the amount is not deposited in to your account etc. I am sure you would also want to help the other person.

[S.MJet]

Bank cannot foreclose any loan without written application

I had foreclosed my car loan with Kotak Mahindra Bank.
I had to give written application. They issued me a statement containing (1) balance principal amount, (2) foreclosure charges & (3) final amount I need to pay, post which I made the payment & then full & final statement & receipt was issued.

Not sure about PNB’s procedure of foreclosure, but this is definitely Banks and other customer’s mistake.

The only case here which could have put you in some sort of trouble is if you had kept quiet about it. You have done the right thing by disowning the money & putting it on record.

To be on safer side, you can put it in black & white and take a receiving from the bank.

You need not do anything more & let the bank or the other party approach you.

[vc.vinay]

I also faced a similar situation,someone deposited money in my bank account.
When I realised this and told this to bank officials(govt bank) they refused to act.
It was a current account and this mistake had happened more than once , I gave a written application to the bank manager and told him that in future I will not payback this amount.I happily used the surplus money
After few months the depositor contacted the bank and then it was realized that it was an error in bank's system,post which bank officials were after my happiness to return the money.
I told bank officials to reply to me officially stating their mistake in the computer system but the bank manager gave me assurance that there was no wrong deed in the whole episode,and elongating this matter can bring bad name to bank's repute.

I told bank that they can reverse the transactions (in bank's account)but I will not pay back directly to the individual

[adilj]

The closure of the account was not on account of any of your mistakes. It has to be solely handled by the Bank itself. Please send a legal notice to the Bank stating that you account has been closed and you have not paid any amount else later when the issue get escalated, they will say that this was not your money but you did not complain or raise any concern. Also mention in the notice that you will not make any payments/transactions against the account till the issue is sorted out by the bank and they should not charge you any extra interest for what ever reason after the issue is sorted.

Once that is done, you can breathe easy and follow up with the bank when you get back in Jan.

Please ensure that you send the notice to the bank else they will say you assisted in the fraud that was being carried out.

As far as the concern of Money Laundering is concerned, The launderer would not wait for any given amount of time cause he wants his money back asap. Most importantly the bank will not accept 2L in cash even if it does it will take a photocopy of the person's PAN card and a separate signature for the same.

[dass]

I wish someone pays my homeloan for me.. I will be jumping around till they realize their mistake...

I feel the best solution is to speak to all the parties concerned and get everything in writing. If you can pay the other customer 2L immediately, you should do so, but only through a check payment into the account, and not a self check. This will ensure that all the money that is transaced is accounted for. IF you cannot make the payment, then be fortright about it, tell the same to the bank and tel them to reverse the transaction into that customers loan account and either reopen your closed loan account or create a new account for you and continue with the payments. I am sure there are more than on way to solve this issue. End of the day, its about what you feel more comfortable about.

[autotranny]

This is indeed a very curious case, but should be straight forward.

I shall guide you on the process. Its actually just a continuation of what many others have said.

1. The Bank is not authorized to close any Bank A/c or Loan A/c without a proper written request from the Customer or his Authorized Signatory. (EOD closure is just a technical thing and cannot be applied here. No bank can claim that just because you put money into your loan account, the same was closed.)

2. Do not correspond with the Bank via Email. Send a Registered post with acknowledgement (if in India) or Courier with proper acknowledgement. Emails are generally not accepted either by a Court of Law or the Ombudsman (they are still old fashioned)

3. Make your stand clear to the responsible officer in the Bank. It should go like this,

" I have not given you a request nor authorized anyone to close my loan account.

In case someone else has deposited money into my account, it is either a mistake on the part of that customer or the concerned staff in your bank. It is surprising as to how an A/c payee cheque bearing a different name was deposited into my account.

Also I would like to point out that I have been depositing money promptly to clear my EMIs and no penal interest should be charged to my account for any of the above mistakes.

In case I do not hear a favourable reply from you, I shall be constrained to take this up with your controlling office or the Banking Ombudsman as deemed appropriate. "


4. In case you actually do not get a reply first take this up with their controlling office ( Most probably should be the AGM or DGM in their Regional Office). I'm sure the concerned staff will come running after you and solve your problem.

5. Now still if there is no further action, then you can think of a banking Ombudsman. Its a simple procedure and will not even require a legal counsel.

I personally feel that this is a fairly straight forward case. I have been working in the Indian Banking industry for over a decade and I have come across atleast 5 or 6 cases like this. I do not think you have to panic regarding the Black money thing. There is no need to employ a lawyer either till the Bank absolutely declines to co-operate with you.

In case of any queries please feel free to PM me.

[aeroamit]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. If I consider the other aspect , then I am not at loss as this will be further strengthening my CIBIL rating due to the loan closure. But as stated earlier, I do not tend to initiate any sort of face to face communication with the 3rd Party involved. Bank is always welcome to talk to me or meet me in Montreal, Canada ;-) , and I will initiate in-person talks with Bank only after I am back to India. Paying the Amount should not be a problem for me, but my responsibilities will be limited to maintaining 2L deposit in my Savings account with PNB for the purpose. Also, The complete process of paying back to the 3rd Party will be responsibility of Bank and not mine. I understand the plight of other person , who deposited 2L in the wrong account and sympathize with him, but at the same time do not want to be a victim of Fraud ,if any.

Thanks
Amit

[SDP]

Originally Posted by aeroamit

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. If I consider the other aspect , then I am not at loss as this will be further strengthening my CIBIL rating due to the loan closure. But as stated earlier, I do not tend to initiate any sort of face to face communication with the 3rd Party involved. Bank is always welcome to talk to me or meet me in Montreal, Canada ;-) , and I will initiate in-person talks with Bank only after I am back to India. Paying the Amount should not be a problem for me, but my responsibilities will be limited to maintaining 2L deposit in my Savings account with PNB for the purpose. Also, The complete process of paying back to the 3rd Party will be responsibility of Bank and not mine. I understand the plight of other person , who deposited 2L in the wrong account and sympathize with him, but at the same time do not want to be a victim of Fraud ,if any.

Thanks
Amit

About the highlighted portion, without a active loan, how would the bank be able to take money out of your account? The bank is possibly thinking exactly like you "Its not my fault" and both of you are right. The way it is going, looks like the guy who made the mistake is going to pay for his mistake. Feel bad for him.

Sorry, don't want to be judgmental, but I really wish you AND the bank could do more for that person.

[AirbusA340]

It's not a good idea to deal with the depositor directly especially when you are playing with the unknown.

I'd seriously recommend you try and email 'fightback@yourmoneysite.com'. I've seen these guys on bloomberg utv channel follow up and resolve many issues. I've watched the program a few times. These guys are good and it is better for such guys to start a formal approach to this issue.

It might help. You never know! It's good that you are communicating only through email.

All the best man!

pEaCe