AIB to refund ATM customers who forgot cash

Forest Master

Eh, this is kind of odd:

http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0516/aib.html

Why are people getting refunded for being dumb? I guess it's okay if the cash was immediately sucked back into the machine - but is this even possible to do, or did someone come along after them & take it?

And this statement:

AIB says anti-fraud measures prevented them refunding the money before now as a previous policy required customers to contact the bank themselves if they did not take their cash from a machine. The bank could not contact the customer.

So not only are they too dumb to take their cash, they're also too dumb to even realise at any stage & chase it up!

Yakult

How dumb is it to go to a ATM machine and then forget the money, honestly now how ****ing dumb?

You hardly go to the ATM for coffee or tea..

Mauricmo

How ****ing drunk you mean?

I imagine it happens quite a bit on nights out.

aidan_walsh

I'll admit to having done it once while grabbing money for lunch while at work when my mind was very much stuck on a problem back at the desk. Easily happens. And I didn't realise until the nice person behind me called me back, otherwise I'd probably have gone to the till and forgotten I'd been to the machine at all.

KilOit

Weird question but do some people almost blurt out thank you when taking the cash from the atm, I have to consciously remind myself to say nothing, or am I lone nutter

strokemyclover

A few years ago in Bray I was milliseconds away from grabbing a handful of cash someone had walked away from at an ATM. I didn't see the person who was at the ATM as they had left a while before....as they say it remains available for 30 seconds before being withheld.

I thought it was a gag being recorded being as drunk as I was....my reaction would have made for good TV anyway! :mad::(

Forest Master

aidan_walsh wrote: »

I'll admit to having done it once while grabbing money for lunch while at work when my mind was very much stuck on a problem back at the desk. Easily happens. And I didn't realise until the nice person behind me called me back, otherwise I'd probably have gone to the till and forgotten I'd been to the machine at all.

But let's say you HAD forgotten & the guy behind you just swiped the cash & walked off - who's fault would it be? Yours, or would you expect the bank to refund you, keeping in mind it's not their fault in any capacity?

It baffles me that "I forgot" is a sufficient enough excuse to get refunded hard cash.

Anyway - does it get sucked back into the machine though?? Because if it does, then my stance on this is different - if the bank recovered the cash, then obviously a refund is perfectly acceptable to issue. But if the cash was lost - why are there any refunds?

aidan_walsh

Forest Master wrote: »

But let's say you HAD forgotten & the guy behind you just swiped the cash & walked off - who's fault would it be? Yours, or would you expect the bank to refund you, keeping in mind it's not their fault in any capacity?

It baffles me that "I forgot" is a sufficient enough excuse to get refunded hard cash.

Oh, I'm not saying for a minute that I'd hold the bank accountable - it was me that should have been paying attention. But I can see how easily you might walk away without it without needing to be a complete vegetable.

YFlyer

Mauricmo wrote: »

How ****ing drunk you mean?

I imagine it happens quite a bit on nights out.

Getting distracted by their phone or somebody passing by, I guess.

Gyalist

The bank would have a record of all the money that was retained by the ATMs and the accounts that were debited. Those are the people getting refunds.

The real scandal is that the bank has been holding on to the money, and earning interest on it, since 2003.

YFlyer

KilOit wrote: »

Weird question but do some people almost blurt out thank you when taking the cash from the atm, I have to consciously remind myself to say nothing, or am I lone nutter

Its nice to be nice

ya-ba-da-ba-doo

Forest Master wrote: »

But let's say you HAD forgotten & the guy behind you just swiped the cash & walked off - who's fault would it be? Yours, or would you expect the bank to refund you, keeping in mind it's not their fault in any capacity?

It baffles me that "I forgot" is a sufficient enough excuse to get refunded hard cash.

Anyway - does it get sucked back into the machine though?? Because if it does, then my stance on this is different - if the bank recovered the cash, then obviously a refund is perfectly acceptable to issue. But if the cash was lost - why are there any refunds?

i think the bank means if you walk away and leave the cash, and the cash gets sucked back in, they'll give you back the money that got sucked back in.

swizzle123

I honestly cant see how a bank in this country can afford to return money to someone who "forgot" to take it wth them... its crrazy!!!!!

I did it once. Was getting out 100 euro. The macine offered out 2 50s. I pinched them and pulled, as you do. Only one came away in my hand but I didn't notice (easier than you might think, using an ATM becomes kind of an automatic process done without conscious input). Thankfully the girl using it after me came after me with my 50 quid. Very decent of her.

As for the OP, I imagine they only refund the cash if the machine takes it back in.

OutlawPete

Do some ATMs put the cash out first and then you wait for the card? If so, then people might be just used to grabbing their card and they're done, so when they use another ATM that is not usual for them, they take their card and walk off?

Jacksquat

I can understand it happening now and then but the huge amount of people doing it is crazy.

Forest Master

Gyalist wrote: »

The bank would have a record of all the money that was retained by the ATMs and the accounts that were debited. Those are the people getting refunds.

If that's the case, then that's fine - the RTE article doesn't state that though - it makes it seem as if every moron who walked off is getting cash refunded, whether it was retained or not - and it doesn't even state that ATMs are capable of sucking cash back in - I never knew this (and I know tonnes of sh*t), and I doubt most people do either.

Beau

swizzle123 wrote: »

I honestly cant see how a bank in this country can afford to return money to someone who "forgot" to take it wth them... its crrazy!!!!!

It can easily happen, if the bank gets its money back (it gets sucked back in) why sholuldnt the refund it?

ringadingding

My cash got sucked back in before, I dropped my wallet as cash came out and I was too slow.
I had to fight tooth and nail to get it back, and you know what, now I think of it I'm not even sure I did get it back in the end.
I was passed from pillar to post, I was with Aib but I had used a ulster bank cashpoint.

NotExactly

I want to try this out at some stage. What if I requested €100, two 50s came out of the machine, I hold onto one without moving it and wait until the machine sucks back in the money. It will only suck back in 50 but i'll have the other 50 in my hand. Will it definitely register €100 going back into the machine? Or is this just a stupid idea?

OutlawPete

Jacksquat wrote: »

I can understand it happening now and then but the huge amount of people doing it is crazy.

It's the waves from mobile phones and wifi man.

johndoe99

So, let me get this right, you go to an ATM with the purpose of getting cash, you type in your pin, select the amount that you want and then walk away.... ?

YFlyer

All these incidents happened pre recession times?

amacachi

aidan_walsh wrote: »

I'll admit to having done it once while grabbing money for lunch while at work when my mind was very much stuck on a problem back at the desk. Easily happens. And I didn't realise until the nice person behind me called me back, otherwise I'd probably have gone to the till and forgotten I'd been to the machine at all.

Happened to me once, checked a balance, took out card, checked another balance, was annoyed at it, pressed in what I wanted, took the card and walked off. :P Luckily the person behind me in the queue wasn't a scumbag.

dotsman

Forest Master wrote: »

Anyway - does it get sucked back into the machine though?? Because if it does, then my stance on this is different - if the bank recovered the cash, then obviously a refund is perfectly acceptable to issue. But if the cash was lost - why are there any refunds?

Yes, it gets sucked back into the machine. The bank will only be refunding the money for cases where the machine recovered the money.

NotExactly

NotExactly wrote: »

I want to try this out at some stage. What if I requested €100, two 50s came out of the machine, I hold onto one without moving it and wait until the machine sucks back in the money. It will only suck back in 50 but i'll have the other 50 in my hand. Will it definitely register €100 going back into the machine? Or is this just a stupid idea?

Don't get into a fcucking each other over competition with the banks. They'll always win. Unless you're Sean Fitzpatrick.

NotExactly

Deleted User wrote: »

Unless you're Sean Fitzpatrick.

I am Sean Fitzpatrick.

Johro

ya-ba-da-ba-doo wrote: »

i think the bank means if you walk away and leave the cash, and the cash gets sucked back in, they'll give you back the money that got sucked back in.

Ah.. So they return you money you never took. Makes sense. :rolleyes:

dotsman

NotExactly wrote: »

I want to try this out at some stage. What if I requested €100, two 50s came out of the machine, I hold onto one without moving it and wait until the machine sucks back in the money. It will only suck back in 50 but i'll have the other 50 in my hand. Will it definitely register €100 going back into the machine? Or is this just a stupid idea?

No, and I think that may even be one of the "anti-fraud measures" introduced that brought about this confusion. The fraud your post refers to has long been an urban myth - but with some truth to it I believe (ie that it was possible if you withdrew an amount with several notes and carefully took the middle notes, leaving the top and bottom not precisely in place). Some people I know in banks say it was impossible, others say there were cases of it happening. Anyway, the machines now specifically count the money as it is taken back and keeps it for the customer.

This whole notice from AIB is that over the past 7 years, 71,000 never bothered following it up with the bank (lots more did, and were refunded straight away). As per the notice, AIB is now taking it upon themselves to contact the customers to say the money is there waiting for them.

Liam Byrne

YFlyer wrote: »

All these incidents happened pre recession times?

Pre-bailout times.

Now that it's other people's money, AIB are delighted to throw it away.

But before, when they were a capitalist bank making profits for their masters? Oh no, not then!

Saila

this thread is a good example of people not reading the thread and carrying on with a redundant post

starbelgrade

ATMs are gay.

previous user

Shocking, truly shocking.

OutlawPete

I didn't know AIB operated a brothel. Clients so shocked by the ATM action, they left their cash behind.

Son Of A Vidic

Forgetting/leaving your cash behind in an ATM, is a bit like leaving a lovely new fresh pint of Guinness behind you in the bar. How da fcuk is it possible to forget!?

watna

My OH did it once at the AIB ATM in Dalkey a few years ago. It was during the day and he was stone cold sober. He just wasn't thinking and walked off. The ATM had sucked the money back in so it went back in to his account. They were actually really good about it.

He never did it again though

thebman

Happened to me once where I put my wallet back in my pocket then went to take it out again wondering what I was thinking and ATM sucked money back in on me.

I feel a bigger idiot now for assuming AIB's system would automatically refund the money to my account immediately if the machine took it back in and not wait 8 years to do it :P

At the time, it never even occurred to me that ATM's sucked money back in after a period of time if it wasn't taken by the user. Now I know better and ensure I take the money even if I have put my wallet back in my pocket and sort everything out afterwards so AIB never got anymore of my money for interest for free for 8 years after that one time :P

Coriolanus

The money should be put into a fund that pays for abortions.

challengemaster

Yakult wrote: »

How dumb is it to go to a ATM machine and then forget the money, honestly now how ****ing dumb?

You hardly go to the ATM for coffee or tea..

Myself and the GF saw this at an ATM in the Louvre - walked up to use the atm, and there it was beeping at us with 20's sticking out of it.... after a few minutes it swallowed them back up.

Was wondering how the fcuk you'd manage that..

Meh, this happened me 2 months ago in Saigon... Machine spitted out the card first and I walked off. Money gone a minute later when I ran back.

Rang the Vietnamese Bank which was pointless.. Rang AIB and they said I have to call into a branch to fill in a form. I kept saying I was in Vietnam and wouldn't be home for years and I swear she must have been clinically retarded or never heard of the country cause all she kept saying was to call into the branch.

I just ended the phone call and accepted my 71euro loss.

Little Acorn

Have to say it's never happened to me, and when I first heard about this I was thinking how the fcuk could anybody just forget to take their money, if they went to the atm specifically to get money out?
What has happened to me a few times though, is going into a shop solely to buy phone credit, handing the person my money, receiving the change and then turning around to start walking out of the shop, only to be called back by the person who is still waiting for the machine to print, calling me back saying, "wait, you forgot your phone credit!"
I now see it as something similar to this, just a slip of the mind that you would cop onto a few second later, only for some people maybe their money got sucked back in/stolen by a person by the time they realized what they had just done.

Slunk

Walked up to a bank machine recently and there was 150 quid hanging out. Only thing was there was a printed recidpt too. Went into the branch and handed it in. Prob would have just took it if there was no receipt. Girl in the bank couldn't believe i was returning it. Quite shocked actually

swizzle123

swizzle123 wrote: »

I honestly cant see how a bank in this country can afford to return money to someone who "forgot" to take it wth them... its crrazy!!!!!

You're complaining because banks are doing something nice for their customers?

Oh, Ireland...

Mr. CooL ICE

Happened to me at the ATM outside Tesco in Ballybrack. I went there at my lunch break and did everything at the ATM bar taking my money. Opened my wallet at the self serve till and realised I was missing the €40 I had just taken out. Went straight to customer service and 5 seconds into explaining what happened, the girl there interrupted me and said "how much was it?". Person after me at the ATM handed it in

It is just a simple slip of the mind. Everybody makes mistakes

cartwheel

I had €41.04 in my bank account this morning from "AIB ATM REFUND".
Vaguely remember leaving the money behind one night when I was loaded in college, suprised I've gotten it back. What's the €1.04 I wonder. Interest?

I'll wait for a letter from them explaining. But happy to get it.

Dyr

ATMs are ergonomically weird, the cash dispenser is often below the average persons eyeline.

smash

There's also that machines that give you your card before money, so people take the card and then forget about the money. It's happened to me when drunk but I did phone AIB and they said there was nothing they could do yet because it was an ulster bank machine so I'd have to wait until a report came from them. I got the money back a week later.

Beefy78

I have to admit to having done this twice, although both were many years ago. Once was middle of the day and the lady behind me took the money, caught up to me and gave it to me, which was obviously very nice of her.

The second time I was extremely drunk.

pickarooney

I've never done this but have
a) had a mate hit zero a couple of times and Enter leaving me with my entire life's savings pouring out of the machine
b) got short changed by the ATM
c) been given really obvious forged notes by an ATM

tippniall

I think if you walk away without your money you shouldn't get it back! It dosen't make sense! And it might make you be more careful next time!

smash

tippniall wrote: »

I think if you walk away without your money you shouldn't get it back! It dosen't make sense! And it might make you be more careful next time!

It gets sucked back into the machine. So what... the bank should get to keep it?