Complaint Review: Washington Mutual Bank

I worked as a teller for YEARS. Once deregulation hit in the 80's, I didn't stay in much longer. Let me address some points here.

Banks are allowed to "hold" checks, even if they are paychecks. Normally a local check (within your state) is not more than a day, sometimes 2. Out of state checks are normally 3 days, sometimes more. It does depend on the bank. If the checks from your daughter's employer are drawn on her bank, she should cash the check against their account and then deposit the cash. If not, she can trying relaying her story to whoever is in charge of the company and have them put pressure on the bank concerning holds on paychecks. If it's a big enough account, the bank will more than likely listen. The reason a bank would hold your funds beyond the norm is this: the more money you can't use, the more they make on their investments with those funds. And if you should bounce checks due to "insufficient funds", money is earned off of fees.

My questions to you first would be: once your little bank was bought out and you noticed problems with depositing her checks, why did you stay with them? Why would you feel you have to tolerate this kind of "customer service" for years? If you have numerous overdrafts and are still paying fees, you may have difficulty opening any kind of deposit account at another bank for one simple reason: they will more than likely have reported you by now to the National Check Protection Service (NCPS). All (or almost all) banks now run checks on social security numbers provided by new customers before allowing them to do business with them. My recommendation would be to find another bank, sit down with their customer service rep and explain the problems you've been having. Ask to see what their policy is on holds for paychecks. Don't be upset if they explain that for at least the first 30 days the account is open that they need to place holds on ALL checks deposited into the accounts. This is normal and acceptable as a banking practice to prevent numerous illegal activities. Get their hold policy in writing. Once you find a bank that has what you're looking for, attempt to open a checking account. As long as there's nothing negative with NCPS, you should be fine!

Also...did I understand you correctly that your daughter's paycheck is deposited by Direct Deposit and they are putting a hold on THAT? If so, contact the Banking Commission in your state. This is CASH going into your account from the company's account. A hold is unnecessary and I have to wonder if this is illegal. If you find that any of their practices violates the laws in your state, file a complaint against them with the Banking Commission and the AG's office. Find as many people to b***h to as possible.

If your daughter's company uses a local bank, take the paycheck there and convert it to cash. They'll be able to tell right away if it is good. WM is using the excuse that they're not trusting the company to write good checks in order to hold them. If you take cash to your bank, they have to give you credit for it right away because it is cash. But DO NOT put cash in the ATM deposit slot. There's no way to prove how much you put in there, so the bank can rip you off.

If your daughter's company uses a local bank, take the paycheck there and convert it to cash. They'll be able to tell right away if it is good. WM is using the excuse that they're not trusting the company to write good checks in order to hold them. If you take cash to your bank, they have to give you credit for it right away because it is cash. But DO NOT put cash in the ATM deposit slot. There's no way to prove how much you put in there, so the bank can rip you off.

If your daughter's company uses a local bank, take the paycheck there and convert it to cash. They'll be able to tell right away if it is good. WM is using the excuse that they're not trusting the company to write good checks in order to hold them. If you take cash to your bank, they have to give you credit for it right away because it is cash. But DO NOT put cash in the ATM deposit slot. There's no way to prove how much you put in there, so the bank can rip you off.

If your daughter's company uses a local bank, take the paycheck there and convert it to cash. They'll be able to tell right away if it is good. WM is using the excuse that they're not trusting the company to write good checks in order to hold them. If you take cash to your bank, they have to give you credit for it right away because it is cash. But DO NOT put cash in the ATM deposit slot. There's no way to prove how much you put in there, so the bank can rip you off.