Here's What You Can Do If You Transferred Money To The Wrong Bank Account
Because accidents happen.
Online banking and transferring money can be a hazard when we're not paying attention.
And even when we are, well, accidents happen.
A woman recently learnt the hard way of how to get her money back after accidentally transferring RM14,000 to a wrong bank account.
Thankfully, Facebook user Zarina Jalaludin was able to retrieve the money and took to social media to share how she did it.
First of all, if you have transferred money into the wrong account by accident: stay calm
If the account number you typed in does not belong to anyone, or the account details are invalid, the money will automatically return (bounce back) to your account.
You will know this if the transaction failed. However, banks still recommend calling up the beneficiary bank to confirm that the account number does not exist and that your funds will return in a working day or two.
Meanwhile, if the account number is valid and the transaction went through successfully, make a police report immediately.
If you would like your money back, you will have to inform the police that you have mistakenly transferred money into the wrong beneficiary account.
Be sure to write down and offer as many details as you can about the transaction, such as:
– The account number and bank involved,
– Name of the account holder,
– Date and time the funds were mistakenly transferred, and
– App used / method of transfer.
Image via New Straits Times
With the police report in hand, proceed to the nearest branch of your bank to inform them of the wrong transfer
You will have to explain your situation to a bank officer, show them your police report to facilitate the process, and request for their help to retrieve your money.
The bank officer will contact the owner of the other bank account and inform them of the situation, while you wait for an answer.
The bottom line here is: you will only get your money back if the owner of the beneficiary account agrees to return it.
It is not advisable to contact the owner of the wrong account without going through the bank, as it could entail a breach of privacy.
Image via Bloomberg/New Straits Times
If the owner of the wrong account agrees to a reversal of the transaction, that's the end of your worries!
The bank will probably need you to fill up a form or two to certify that you are not a scammer before the funds are returned to you.
However, if the account owner disagrees and refuses to cooperate with your bank to return the money, you may have to hire a lawyer to send a letter of demand to the account owner.
According to CompareHero, if the amount wrongly transferred exceeds RM5,000 and the recipient has no reason to hold your money or has been ignoring calls from the bank or police, you have a right to pursue action.
Meanwhile, if the amount is less than RM5,000, you can go to the nearest Magistrate Court to file a small claims procedure to settle the dispute with no legal representation needed.
Image via LegalZoom
At the end of the day, it is not easy getting money back if you have wrongly transferred it
It depends almost absolutely on whether the recipient is willing to return the money.
So, the best thing to do is to always double check the beneficiary's name and account number before every transaction you make.
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