Was his pin code "BOSCO"?

Bad publicity is apparently is more effective than their customers.

Does anyone here work with a local bank, as in only has few branches in your state?

That manager should be fired immediately. No matter how good he is. He obvioulsy is not manager material.

That customer service rep. shoudl also be fired immediately.

PROBLEM SOLVED.

Why didn't he go into the branch like a normal person? It's all his fault for using an ATM.

/sarcasm

@linus: Yup, worked at two of them in the last few years (20-80 branches total). Generally you just take care of the customer on the spot, then get back with corporate for reimbursement.

In small towns, a couple of small screw-ups gets around pretty quickly.

Personally, I use smaller internet banks. No hassles, quick to get a human on the phone, and use any ATM I want.

do people regularly withdraw large amounts of cash from atms? Like over $100?

I usually get maybe 20 bucks cash from my atm. I dont like to carry around large amount of cash.

Not blaming the OP mind you.

I personally HATE atms because of their malfunctions. I have had an atm eat my card and refuse to give it back (and then the manager I complained to treated me like I was somehow at fault) & had the new atms eat my check I was depositing and have a shit fit, shutting down & rebooting.... leaving me with no record IF it was deposited or not & that it had my paycheck somewhere inside its innards.

The NEW atms are more inconvenient for customers (it now takes forever to deposit one or more checks) & more convenient for bank tellers (because they dont have to deal with deposit transactions as much). I hate them. Thanks a bunch for having me stay LONGER at an atm while risking getting jumped/robbed!

@ceejeemcbeegee (AKA!): Because we all know that ATM's are the mark of the beast and that all those who use one will be doomed to a life of slavery under the totalitarian government whose reign is imminent!

/sarcasm

For future complaints, mentioned the OCC ([www.occ.treas.gov]), which is Chase's regulator.

@forgottenpassword: I get a number of withdrawals each month so I take out $120 or so each time so I have cash on hand for lunches etc (work cafeteria doesn't do debit). I'm not going to go to the atm for every $20 - convenience really.

The fact that this branch didn't seem to care that the atm wasn't working UNTIL they were threatened is a real concern and if Chase actually cared about PR and customers, they would "take this seriously"

Oh, who are we kidding ... it's a bank.

I actually had a similar problem with an ATM a while back at a PNC Bank. I was withdrawing $300 (not to just carry around, there was actually a purpose for it) and of course, the one time I don't request a receipt...the ATM doesn't dispense the money. The cash door never opened and it just acted as though the transaction was complete and gave me my card.

I went inside immediately and mentioned my problem. Now, while my $300 wasn't credited for about 48 hours, the guy at customer service was extremely helpful, even without my having a receipt. He didn't treat me like a thief or anything and thankfully, that $300 wasn't a make-or-break situation for me at the time. The delay sucks, but I was just glad that it was a pain-free process.

Chase, however...well, there's a reason I'll stick with my bank and not deal with Chase.

Diebold no doubt made the ATM?

In an unrelated story, the McCain campaign reported an additional $320.00 in donations received from the New York area.

@forgottenpassword:

There's nothing I enjoy more than waiting behind someone that decides to do their monthly banking at the ATM.

The new ATMs are so convenient for bank tellers that many of them no longer have to go to work.

@forgottenpassword: I almost always get out $200 at a time out of the ATM at my bank. I hate to pay ATM fees so I always stock up on a lot of cash when I'm at my home machine. Lasts me for a long while too since I almost never use cash anymore.

Never really worried about carrying a large amount of cash since I've never lost my wallet nor been mugged

Managers work like that, they feed you a line of BS to try and make you back down, then only if you don't will they actually help you.

Whats really going on here is that the manager is to busy(lazy) to close the machine for 10 minutes and check if the cash in the machine is the same as the cash the machine is supposed to have. Most of the time the cash will be caught somewhere on it's way to the door in which it will be apparent what happened.
@skokieguy: Great Point!

I agree the manager should be reprimanded, but the original Rep that told him to leave and just go stand by the atm for no reason... I'm sorry, but thats priceless and they deserve a nice pat on the back.

Got a good chuckle, that made my day.

@hatrack: Some of us work during bank hours.

@ceejeemcbeegee (AKA!):

Because most banks now no longer give out cash at the counter; I use a credit union and if you want cash, you have to get it from the ATM's inside the bank. since they don't have cash at the tellers station longer than 20-30 minutes (it's taken and put into time locked safes similar to how many gas stations have setup), then less to steal in a bank robbery. (unless the bank robber happens to be Hercules, who can walk in and pick up the ATM and walk out with it).

They even increased the amount you can take out per day from an ATM to make it more convenient.

I have never heard of banks or credit unions where the teller does not have cash. Midwesterners generally don't put up with a lot of crap when they can't get their money.New Yorkers must be more trusting.

wow... I feel lucky that I've never had any ATM horror stories... *knocks on wood*.

@forgottenpassword: And to top it off, they took away the envelopes, so if the scanner won't read your check for whatever reason, you have no choice but to take it to a live teller - which some banks (BoA) will charge you for if you do it too often.

I just came back from depositing a check for $5 (rebate check that was mailed on a postcard) at the desk. It almost wasn't worth my time.

This is EXACTLY why I refuse to do my banking at an ATM, nor will I deal with a bank that doesn't allow the tellers to handle cash. If I have a problem, I have a face and a name I can put the blame on.

I love to read consumer stories like this. Where a consumer solved his own problem and writes in to advise us what steps we could take if in a similar situation. So refreshing.

This happened to me too! I went to a Chase bank last April to withdraw $60 and the money door opened and snapped shut without dispensing anything! When I went inside the branch to complain, they said that the ATM was handled separately and they couldn't help me, I'd just have to wait and contact customer service to see about getting my money back. This is one of the sundry of reasons why I am no longer a Chase Bank customer.

If your job was as unfulfilling and monotonous as a banktellers, you'd probably find creative ways to mess with customers, too : )

@rekoil The ATM most likely didn’t take your check because rebate checks can sometimes be too thick for the CPM to read (its pretty sensitive to avoid situations when someone puts 2 checks in at once). The new BoA bulk check ATMs no longer read the MICR line only, they now also use character recognition to read the account number information on the check. They also accept more than one check at one time.

Good, for you man what you did. Sometimes, you have threaten a bank or whatever to get your money or whatever. Since, then they work and help you. It, sad but that is how it is.

I'm just happy to see that almost every ATM I've used in the last five years doesn't "take" your card... you slide and remove the card. I bet that's cut down on a lot of withdrawal BS that people have to put up with with these banks since the bank/ATM can't hold your card if there's a problem. A lot of banks claim that they outsource ALL ATM operations to other companies, not just maintenance but filling and changing out regular consumables. That's gotta save 'em a couple bucks. *rolls eyes*

When are these customer service people going to get it, thought, seriously?

@linus:

Does anyone here work with a local bank, as in only has few branches in your state?

My bank (a credit union, actually) has only one branch.

I used to love ATMs because you didn't have to interact with other human beings but after experiencing the same thing as this poster with a local ATM, I now avoid them like the plague.

@forgottenpassword: Honestly, I only use the ATM if an emergency, or for large amounts of cash. It's harder to justify $4 in fees for $20 as opposed to $100. I see it as a 20% fee v. a 4% fee.

My credit union doesn't give out cash via a teller, either. Well, their main branch does, and that's it.

I had one problem with an ATM about 15 years ago -- it shorted me $20 when I withdrew $100 (funny enough, it was a Chase ATM in downtown NYC, too). I don't withdraw large amounts often but when I need to I kinda have no choice. Fortunately, I haven't had any issues.

First let me say that while I don't work for Chase, I DO work for a large bank, and worked for 4 years in our ATM Network. By and large ATMs are pretty reliable cash dispensers, but when they mess up (as all things mechanical will do) , you've messed around with one of the things people are most sensitive about - their money. Banks are reluctant to deactivate an ATM that is not malfunctioning for a majority of the customers because they report on their ATM network's availability and it's compared to other banks. I am certainly not condoning Chase's actions, I don't understand why the branch personnel were so un-cooperative in refunding the money and/or working to correct the problems with the ATM. That just doesn't make sense in my industry when every customer is important. Chase is hardly the only game in NYC and they should know better.

Report the bank anyway.

Even if they fixed the OP's problem, it was only after what was obviously far too much time, too much arm-twisting and even out-and-out threats.

If they were able to shut down the offending ATM and give him back his money in a speedy fashion AFTER being threatened with being reported to the Attorney General, the FDIC, the Federal Reserve, the BBB and the local news, then they obviously had the power to do it BEFORE; which means -- at best -- that they simply didn't want to do the work involved in actually assisting their customers.

I'd get on the horn and call everyone you said you would, Keith -- if they allowed this to happen to people "all week", they'll have no compunctions about doing it again some other week.

Don't have the authority to take a malfunctioning ATM offline?

My ass.

If that machine was spewing twenties all over the sidewalk, I bet they'd find that authority real effing quick.

You all have no idea what you are talking about it. There are protocols in place that have to be followed if a machine malfunctions. If it malfunctions it takes 48 hours to get your money back because the machine has to be audited to make sure that the machine actually did not give you your money back. Their suppose to take your word for the fact that you were out 120 bucks? That's a little absurd don't you think?

@BigElectricCat:

Damn right they would.

(hey, is that an obscure Oingo Boingo image you're using as your avatar? If so, good on ya.)

@jsttheman:

I'm pretty sure ATMs have video cameras on them. If they're so convinced that you're trying to pull something, they can go to the instant replay.

@ClankBoomSteam: It's not that easy. A lot of times the cameras are actually being monitored by an outside source. Can you say network? The ATM's have camera's on them but they are only in real time. If you needed actually footage it would need to be ordered from the security department...which...again...would take time! 48 hours is reasonable time to research something.

@ClankBoomSteam: Good catch, but it's not so obscure to me; I actually bought that EP when it was new n' fresh & I was a senior in high school.

[en.wikipedia.org]

Bonus points if you can identify the obscure origin of my handle, though. :)

All you would have to do is tape a piece of paper over the monitor that says: OUT OF ORDER.

That would only take a couple of minutes. And it would be the curtious thing to do until you can get it fixed.

Then if someone tried useing it and lost their money, whose fault would it be?

@jsttheman:

Here's the thing, though: Banks rarely have a problem with crediting an account and then rescinding the credit when they decide it's invalid. Happens all the time with ATM deposits where an incorrect amount has been entered by the customer. And as we're talking about a bank here, I doubt that even hundreds of such transactions a day would detrimentally affect their bottom line.

Even if it does take days (or even weeks) to review a transaction, the bank can and should assume good faith on the part of the customer whom they are contractually obligated to serve.

The contract between the bank and the customer goes both ways, as well: why is it acceptable for the bank to assume that the customer is trying to rip them off, if it is not acceptable for the customer to assume that the bank is trying to rip him off? The bank has protocols in place to protect itself from fraud, but where is the customer's protection in this scenario?

There's right and there's wrong, and it's obvious that the bank is in the wrong, here.

@Quintus: DINGDINGDINGDING!

We have a winner!

@jsttheman: According to the comments 48 hours is also a reasonable time to loose a few customers. I guess you ignored the fact that the manager knew of other people it cheated out of money too.

@BigElectricCat:

Dangit, ya got me. I Googled it, and I'm guessing that you're a fan of either Philip K. Dick, or else the band that shares your handle. I'm unfamiliar with the band, and I haven't read Dick's work since high school, so it didn't ring any bells for me. :)

On the other hand, I've been listening to Oingo Boingo for around 25 years, now. Still pretending that they'll reunite...

@Bourque77: No. I didn't ignore it. Has it ever occurred to you that the manager can't do anything about it? I'll tell you what, by the manager just giving the person back their 120 dollars he is taking it in good faith that the client did in fact not get his money. This decision was probably based on the fact that it has happened in the past. The thing is though that this type of behavior only promotes the idea that if people whine or blackmail that they get their way. It doesn't work like that. It takes time to get things done. The only problem is that people are testy when it comes to their money

@ClankBoomSteam: Ah, but the bank does assume good faith. That's just it. If this fine gentlemen would have just called customer service this outcome could have been totally different. Possible outcomes: The machine malfunctioned and realized that it happened and put a note on the clients account and customer service would have credited him back immediately. OR, customer service would have credited him the amount that was in dispute WHILE it was being researched. A lot of banks do this with fraud. You call and tell them that there is fraud on an account and they'll most likely credit you the amount in dispute while they research it. If it comes back that it is fraud you can keep the money, if it's not fraud, they take it back. Sounds like good faith on the bank's part to me. What happened here is that some person whined and complained to get their way and they got it. Had they followed the procedures it would have been handled quicker than 48 hours most likely because that is just the disclosure time that the tellers and managers have to give to cover their a**.

@ClankBoomSteam: A valiant try, but nope and nope. Told you it was obscure! ;)

It's actually the title of a cut from Adrian Belew's first album. You may know of him fr