Experience with Accidentally Sending Money to The Wrong Bank Account

Greetings everyone. I was just wondering if anyone else has had experience with sending money to the wrong bank account and how long it took for y'all to get your money back or if you ever did?

My situation:
Mother asks for financial help, so I sent 1k but entered the wrong number (I had put 7 instead of 1). Only realised this because she said she hadn't received anything after 30 minutes and it was an Osko payment. I checked again and that's when I saw my mistake. Unfortunately, the money didn't bounce back, meaning someone else has that account number and so I immediately contacted my bank that same night (I'm with UP). They told me that it can take up to 6 weeks and there's no guarantee that I'll get my money back.

It has been 3 weeks since and they said they haven't heard back from the other bank (People's Choice) and now I'm worried that the longer it goes, the less likely I'll see that money. I considered contacting the other bank to tell them of the situation but unsure if that would just complicate things.

Has anyone had a similar experience and could advice what the best course of action to do?
I can't really afford losing 1k to some random tbh.

Thanks everyone!

Comments

  • +56

    https://www.savings.com.au/savings-accounts/transferred-mone…

    The Financial Ombudsman states if you contact your bank and make a claim within the first 10 business days of the transfer, you’ll have the money returned to you in full. The bank will need to confirm with both yourself and the recipient’s institution that the transfer was genuinely a mistake first, so the sooner you contact them the better.


    While you might think you’ve won the proverbial jackpot if a lump sum appears in your bank account from an account you don’t recognise, remember the old saying: if it seems to good to be true, then it probably is too good to be true or whatever.

    That money isn’t yours and you’ll need to send it back and intentionally spending it isn’t legal. If money is incorrectly transferred into your account, you should notify your bank.


    https://mozo.com.au/bank-accounts/guides/what-happens-if-i-t…

    If you’ve made an erroneous transfer and your bank or credit union isn't providing you with adequate assistance to resolve the problem, you do have the option of lodging a complaint with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).

    • +4

      Say money does appear in your account but you don't notice it. How long after it is transferred is it legally "yours", like six months later or two years later has enough time passed that if you do finally notice it then you have effectively won the proverbial jackpot?

      • +12

        If you’ve somehow only noticed the money is missing seven months after the initial transaction (and if you’ve waited this long, you might not have really missed it that much in the first place), then things can get even harder. According to both the Ombudsman and ASIC’s ePayments code, neither the bank nor the recipient is under any obligation to return the money to you unless they agree to.

        The funds will only be returned if the other person agrees to it, but don’t rely on this happening as not everyone is your friend. Make a claim on your lost money as soon as possible.


        This is where it gets really tricky. According to the ePayments Code, if it's been over seven months since you transferred money to an incorrect account then the recipient of your funds isn't actually obliged to return the funds to you. Their bank is obliged to ask them, but the recipient must provide consent before any funds can be taken out of their account. Basically your funds are completely in their hands at this point.

        sounds like 7 months is the ticket.

        • +5

          Good to know 😎

        • +1

          https://www.ladbible.com/news/aussie-family-gets-10-million-…

          I know you can't rely on these accounts, but "seven months" was mentioned in this case, and at least some of the money was able to be recovered after that time.

          • +3

            @pjetson: She was taken to court and I don't think she bothered turning up, that article is missing a lot of info, I think even the judge said it was open to appeal because it was a default judgement on account of her not bothering to turn up.

            • @[Deactivated]: It's tough to extract the facts from the news reports, however, the case suggests to me that a "hard limit" of seven months may not be correct.

              • +2

                @pjetson: The hard limit of seven months is correct, but that only applies to the bank. Their legal obligation to recover the funds on your behalf ends at 7 months, as specified in the ASIC ePayments Code

                The person who wrongly sent it can still recover the funds through legal action, as Crypto.com did, for 6 to 15 years depending on the exact circumstances

                Although most people won't bother because the amount you'd recover would barely cover legal fees, especially the money was wasted on lavish holidays and/or drugs, because even the best lawyers can't get blood out of a stone. Crypto.com is incredibly lucky that these people were 'responsible' with that money, so it was worth them pursuing legal action to get it back

                Moral of the story here is that if someone sends you $10 million dollars by mistake, pretend it doesn't exist for 7 months to avoid the banks investigating it, then go full Brewster's Millions and become that bloodless stone

                • @Jolakot: That doesn't sound like a moral to me. More…amoral.

                  • @dwarves: Taking something that doesn't belong to you while disregarding the original owners is the Australian way, so go spend that money

        • +2

          Legally the person can pursue the recipient for the relevant period set by the statute of limitations. Often that’s 6 years.

    • +1

      Doesn't work like this. The party will end up having to go to court and sue the other party to get the funds back as its impossible on the banks end to prove your mistake.

    • -2

      Responsibility is on the sender to ensure details are correct.
      There is no obilgation on the recipient to comply or reply.
      And what proof does the sender have that the transfer was in error?
      The recipient can disagree or not respond.
      In which case the recipents bank will do nothing because…..
      Sometimes it is a legitimate transfer or payment and senders or buyers might change their mind and will do anything (illegitimately) to get thier money back.
      Thats why its so difficult to get the money back.

      as it says above
      "The bank will need to confirm with both yourself and the recipient’s institution that the transfer was genuinely a mistake first"

      • +1

        And what proof does the sender have that the transfer was in error?

        What proof do they have that the transfer was NOT in error?

    • +1

      I +1 AFCA they are great. Bank deposit machine ate my money and they took 15 days to return it. I was compensated by the bank and the money was returned.

      Also this is why I use PAYID (phone, email etc) instead. It automatically populates the account holders name as confirmation before transfer.

  • The other bank send a notice to the acct holder saying the money has been accidentally deposited, could they authorised the bank to withdraw it and send it back to you. The acct holder can just ignore it and there's nothing you or your bank can do about it.

    Sorry but that money is gone. Contacting the other bank won't do anything as they won't give you any info regarding the acct.

    • The other bank send a notice to the acct holder saying the money has been accidentally deposited, could they authorised the bank to withdraw it and send it back to you.

      I don't believe they actually do send such a notice unless in exceptionally unique circumstances.

    • 100% not true, I’ve made the same mistake as OP and got the money back about a month later

  • +2

    I did this once and my bank had to do an investigation where I provided evidence I made a mistake. It was returned but there was a fee as it was an old transaction.

  • -1

    If the person on the other end immediately pulled the money out of their account and there is nothing to return it can get difficult, but usually it's just a matter of confirming that it wasn't meant to go through and the two banks will sort it out. Because you were quick on it it should be all good unless the other person is incredibly dodgy (pulled the money out and closed the account). If they just left it sitting in their account it will be simpler. If they didn't, there might need to be a repayment plan set up for them.

    That's the reason for the warning, there is no guarantee if things go pear shaped but there is a process to get it back. You'll just have to let that play through first.

    • The recipents bank will contact the account holder to check first.
      If the recipent complies and agrees it was received in error then you get your money back
      If not, then tough cookies.

    • +1

      Freefall, This is not how it works, the bank won't force the person to do anything.

      • You should go read ASIC's ePayment code, particularly section 30. Banks have to comply with that.

  • +15

    Remember kids, triple check everything….

    • +13

      I always triple check, with beads of sweat running running down my brow. So far it's not let me down in 25 years of banking.

    • Yep.

      I don't know how BPay really works and if they cross reference things, but the payment details constantly change for certain services. If I save the info into my bank, then it may not be the same details as whats written on the bill.

      • My credit card has had the details on the bill change from what they were originally (I think at around the time I got a replacement card). The BPay payments still go through, but it was a worry when I first noticed.

  • +6

    Haven't you seen the news where crypto.com accidentally sent $10,500,000 to a Melbourne woman's bank account instead of $105?

    Well the woman did not return the money and crypto.com is trying to get it back through the courts.

    • +2

      i think they won that court case, the problem is that the woman is not Australian, she also had plenty of time to move the money around family members and hide it, i think a large portion of it was banked in Malaysia or something

      • +12

        If I got sent 10.5 million in my bank account then I probably wouldn't be Australian either, after I transfer the money to the Cayman Islands, move to Spain, and renounce my citizenship.

        • Spain has no extradition?

          • +2

            @[Deactivated]: No, but Christopher Skase went there. From Wikipedia
            "Throughout the 1990s, successive Australian governments, in combination with Max Donnelly, attempted to have Skase extradited from Spain, with no success. Skase claimed that he was unable to travel due to a life-threatening lung condition.'

            • +1

              @Nugs: Skase had a lot more than $10m to help him prevent that extradition.

            • @Nugs: Last time I heard John McAfee hanged himself in Spanish jail to avoid being extradited to the us.

        • -2

          +1. That gave me a giggle.

        • -2

          It's people like this makes this world a really nasty place to live in.

          No honesty.

          First thing he thinks about is how to claim this money that doesn't belong to him.

      • +1

        is it just me or is 10m not actually that large an amount to be worth being banished for life from your home country (assuming it is your home country) and being on the run and always looking your shoulder?

        • +3

          tis quite a lot, 100k a year for 100 years, no tax

        • +4

          Are you serious mate? It is definitely great money and you’d be set for the rest of your life as long as you don’t spend it stupidly.

          • @Ridiculous Panda: Especially in some less wealthy overseas countries, could make a nice life for yourself and your family with AU$10m

            Even in wealthier countries, that's a lot of money, just gotta dodge the extradition.

            • @OZKap:

              could make a nice life for yourself and your family with AU$10m

              And then become a target for kidnappers…

          • +1

            @Ridiculous Panda: yes i get that. but not everyone needs 10mil to live on and only you can say how much family/friends/sleeping well for the rest of your life is worth to you

        • Not uncommon for people to upend their entire life for significantly less money and be rewarded with 25 years behind bars.

    • +3

      They might have saved a lot of money considering it tanked so hard.

  • +11

    Sorry I can't help the OP with advice based on experience.

    But I'd like to say that back when I worked in a bank you couldn't make a single digit error in an account number, and end up with another valid account number. Account numbers weren't allocated by adding one to the previous allocated one, like car registration numbers. The last digit was a check digit. It was calculated from the other digits, and changing any single digit would change the calculation and produce the wrong check digit. Its not a secret, it is used widely in all sorts of contexts like tax file numbers and credit card numbers and mobile phone numbers, though usually they usually try to restrict knowledge of what the check digit calculation algorithm is.

    It does make numbers that use check digits an extra digit longer, but it would be an obvious method of reducing mistakes in situations like the OP has gotten himself into.

    • -2

      I'm guessing the issue is that the other bank (People's Choice) is one of those mickey mouse smaller banks, and didn't bother to put in this type of checksum verifications in their account numbers.

      • +1

        So the BSB number was exactly the same, as in the person you sent the money to is also with the same bank, in the same state, and account with the exact same branch as your mother?

        • +1

          Peoples Choice Credit Union has multiple points of representation, but it doesn't have separate accounts at each "branch". All accounts have the same BSB. I think that's the way they did it when they allowed the little financial organisations into the system.

          • @GordonD: Ah, I see. I always thought needing BSB was annoying because who keeps track of what branch they opened an account at, or checks which branch was used when you open an online account. Square payments asks for the branch location as a security question which people don't know off the top of their heads.

            But I guess it can also be a security fallback for transfers in case an account number was wrong. Except if you're with People's Choice I suppose.

            But still, it sure is a coincidence that the person OP transferred to also happened to be with People's Choice.

        • +1

          Even St George Bank in NSW uses the same BSB for all transaction accounts (112879), as has done so for decades.

    • -1

      OP said they put the wrong digit in, but didn't say it was the last digit.

      • +2

        GordonD didn't say it was the last digit.
        Any wrong digit means the account number would be invalid (non-existent).

        • Thanks, re-read it and makes more sense now.

          • @CodeXD:

            you couldn't make a single digit error in an account number, and end up with another valid account number.

            • +1

              @GG57: Yep. Also Banks and I assume Credit Unions run what are called "Suspense Accounts" where random amounts can end up and then it is up to someone to manually allocate the funds using their best detective work.

  • +2

    Always copy and paste the number, put in a text file first, go over it 10 times if you have to, then copy and paste the account info.

    Especially if you cant afford to lose the money you are sending to your own fault.

    • +14

      payID could have prevented this mistake. Put in the phone number or email, and the other person's name should show up before you make the payment. I always try to get the other person's payID but not everyone sets this up. In this case, copy and paste and check it 10 times as suggested.

      OP, hope you get your money back but sounds like an uphill battle.

    • I agree, but not everyone is tech savvy. My wife hates notepad or notepad++.

      • She considers Notepad something tech savvy?

    • +1

      Lol I have an even more paranoid method whereby I subtract one cell from the other in Excel to confirm I've typed it correctly. If I have, I will get a 0.

    • +1

      I also send 10c first, save the payee and receive confirmation it went to the correct account whenever possible. For bills, I ring the company and check that the number in and emailed invoice is theirs.

  • +14

    I once had a random $40,000 transferred to my account - I contacted my bank to let them know, but it did take a loong time for it to be resolved as the money was received from a different bank.

    You might get lucky and the recipient may have already notified and it's in the works for return.

    • +11

      good on you for being honest

    • +3

      I wonder if you could use this in your offset to benefit you in the meantime haha.

      • +1

        Bank basically said don't touch it.

        I asked what if i kept it and didn't say anything. They said something on the lines of that it would be difficult for them to recover.

    • +2

      Had a similar experience with $10000 deposited into my account.

      Rang bank and money taken out in less than an hour.

      Never seen a bank act so quicklyThey did say thanks though.lol

  • +1

    The onus is on the person sending money to make sure they correctly type in BSB/ACC or mobile number/email address (for PAYID).

    If only you had previously sent money to your mother before then it would not have been a new contact.

    People's choice has payid as well and you get the name and/or initials of the account you are sending money to.

  • +31

    This doesn’t help for now, but for next time, send $1 first to make sure the account details are correct. Once confirmed with the recipient, send the residual via the existing payee so you’re 100% sure it’s correct. This reduces any risk of the account details being wrong for any large amounts in one off transfers.

    I do this any time I send a substantial amount, would recommend anyone to do it just in case.

    • +2

      I always do this too. With Osko and PayID nowadays you get confirmation instantly.

    • +3

      Excellent advice. This would have prevented a scam I saw in these forums a few months ago, where hackers got into a conveyancing company's email and sent an email telling the guy what account to send the deposit to (which was the hacker's account), and he lost a lot of money.

      • +2

        That scam has been getting worse and worse! Have been reading about people losing their life savings with it.

      • +3

        Although, an extra thought is to do the confirmation by phone. Obviously the hackers would be delighted to tell the victim by email that the $1 has been successfully received.

  • +4

    Still not sure why banks don't cross reference the account number with the account name. Not like it would be hard.

    • +5

      They probably could, but think of all the potential variants in a bank account name when input by a payer.
      TBH, if a bank is instructed to pay $xx to account number 123456, that should be sufficient as each account number is unique. If the bank pays it to the wrong account number, the bank is at fault. If the payer specifies incorrect information (i.e. amount, account number), the payer is at fault.

      • +1

        I understand that, however it's very easy for a payee to give the payer an incorrect number accidentally, or for the payer to input a number incorrectly, as in the OPs case.

        • Sure, but we are talking money here. I'm pretty careful when I'm providing my account details or if I'm paying someone. More care should prevent the accidental causes.

          Doesn't fix the issue that OP has though.

          • @GG57:

            should

            Should, but to err is human. Would also make the email intercept scams, where people lose entire house deposits, a lot harder to do. If the account is Jim Smith instead of ABC solicitors, you likely won't be sending the money, or will question it.

            There is basically no downside, and only upside.

            • @brendanm: Those people would still send the money, as the payer can't see the account details. You are proposing that banks should cross reference the account number with the account name; I assume that to be the receiving bank.

              Best case in that situation is that the receiving bank would identify a disconnect between account name and number. I don't know what would happen after that (e.g. immediate return of funds; or, open a case file for investigation; or, send a clarification to the sending bank; etc.)

    • +3

      They have implemented this in the UK, so we’re likely to be a few years away from copying them (just like with faster payments and open banking).

    • They don't do this with credit cards either, probably costs more than the benefits?

    • +4

      HSBC does. I was trying to transfer my mum some money, the name I gave was "mum", every time it failed and ended back up in my account after a few days, her bank says they didn't know what was going on, so I contacted HSBC and they said the account name didn't match the account.

  • +2

    I just noticed an extra $1k in my bank account. I figured I won OzBargain lotto, so I just spent it on eneloops.

  • +2

    You have to double check the bsb and account numbers again, before you hit send.

  • +1

    Has anyone had a similar experience and could advice what the best course of action to do?

    Yes. Contact ombudsman as in the first comment. I waited months before acting because I thought it was an expensive mistake. It took ombudsman a week or two to resolve my mistake.

    I considered contacting the other bank to tell them of the situation but unsure if that would just complicate things.

    It will. You wont even get pass the ID phase of the bank.

  • +11

    I had a large amount of money sent to me 5 months ago and I have no idea who it's from. I've contacted my bank several times and each time they've not been interested and told me not to worry about it (I have the conversations recorded). I tried the other bank where it was sent from and they weren't interested either.

    I guess in 2 more months it'll be mine. You'd think they would have tried to get it back by now.

    • +2

      "You'd think they would have tried to get it back by now."…

      Give them a couple more months if it's Crypto.com.

      • +4

        I'm gonna have to sell my plane then :(

  • Up has a crazy app!
    Never found out how to log out!

  • Thank you everyone for the advice. I did actually do a triple check of the numbers before I sent it through and yet somehow I've mistaken the 1 for a stupid 7 (is number dyslexia a thing?) . My mother is not very tech savvy and she's also in a different state so it was a bit of a complicated process to try to explain to her what a PayID is. She's very suspicious of things like that (even pay to tap tech she don't trust it). I will contact the ombudsman to try and get it sorted. Normally I'm not too stressed but my mum needs the money for medical expenses so I'd really like for that to go to her.

    Thanks again everyone, I really appreciate the responses!!

    • Actually there is - dyscalculia

    • +2

      Wait.. is your mum still waiting on you? Damn son.. just send her another $1k if you have the means while you sort this shit out.

  • +2

    From experience

    I am with Nab . Sent to ANZ
    Entered wrong BSB but correct account number.

    For $300

    Paid a fee I forgot how much but around $30-50 to get it back but FAILED.

    So double check the number over and over before you hit that submit button

  • +1

    I had someone commit fraud, he ordered something, paid via transfer then tried to dispute the transfer a couple of weeks later

    Bank asked if it was a mistake, I said no and that was that

    I did have his order details, delivery sig put aside for a while but they never asked for any more info.

  • PSA: Even if you're sending to saved entries in your payee list, it's always good to re-check the account numbers as one known hack for hackers is to update your payee list to point existing contacts to the hacker's account. In doing so, you won't get alerted when money is taken out of your account as you're the one doing the transfer to who you think is the intended recipient.

    • +7

      Why would they bother doing that? Wouldn't it be easier to just transfer money out while they're in there?

      Every bank that I have ever been with has had the same 2FA requirements for adding/editing payees as it does for actually transferring money

      • Yeah HSBC is all over that

      • Why would they bother doing that? Wouldn't it be easier to just transfer money out while they're in there?

        Why not do both?

        They do that to avoid being detected. Here's a scenario: Hacker managed to hijack your phone number (2FA mechanism). They go in and change a payee detail to point to their own account. You realise your number has been hacked and change your phone number, then you check if there are any suspicious activity done on your accounts. You haven't lost any money so you think everything is fine, or maybe you did but you think that's the only thing that's been done. Assume neither you nor the payee bothered to check if the payment went through the next time you make payment to that Payee, the hacker would have the money without raising any alarms. Your transaction history just shows money was transferred to the payee as you intended. May take you months before you realise and even then, not obvious who or when the payee details were changed.

        • Assume neither you nor the payee bothered to check if the payment went through the next time you make payment to that Payee

          May take you months before you realise

          The people you transfer money to have very different habits to the people I transfer money to

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