Friday, May 13, 2011 - 10:20 PMWhen You Deposit Money In A Bank, Whose Money Is It?
BankUnited 
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1 stars)
My father had a custodial account for my son. Dad died (YOB 1909) and my son (YOB 1985) wanted the money for a down payment on a condo. We went to the BankUnited and were told that a death certificate had to be placed on file at the bank. I brought the death certificate while my son was at work and BankUnited kept a copy. I was told that a check could not be issued without my son present. Next day, my son went into the bank, after work, at 4:30 PM (bank closes at 6 PM, on Friday's). He was told that a check could not be issued because the manager and legal department had already gone home and that he should come back on Monday. My son is not a fighter, thus, he left the bank empty handed.
Can somebody please explain how a bank can hold a depositer's money without a valid reason? My son had already signed to close the account, the death certificate was on file, and the back was open until 6:00 PM...Does he need to bring the witches' broomstick to the Wizard? What is going on here and what legal rights does my son have to obtain his money? Are we still living in the USA? I am both confused and scared. Does the Patriot's Act protect the citizens of this country or deny them their rights? This is a sad commentary on the state of banking in America, today.
10
1. Saturday, May 14, 2011 - 8:39 AMIt's probably a bank policy that if it's a check for a large amount two signatures are required, one being a manager, or equivalent position, within the bank. These amounts can vary from bank to bank. I've seen this requirement set as low as $15,000 and as high as $100,000. It was a Friday, so probably the manager and legal department were already on their way to happy hour at a local watering or a week-end getaway. These things happen all the time when dealing with banks. The Patriot Act doesn't have anything to do with the bureaucratic mumbo-jumbo, so there's no government conspiracy here. I'm confident your son will have his check on Monday.
5
Shorebreak1,291 posts since
Apr 6, 2010
Rep Points: 4,838
2. Saturday, May 14, 2011 - 5:16 PMIt is true that each employee has a limit on the checks they can sign even for account closings. As ID fraud has increased those limits for employees have decreased. Limits of 1 million were not unheard of 30 years ago but now many employees have limits of $10,000 and only if they know the customer.
2
rosie43183 posts since
Jan 16, 2010
Rep Points: 568
3. Saturday, May 14, 2011 - 5:20 PMI agree that there's no evil conspiracy here, however, it was inexcusable for the bank not to state upfront its requirements for withdrawing the money, including the possibly limited hours of the necessary staff being present to accommodate the withdrawal. The bank owes OP's son an apology.
4
glxpass38 posts since
May 2, 2010
Rep Points: 238
