Bank teller asks the wrong question

[Spock]

Late 2020 I had a Wells Fargo teller question the source of the funds for a large deposit. It was definitely not a solicitation to the investment side of the house. We were depositing a certified check and the teller literally asked where the money came from. I kinda snarled back that "mom died and this is her estate" which changed their tone. Maybe it's because the branch is in the not so nice part of town and we're 60 miles from the Mexican border. But I'm having to use "none of your business" with bankers a lot more in the last year.

[COcheesehead]

Teller’s get small bonuses for referrals to investment advisors within the bank.

[Gumby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spock Late 2020 I had a Wells Fargo teller question the source of the funds for a large deposit. It was definitely not a solicitation to the investment side of the house. We were depositing a certified check and the teller literally asked where the money came from. I kinda snarled back that "mom died and this is her estate" which changed their tone. Maybe it's because the branch is in the not so nice part of town and we're 60 miles from the Mexican border. But I'm having to use "none of your business" with bankers a lot more in the last year.

Well, they are legally required to be attentive to potential money laundering. I personally don't mind questions, although my life is so inconsequential that no one really cares to ask in the first place. And if they do, they will be disappointed with the inevitably boring answer.

[Winemaker]

When I made a $20,000 deposit at my local bank a few years back, they asked me my intentions for the funds. I told them it was for 11 months of health care insurance premiums for DW and I. It did make her jaw drop.

[COcheesehead]

Cash deposits over $10,000 will require more paperwork - trust me.

[njhowie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by COcheesehead Cash deposits over $10,000 will require more paperwork - trust me.

Wells Fargo cashiers check. And they still put a hold on the bulk of it...even though the status this morning is that the funds have cleared.

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gumby Well, they are legally required to be attentive to potential money laundering. I personally don't mind questions,

Quote:

Originally Posted by COcheesehead Cash deposits over $10,000 will require more paperwork - trust me.

I don't mine the CTR's or even SAR's being filed behind my back, but I do mind the questions. YMMV

[athena53]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Car-Guy I don't mine the CTR's or even SAR's being filed behind my back, but I do mind the questions. YMMV

And if they're looking for money laundering, I doubt anyone would be clueless enough to tell the truth about their plans for the money.

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by athena53 And if they're looking for money laundering, I doubt anyone would be clueless enough to tell the truth about their plans for the money.

Yep, like I'm going to tell them something like that. It's usually not a problem for me since most of the tellers at my local B&M bank know me and don't ask. They know I'm legal and don't pry.

[Trailwalker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by njhowie (snip) The teller says, "Mr. njhowie, I see you're depositing this to your checking account. Do you have any plans for this money"? Taken aback, bewildered that the teller was being so nonchalant and blunt, I politely and calmly replied, "That's none of your business". She says "Sorry"? I politely and calmly repeated myself for her. Is this typical for other folks that still walk into their local bank?

Yes, I've been asked a similar question, along the lines of "you can earn higher interest by talking to so-and-so." My response is "the money isn't going to be here long."

An assistant bank manager also told me that it's mainly old people who walk into banks. In-bank traffic is way down from twenty years ago. My local bank used to have four tellers working. Now it's one teller with an assistant manager chipping in when things get busy.

[Spock]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trailwalker .. An assistant bank manager also told me that it's mainly old people who walk into banks. In-bank traffic is way down from twenty years ago. My local bank used to have four tellers working. Now it's one teller with an assistant manager chipping in when things get busy.

You should be in a bank the morning of a government benefit day in the poor(er) corner of town. There is a line waiting for the doors open. All teller windows are staffed. And the line doesn't let up until about 1PM.

[Qs Laptop]

Quote:

Originally Posted by njhowie I actually thought of asking that, but as others have posted, the reason was quite obvious, to attempt to sell me other bank products. However, there was really no need to continue a discussion that had zero chance of going anywhere or wasting any more of my time. Shutting it down immediately was the best approach.

Agree that shutting it down is the best approach. Understandably, from your perspective the question seemingly came out of left field, but for the teller it was merely a sales inquiry.

I've found the best way to deal with awkward questions is to mirror the person and, rather than answer, I ask them a question back. Mirroring is a well known negotiating tactic. It takes a bit of training to recognize the appropriate situation, but can be quite effective. In your case, I might have answered, "What would you do with the money?" This mirroring is a delaying tactic that can let you evaluate where the conversation is going and gather your thoughts for an appropriate response.

You can practice mirroring techniques with telemarketers. Most sales calls start off with questions which means you can mirror the caller immediately. It can be quite entertaining at times and you will get in a lot of negotiating practice!

[W2R]

I would have assumed that it was a required question, since I gather you were depositing a large amount of money, and the bank probably wanted to make sure it wasn't related to some nefarious activity like drug dealing. Don't they have regulations about that? I'm not sure. I don't normally deposit large amounts of money, sadly.

[FiveDriver]

Back in the day, I brought a large-ish deposit into my local TD Bank branch. I wanted to stage this in local checking and then EFT it up to Fidelity.

The teller must have pushed the silent button under her desk, because two of those older gents in the 'advisor row' came out of their private offices and started walking slowly towards me.

"What would you like to do with that money?'

It was like a scene from a bad zombie movie !

[Texas Proud]

Did not read all the replies but one of the other things they are supposed to be checking for is theft...



Lots of old folks are having money stolen due to phone scams and other things... there are many articles where the teller saved the day by asking this question and getting an answer that alerted the bank to call the cops...


I also agree that there was a sales component to the question but we will never know...

[Spock]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas Proud Did not read all the replies but one of the other things they are supposed to be checking for is theft... Lots of old folks are having money stolen due to phone scams and other things... there are many articles where the teller saved the day by asking this question and getting an answer that alerted the bank to call the cops... I also agree that there was a sales component to the question but we will never know...

This was a deposit, not a withdrawal.

[jazz4cash]

My brother who goes into the bank regularly just had a similar experience at Truist. He thinks the tellers are required to ask ever since the merger.

In my experience it is a bit unusual at BofA. I recently moved a chunk to my BofA checking and needed a cashier’s check. I almost never go into a branch but I had to have that check. I went into a branch I had never been to and I was expecting a pitch. No pitch but the cashiers check was $15.

[OldShooter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texas Proud Did not read all the replies but one of the other things they are supposed to be checking for is theft... Lots of old folks are having money stolen due to phone scams and other things... there are many articles where the teller saved the day by asking this question and getting an answer that alerted the bank to call the cops ...

Yes, this is a strong possibility as an explanation. DW was a megabank SVP and business unit manager and was vice-chair of our state Board on Aging. Elder financial abuse was always a big topic. Her number is that 80% of elders have been financiaily abused, usually by family or caregivers.

[Sunset]

Tellers are forced to ask, and years ago it worked on me. I was new to the bank and got sold a mutual fund with a five year back-end load

Now I'm smart enough to not fall for the sales pitch.

[Sue J]

When DH got an inheritance check he deposited it in our local bank. Within minutes of him getting home the bank called and asked if we wanted to talk to their investment advisor. No thanks. Did you know we have CDs yada, yada.

The purpose of that deposit was to get the money into a bank so that it could be transferred to Vanguard.