A Signature Check Problem

(A family member with whom I have a joint bank account had a stroke a couple years back, affecting her handwriting. She received a check in the mail for $1.40, and instead of wasting time and gas going to the bank to cash it, she “deposited” it via her bank’s mobile app. It worked, so we thought nothing of it. A couple days later, we receive a letter in the mail from the bank stating that the deposit did not go through because “the signature did not match the one on file.” She’s confined to a wheelchair now and can’t just pop over to the bank to fix it, and I’m sure this bank knows this. The stroke also affected her speech, so I call the bank. At this point, we’re laughing because they’ve already spent 47 cents on a stamp and time and effort to tell us they couldn’t deposit a $1.40 check.)

Me: “Hello? I’m [My Name], calling on behalf of [Family Member] about a check we deposited that didn’t go through.”

Bank Person #1: “Okay. Let me get you through to the checking department.”

Me: *to checking department* “Hello? I’m [My Name] calling on behalf of [Family Member] about a check we deposited that didn’t go through. We used the mobile app on her phone, and the notice says the signature didn’t match the file.”

Checking Department: “Oh, if you had a problem with the mobile app, I’ll have to transfer you to our IT guy.”

(I’m transferred.)

Me: “Hello. I’m [My Name], calling on behalf of [Family Member] regarding a check we deposited via mobile app. We got a notice in the mail that the signatures didn’t match, and—”

IT Guy: “Oh, was that the one for $1.40?! I’m so sorry. I wasn’t paying attention, and the notice went through before I realized how little it was for.”

(He went on and on regarding how embarrassed he was, and how he tried to contact us, but couldn’t contact us. THEN, we got into a whole other conversation about how the phone number in their system was close to my cell phone number, but not exact. I told him the real number, but of course, he couldn’t just input it into the system. There was a form to fill out, and he could email it to me or fax it to me or. Finally, we decided that he could just mail it to me, and I’d mail it back. Then, we got back to the check. He said if we mobile-deposited it again, that day, he’d be sure to send it right through! I did redeposit it, but I’m still shaking my head at the amount of time, effort, and money it took to deposit a $1.40 check. Even if I did drive to the next town to deposit it, it would have cost me more in gasoline.)