Bank accounts getting closed

[Ebayorbust]

Originally Posted by Haidukken

Interesting, that's the first time I've seen this getting mentioned.
In terms of personal accounts, whats a healthy sum? Also, in terms of business the same "usual" banks are fine in UK I guess? Halifax, Natwest Barclays etc?

The amount would depend on the individual and very much boils down the relationship they have with the bank in question. For many, the use of personal bank accounts for business use never even rates a mention with the bank.

Likewise with mismatching names. It's why some people report issues with a specific bank and others say it's fine.

UK banks are excellent at stereotyping people. If you are white, middle aged or elderly you are less likely to have banks asking questions about your activities than if you are young or of foreign descent.

[rsot]

Originally Posted by hazy

Will do, no problems with mismatched names?

No issues from experiences reported

[GreenBean]

Originally Posted by hazy

Will do, no problems with mismatched names?

To date, PNC Wallet is fine.

Overuse and abuse may see this change.

[rsot]

Originally Posted by hazy

Yes I have developed a good relationship with the manager at my main bank. He's just not the brightest bulb in the bunch...

That's a good plan - some investments and talking...always helps

[hazy]

Thanks everyone. Definitely very helpful. I will put PNC on the back-burner for an emergency only.

[gonzoman]

Originally Posted by aniseed

Just a thought, but why cant we go into the bank as a legitimate business man and say we run a number of ebay shops and require 10 accounts to keep our shops separate.

Funny you mentioned that.
Two days ago I went into one credit union close to where I live.
I asked if they accept mismatch names, since i have several people running
my stores on ebay, so technically the account is under their name.
After she spoke to the manager, she returned and said it is no problem as
long as I DO NOT operate it as a business account.
Nice people. I am probably going to open an account with them on Monday.
I do the same with every branch i go to. I would think it makes more sense to
present it as stores being operated by other persons and my routing
and bank account attached, rather than telling them i use different names/identities to present myself.
I am not sure if not mentioning the purpose of having to use mismatch
names is better. I think it would trigger more questions from their side,
so i prefer to just go with explaining in advance what I am doing.

[Omgoozle]

Originally Posted by Ebayorbust

UK banks are excellent at stereotyping people. If you are white, middle aged or elderly you are less likely to have banks asking questions about your activities than if you are young or of foreign descent.

I said this same, exact thing about US banks a while back (about 6 months ago) and it started a huge flamewar, fyi.

But I also said it with less tact.

[aniseed]

Originally Posted by gonzoman

Funny you mentioned that.
Two days ago I went into one credit union close to where I live.
I asked if they accept mismatch names, since i have several people running
my stores on ebay, so technically the account is under their name.
After she spoke to the manager, she returned and said it is no problem as
long as I DO NOT operate it as a business account.
Nice people. I am probably going to open an account with them on Monday.
I do the same with every branch i go to. I would think it makes more sense to
present it as stores being operated by other persons and my routing
and bank account attached, rather than telling them i use different names/identities to present myself.
I am not sure if not mentioning the purpose of having to use mismatch
names is better. I think it would trigger more questions from their side,
so i prefer to just go with explaining in advance what I am doing.

I agree I wouldn't even mention the mismatched names as it might look suspicious or get them asking more questions. Just pick a bank that everyone has confirmed accepts them or find out for yourself with a personal account.

You would think mismatched names would only be acceptable on a business account unless its limited. The name is more of an issue for things like cheques. You hear loads of stories about how people got one account digit wrong and paid the wrong person and the bank doesn't care - but if the name had to match this would never be an issue and would be a get out clause for the customer.

But yeah saying you have several online stores and you want an account for each one for easy management should work. Then maybe an expense account, a stock purchasing account, a savings account, a payroll account, etc, just present it like its absolutely normal and necessary to operate your business. If you get online banking, you can usually then add more current accounts online (that's what I do with personal ones after my initial account at each bank). Some open straight away, others send me out a form to sign but its always quick and easy.

If your taking this ebay business far, then a proper business banking relationship should surely start to come into play sooner or later. Imagine getting audited and you have 30 personal accounts hidden all over the place...

[hazy]

I have somewhat of an update...

My friend had a similar issue with TD. They closed her accounts and told her she had to get in touch with the Global Fraud unit (or something along those lines). After weeks of getting an answering machine which its voicemail was full, she finally got in touch with someone. They told her she can no longer bank with them and to go to the nearest branch and her funds will be released to her.

After a lot of BS and speaking to multiple reps, she was told her money cannot be released to her because it wasnt coming in as her own name. So now what does she do? She has thousands in the accounts.

[newjerseymax]

Or you can be married to someone at the bank :0

[rsot]

Originally Posted by hazy

I have somewhat of an update...

My friend had a similar issue with TD. They closed her accounts and told her she had to get in touch with the Global Fraud unit (or something along those lines). After weeks of getting an answering machine which its voicemail was full, she finally got in touch with someone. They told her she can no longer bank with them and to go to the nearest branch and her funds will be released to her.

After a lot of BS and speaking to multiple reps, she was told her money cannot be released to her because it wasnt coming in as her own name. So now what does she do? She has thousands in the accounts.

Weird - TD has been really solid for my stealth - up in Canada anyhow

[hazy]

New Update....My friend told the Fraud Unit Agent just to send the payments back to the paypal account. She replied, she doesnt know if they can do that and will check with her manager. Can they not send the money back to the account??

[two3aight1]

I mentioned a while back i had the same issue with my bank. I had 3 accounts open with tcf, one checking and 2 savings... a few thousand each week between them all and the bank told me i had to open a business acct to keep doing business like that.

[rsot]

Originally Posted by two3aight1

I mentioned a while back i had the same issue with my bank. I had 3 accounts open with tcf, one checking and 2 savings... a few thousand each week between them all and the bank told me i had to open a business acct to keep doing business like that.

Definitely understandable with those amounts involved.

[hazy]

They wont give her her money. Wow, they told her to get an attorney.

[GhostOfAmazon]

Originally Posted by hazy

They wont give her her money. Wow, they told her to get an attorney.

Did she try going to a different branch?

[hazy]

Originally Posted by GhostOfAmazon

Did she try going to a different branch?

It's not the branch handling it anymore. It's "Global Security"

[LoopHole]

Few thousand dollars going into personal accounts under different names will obviously trigger a red flag with a bank or their internal security team. It blatantly looks like your doing something illegal even if your 100% legit. I'm sure banks wouldn't care about mismatch names if it wasn't for all the money laundering and all the other illegal stuff going on. Its just the way it is, there is and always will be people out there to make it harder for you.



"The Internal Revenue Service has been seizing bank accounts belonging to small businesses and individuals who regularly made deposits of less than $10,000, but broke no laws. And the government is refusing to return all the money taken.

The practice ‒ called civil asset forfeiture ‒ allows IRS agents to seize property they suspect of being tied to a crime, even if no charges are filed, and their agency is allowed to keep a share of whatever is forfeited, the New York Times reported. It’s designed to catch drug traffickers, racketeers and terrorists by tracking cash deposits under $10,000, which is the threshold for when banks are federally required to report activity to the IRS under the Bank Secrecy Act".

[LoopHole]

Originally Posted by gonzoman

Funny you mentioned that.
Two days ago I went into one credit union close to where I live.
I asked if they accept mismatch names, since i have several people running
my stores on ebay, so technically the account is under their name.
After she spoke to the manager, she returned and said it is no problem as
long as I DO NOT operate it as a business account.
Nice people. I am probably going to open an account with them on Monday.
I do the same with every branch i go to. I would think it makes more sense to
present it as stores being operated by other persons and my routing
and bank account attached, rather than telling them i use different names/identities to present myself.
I am not sure if not mentioning the purpose of having to use mismatch
names is better. I think it would trigger more questions from their side,
so i prefer to just go with explaining in advance what I am doing.

I tried this at a branch a while ago as well. Pretty much same story as yours. Tried to get an answer out of the rep who was in the process of creating my account. She had no idea what i was talking about and called the manager. Both really friendly so i tried to see what the manager had to say. She was confused as well. I never got a straight answer but i felt like they were thinking i was up to no good talking about getting deposits under different names so i switched the topic.

Either way you take a chance if you tell them or not. In my opinion i think it is best to not say anything and just stay under the radar.