The District Consumer Forum here has asked Andhra Bank to pay a fine of Rs. 12,000 to one of its customers after it deposited the customer’s money into a wrong account.
S. Senthil of Melur near here approached the forum praying for a compensation of Rs. 90,000 from the Manager of the Andhra Bank in South Masi Street. According to Mr. Senthil, he had deposited Rs. 1,600 in his account on June 3, 2006. Later he gave a cheque for Rs. 1,600 to a finance company where he had taken a loan. H elearnt that his money had been credited in a wrong account after the cheque bounced on July 14. Mr. Senthil said the bank was deficient in service by crediting his money in a wrong account.
The bank denied the charge and claimed that the error occurred because Mr. Senthil did not return the pay-in slip to the cashier after depositing the money. The error was rectified on September 9 by transferring the money to the right account, and it was also communicated to the petitioner through a letter, the bank said. The petitioner had moved the forum in 2007 claiming that the money had not been credited in his account.
P. Deivaraj, president of Madurai District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, and N. Thilagam, member, held the bank guilty of being grossly negligent in service. The bank’s statement that the amount was wrongly credited because the petitioner took the pay-in slip could not be accepted. Therefore, the bank should credit Rs. 1,600 in the petitioner’s account besides paying Rs. 12,000 for its deficient service and court expenses, the forum ruled.
