what?!?

[eaglesnutter]

about a month ago i got a letter from my bank saying that my employer was going to take £164 out of my bank account, unless i called my bank to tell them to stop the payment going out.

 

i called the bank right away and told them i didnt know why my employer was taking this money so please do not allow them to take it out.

 

the next day i went to my boss and showed him the letter from the bank (it had the name of my workplace on the letter and the amount they were to take out) my boss told me he had no idea what it was about and to contact my bank, i told him i already had and the bank had told me to talk to my boss!

 

i got my bank statement today, and they have in fact took the money out of my account, and now i am going to be overdrawn.

 

i cannot afford to have my wages taken back from me for no reason.

 

my boss says he doesnt know what it is for, what do i do now?

 

do i have a right to tell my boss i want my money back right away so i dont go overdrawn?

[Infin1ty]

Sounds like you need to speak with HR, or Payroll (depends on the company) Your boss could truly have no idea what it was about, depending on the department you work in, he may have never seen anything regarding it. I would talk to your boss and see who you need to talk to, in order to get your money back, or at least get a justification as to why they took it.

[Scorpion Fury]

I don't get it. How is your employer able to withdraw money from YOUR account?

 

I would think the only thing they could do would to put a stop payment on a check. But physically remove money from your account?? Sounds fishy. Were you overpaid at one point?

 

Do you have a right to tell your boss you want your money back? FN A! Immediately! And become a huge pain in the a** until you get it. Is he playing dumb or what? Do you work for a large company or is he the owner or something?

[eaglesnutter]

i forgot to say that i work at a family run business, my boss gets his sister to do the wages, we have no hr dept, sorry i left that out.

[Infin1ty]

In that case, either your boss is screwing your over, or his daughter is screwing you over. You need to sit down with both of them and ask them for a reason they took the money, and demand it back if its for anything other then being overpaid (which is a hard thing to believe, companies are generally very good at paying the right amount)

[Scorpion Fury]

i forgot to say that i work at a family run business, my boss gets his sister to do the wages, we have no hr dept, sorry i left that out.

 

Then he knows what's up. He took the money back out of your account. He needs to repay you, he can't just take money from you. I don't know the laws in Europe, but that can't be legal.

[eaglesnutter]

i have just been through all my bank statements since i started working there and i have not been over paid at any point.

[DN]

Have you at any time given your bank authorisation to allow your employer to withdraw money from your account?

[eaglesnutter]

to DN: no i didnt. this is the letter i got:

 

" the issuing bank has recalled the above payment of £164 which was creditited to your account 31 march 2008, thereforee, unless i hear from you i will debit your account with the above amount within the next 15 days from the date of this letter." then at the bottom of the letter it says the name of my employer, and that it my employer is saying it is a recalled transfer.

[Infin1ty]

I don't know how things work in Europe, but is your check direct deposited?

[Seraphim]

I do not think that anyone can just "take" money out of your account. You better get that straightened out right away with your bank that NO One has authorization to do that. Did you read all the fine print when you went to work for them??

[eaglesnutter]

yes, i get paid weekly, it goes straight into my bank.

[keenan]

it sounds like you're saying that the ISSUING bank (your company's bank) has recalled payment on the company's check. could it simply be that your company had insufficient funds in its bank account to cover your check? i don't know if only part of a check can be 'bounced' in the UK.

[eaglesnutter]

i just wanted to update everyone.

 

the day after i posted this thread, i spoke to my boss on the phone, he still said to talk to my bank, then at lunchtime he came into work, and came looking for me, he agan told me i wouldnt get the money off him and to talk to my bank because "my bank is lying to me and trying to take my money"!?!?

 

anyway my bank started an investigation, they are tracing it as i type, since yesterday morning. i called today and they still said that it went back to my employer and they got an account number etc. they are calling me back tomorrow with all the details, plus sending me out a letter telling me it went back to employer, plus i have an appointment with a soilicitor on tuesday. thats all i know.

[BeStrongBeHappy]

If it is a small family business, who knows what they are doing. Perhaps they had a cash flow problem so took money back to help solve that, but that is illegal.

 

The first thing i'd do is cancel direct deposit, and ask for a check each week to prevent this. Cancel the authorization for direct deposit at your bank so they can't do this again.

 

Then I'd look for a new job. This kind of problem (unless there is a simple mistake) could be a sign the company is having financial problems and you might not get paid in future.

 

There is always a small chance that the accountant at the company is trying to embezzle funds and lying to everyone. You might want to close that bank account and get a new one so they can't dip into your account.

[eaglesnutter]

got a phonecall from the bank today, they traced it, back to my employer! they are sending out a letter as we speak, so i can take it into work as soon as i get it.