Today I went to the (Big Name) food store around the corner. My first stop is always the ATM machine inside the store. Standing their was a man servicing the machine. He said he'd be through in a couple of minutes. I returned a few minutes later and the service guy was gone. I proceeded to withdrawl $100 from my checking. The machine processed the transaction and I could hear the cash being counted out. One problem though, the machine's window didn't open for me to remove the cash. The machine was now flasing "out of service, try again later.

So now I flag down one of the store managers to inform him of the problem. He is bewildered when I point out to him that there is'nt any number on the machine to call for service, only a name which is'nt a bank or company that I could find that is in my region.
I am in shock. I tell the manager "I'm out $100 bucks and you have no clue who to call and don't even have a number to call for service. How can that be.
I called my bank and yes they have a record of the transaction, but only a record that I withdrew $100, not that I received it.

So here I am with an ATM with only a name that I do not recognize, neither did my bank, and no listings in phone books from two different states. No phone number to call to report the problem, store managers with no clue regarding who to call, they have'nt any phone numbers to call, and only apologising for my inconvenience.

Anyone know what to do?

ouch! I hope you're able to resolve it quickly.

It seems that there has to be a law or something regarding the proper labeling of such machines.
Did you have your leatherman with you to force the door open?

Seriously though, it seems like King Soopers would take responsibility for that and give you $100 knowing that they'd get it back when the serviceman opens up the machine.

Bust the thing open and take your money....and everyone else's too.

Seriously, that's a real pain. Shouln't the service man that was there be able to do anything?

No, the grocery store won't do that, nor should they. Your story should be corroborated by the evidence. Unless...what happens when the next guy takes out $20 and gets $120!

At least the store manager can back you up.

I got shortchanged by an ATM at my bank once, gave out tens instead of twenties or something, and they made it right on Monday.

KB, thanks. You would think I could get it back when the service guy returns. But when does he return, in a week, a month. And even then, knowing human psycology, when the guy returns and sees the cash sitting inside the tray,he will most likely know that he can pocket it and know one would be the wiser.

Gryphon, after I finished the machine was flasing out of service. So know one else can use the machine and get my $100.

I did try the machine again for $10 , and it still said out of service. In other words, it would not process any more transactions.

Maybe I should call my relatives in NJ that are very much like Tony Soprano.

Curry, try your state licensing board for banks. They've got a link called "Locate an entity" on the front page that ought to be able to find the owning bank from the name you have.

Thank you jkeene.

If this is a big chain store they should know how to get in touch with the company that owns and services the ATM. As it is not apparently affiliated w/a specific bank, it should be a leased or contracted unit, or perhaps the store lets them have it there for the convenience of their customers or for a small fee. But they should know who it belongs to and how to reach them, even if the store manager does not know. As a customer with a problem, the main office of the store should be quick to try to solve your problem. Best of luck.

Another suggestion is to take the problem up the grocery store's management food chain. Somebody *must* know the bank/owner of the machine. Nobody just walked in, plunked down an ATM, and left. There has to be some contract or agreement between the store and the bank. While I suppose the store has no liability, it should at least be able to tell you in whose machine your money is stuck.

I also wonder whether your bank could trace the ATM's bank from information from the receipt (if you got one) or from the information they have regarding your withdrawal. Possibly there's some type of banking/routing/transaction code that would identify the ATM's bank. Maybe you could speak to a manager at your bank.

Marcb, the receipt only comes out after you take the cash out of the window, so no receipt. The store managers have no idea who to call, or who owns the machine.

By the way, this store has only been open for two months.

Actually, that has happened in the past. Scam artists have deposited fake ATMs in malls that would never dispense any cash, just give back an error message to every request. What they were really doing was collecting account codes and PINs for later use.

Only reason I didn't think that was going on here was curry's statement that he'd been going to this store and atm for a little while.

This won't do you any good now, but can't you pay for groceries with the ATM card, and get cash back at the same time with no fee?

I'll bet you're paying a buck or two on the withdrawal as a fee. Otherwise, why would the ATM company have the machine in the store?

I guess I shouldn't judge, but man, that sounds incompetent. Barring jkeene's scenario, there should be a record somewhere.

I hadn't heard that. I am aware of instances in which legitmate ATMs and gas pump credit card swipers were manipulated to steal PINs and account information. It takes a lot of chutzpah to just park a fake ATM.

Update, my bank called back, said they saw an error post on the wire transaction from the ATM's vendor and will now make a credit back to my account.

Their sage advice to consumers, "never use an ATM that does not have a banks or a companies service number in plain sight on the machine".

Well problem solved. Thanks for all of the replies.

glad it turned out ok.

I'll keep my eyes open in the future.

Hi, curry:

Glad it worked out... if it happens again to anyone, the best first step is to call your bank and explain what happened. The bank needs to have a record of the problem as quickly as possible so they can try to make amends. Sort of like a "stop payment" request on a check.

No guarantee the bank will make right, but most will. But it has to be soon, not "Hey, I just noticed that I never got that $5,000 last February.... yeah, that's the ticket..no, $10,000, in July, yeah... I remember it so clearly...."

Yippee!!! Gosh, this is good news.