An Ontario man who lost more than $10,000 after a check he wrote cashed twice said he was pushed to the limit trying to fight TD Bank to get his money back.
David Heathfield, who owns a small scrap equipment brokerage, said he wrote an $8,000 check in January to buy new equipment from a dealer in Florida.
Typically, Heathfield said, he waits until the end of the quarter to reconcile his books and make sure there are no banking problems.
He said that in late March, at the end of the first quarter, he checked his bank statements and saw no discrepancies.
“I put up with it and it all balances out because the $8,000 was there,” Heathfield said in an interview with CTV News Toronto.
But at the end of the second quarter in July, Heathfield said he noticed that the same $8,000 check, according to his April statement, had been cashed again, leaving him out by more than C$10,000.
Heathfield said he immediately called TD Bank to try to get his money back, but because of a 30-day deadline for reporting discrepancies, he was told he would be on the hook for the loss.
According to the bottom of Heathfield’s bank statements, which were reviewed by CTV News Toronto, customers are asked to ensure that they report any errors or irregularities in writing within 30 days of the document’s issue date.
“If you do not do so, the account statement will be deemed conclusively correct, except for any amount credited to the account in error,” the bank statement reads.
Heathfield admits he’s seen the fine print in the past, but never paid much attention to it.
He said that over the months, he hasn’t given up fighting for his money back.
“I’m at the end of my rope,” he said.
After speaking with Heathfield, CTV News Toronto has reached out to TD Bank for comment on the situation.
In a statement released Thursday evening and after investigating the incident, a TD Bank spokesperson said it was working directly with Heathfield to find a resolution.
“We strongly encourage all customers to regularly and carefully review their monthly account statements and report any discrepancies immediately by calling our EasyLine team or visiting their local branch,” the statement said.
That same day, Heathfield said he “out of the blue” received a call from TD Bank’s head office.
“They have been asked to review my case and are allowing this one-time error exception and will credit my account with the full $8,000,” he said.
Although Heathfield said he still doesn’t know who cashed the check the second time, he said he wanted to share his story to prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.
“I think people should be aware that even at the bottom of the statement, any errors or omissions should be reported within 30 days.” It was always there. I’ve just never seen it, but it’s killer.”
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