Agency sent payment to the wrong account overseas (China) Thread poster: earlyesther
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earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
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Hello,
Just asking quick advice, recently an agency sent payment to my bank account in ICBC China while I have left this country. This agency insisted that since they have sent the payment, all troubles now become my own responsibility. I have sent new invoice to them before the payment date, complete with several emails asking them to change my payment detail. This agency replied and ensured that my new data had been saved in their system and all will be fine. Still they sent the ... See more Hello,
Just asking quick advice, recently an agency sent payment to my bank account in ICBC China while I have left this country. This agency insisted that since they have sent the payment, all troubles now become my own responsibility. I have sent new invoice to them before the payment date, complete with several emails asking them to change my payment detail. This agency replied and ensured that my new data had been saved in their system and all will be fine. Still they sent the payment to the wrong account, and now no one can access that amount. My account uses a Union Pay card that is accessible in China, Hong Kong, and Macau only (I have checked with the bank) and for any transactions with US dollar, the account holder should come in person to their branch. No card/ATM/electronic transaction is allowed. I do not know when I will return to China, but it seems like I will not have the opportunity to return to this country in this near future. Buying a return ticket to China just to withdraw this amount personally will not be a good solution either since this will make me to exhaust the amount only for the ticket and I get nothing. I have asked the agency what is their solution to this matter, they said they can do nothing about this. I do not want to post entry in the blue board since that would not solve the problem, that will only give bad impression to the agency while I still end up with no access to my money. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Darmali 
Indonesia
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
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| Send amount in yuan currency? | Jul 17, 2014 |
Hi Esther,
Would it be possible for the bank to send the amount to Indonesia in yuan currency? Maybe BCA can help, I think they have business connections with China.
Hope this helps a bit.
Angela
| | | | earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | BCA / CNY元 doesn't work either | Jul 17, 2014 |
Hi Angela,
I really have contacted all banks involved. BCA cannot help since the card (Union Pay) valid only in China, Hong Kong, and Macau. There is international Union Pay card, but my card is not the international one. They have different networks. ICBC cannot help either.
| | | | Sheila Wilson
Spain
Local time: 02:02
Member (2007)
English
+ ...
| I really sympathise | Jul 17, 2014 |
I have a client who did something similar not once but twice so I was extremely upset the second time. In my case my French bank had managed to half close the account, meaning that credits were accepted but we had no access. Emails, registered letters etc got nowhere. But in my case, I knew that eventually I'd travel the 4000 km again, if only to sell my house. So I finally got my money, probably a year later.
I think your client can claim "genuine mistake", apologise (hopefully the... See more I have a client who did something similar not once but twice so I was extremely upset the second time. In my case my French bank had managed to half close the account, meaning that credits were accepted but we had no access. Emails, registered letters etc got nowhere. But in my case, I knew that eventually I'd travel the 4000 km again, if only to sell my house. So I finally got my money, probably a year later.
I think your client can claim "genuine mistake", apologise (hopefully they've at least done that) and leave you to sort it out. Was the bank at all in the wrong to accept it? Can you take action against them? Force them to give it back to you?
Good luck! ▲ Collapse
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earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
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TOPIC STARTER | Hi Sheila :) | Jul 17, 2014 |
Too bad the amount is nothing compared to a house so travel back to China doesn't worth-it, but still that amount is sufficient to pay other bills - that's the dilemma.
At first they blamed me for this mistake, pointed that they have followed the instruction in my (old) invoice and instructed me to do the necessary to access my money. However, I forwarded all previous communication, complete with the latest invoice a... See more Too bad the amount is nothing compared to a house so travel back to China doesn't worth-it, but still that amount is sufficient to pay other bills - that's the dilemma.
At first they blamed me for this mistake, pointed that they have followed the instruction in my (old) invoice and instructed me to do the necessary to access my money. However, I forwarded all previous communication, complete with the latest invoice and their acknowledgement of receipt 2 days before the pay day. They apologized, and tried to convince me that I can still withdraw the money via ATM or overseas bank. I have explained that it is not possible. They also replied that there is nothing they can do. I'm still emailing them, asking for other solutions they can think of, I haven't heard anything new from them. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Sheila Wilson
Spain
Local time: 02:02
Member (2007)
English
+ ...
| The problem is that they CAN'T act | Jul 17, 2014 |
They've paid; and they aren't likely to agree to pay a second time. If YOU can't get your own money out of the account, what chance do THEY have of getting their hands on it. It would have been different if the money had disappeared into the ether as then you could claim non-payment, which you can't do in this case.
| | | | earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
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TOPIC STARTER | I've realized that too | Jul 17, 2014 |
Quite annoying actually, since it was their mistake, paying to the wrong account. At the end of the day, probably the only solution is just to return to China....
| | | | Sheila Wilson
Spain
Local time: 02:02
Member (2007)
English
+ ...
| Could a friend help? | Jul 17, 2014 |
Would it be possible for a friend living locally to withdraw the money? The bank wouldn't just hand it over of course, but if you could arrange for him/her to be given legal power of attorney, that might be the cheapest solution. A suitably qualified lawyer should be able to sort that out for you. Of course, although you could sign a written contract etc,, in the end you'd have to trust your friend to pay the money to you afterwards ... See more Would it be possible for a friend living locally to withdraw the money? The bank wouldn't just hand it over of course, but if you could arrange for him/her to be given legal power of attorney, that might be the cheapest solution. A suitably qualified lawyer should be able to sort that out for you. Of course, although you could sign a written contract etc,, in the end you'd have to trust your friend to pay the money to you afterwards .
On second thoughts, perhaps you could get lawyers to sort it out among themselves and pay you the money. That would be more expensive as the one in China would actually have to do more than set in the office typing and stamping, but it should be safe and might be the only option.
To some extent it might depend on how much it would cost you (in time as well as money) to go to China, and whether you'd get any other benefit from the trip. ▲ Collapse
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earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
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TOPIC STARTER | to be frank... | Jul 17, 2014 |
The agency mentioned this solution too lately. At this point of time, I have no one I can trust with money in China. I have no negative intention toward them, it was just me who didn't grow such strong relationship with anyone there. You are also right that red envelope plays important role in anything related to paperworks things in China. *thinking*
| | | | Darmali
Indonesia
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
+ ...
| PT ICBC Indonesia | Jul 17, 2014 |
Hi Esther,
Just asking, have you tried contacting ICBC branches in Indonesia (they seem to have several branches in Jakarta and other big cities). Maybe you can talk to the branch manager or someone with authority (not the customer service). You mentioned that they have different networks, but they are owned by the same parent company. I know, it takes a lot of patience and persistence, but maybe it's worth it.
Angela
| | | | earlyesther
Local time: 08:02
English to Indonesian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | ICBC Indonesia doesn't work either | Jul 17, 2014 |
Thank you very much Angela, but ICBC Indonesia is one of the first banks I contacted and all of their branches assured me that their network is not connected to ICBC China. The only Indonesian bank sharing network with ICBC China is actually BCA (I contacted them as well), but to access that network I need international Union Pay card (account) at ICBC China, one with "Cirrus" mark, like what BCA's ATM cards have. We can withdraw money in China with ATM BCA, at ICBC's ATM, since all ATM BCA card... See more Thank you very much Angela, but ICBC Indonesia is one of the first banks I contacted and all of their branches assured me that their network is not connected to ICBC China. The only Indonesian bank sharing network with ICBC China is actually BCA (I contacted them as well), but to access that network I need international Union Pay card (account) at ICBC China, one with "Cirrus" mark, like what BCA's ATM cards have. We can withdraw money in China with ATM BCA, at ICBC's ATM, since all ATM BCA cards has "Cirrus" mark, but we cannot do the same with Union Pay card in Indonesia unless that card has the same "Cirrus" mark. To bad my card doesn't have that mark. This is really the type that works only in China, Hong Kong, and Macao. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Ask them to reissue the payment | Jul 17, 2014 |
I think the agency should reissue the payment with the understanding that you will reimburse them once you are able to access your account in China. This seems fair given that you are able to prove that the mistake is theirs.
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Phil Hand
China
Local time: 09:02
Chinese to English
| Grounds for suit | Jul 17, 2014 |
You could threaten to sue. Chinese companies hate being sued, as it affects everything they do, their credit, their banking, etc.
Unfortunately, suing requires that you come to China as well. It can only be a threat.
Otherwise, I could help. You don't know me, and have no reason to trust me, but I'll make the offer here in a public place. You're welcome to send me an email, and I'll do whatever I can to help you get the money.
| | | | | Embassy/friend/colleague? | Jul 18, 2014 |
I don't think your agency will pay a second time. You'll have to find a solution with a friend, a colleague or maybe your embassy in China...
| | | | | Find someone trustworthy | Aug 18, 2014 |
It really sounds like you have exhausted all possible options, other than a) fly back to China (not feasible) b) find a trustworthy person to withdraw using your card and send the money to you or c) get the agency to pay again since it was their mistake (unlikely)
Next time you go to China or move to a different country, either completely close your bank accounts, or make sure you give a friend or family member official access to your accounts.
I have a bank account "b... See more It really sounds like you have exhausted all possible options, other than a) fly back to China (not feasible) b) find a trustworthy person to withdraw using your card and send the money to you or c) get the agency to pay again since it was their mistake (unlikely)
Next time you go to China or move to a different country, either completely close your bank accounts, or make sure you give a friend or family member official access to your accounts.
I have a bank account "back home" and my mother has all the necessary authorizations from me to do any "in person" banking that may be necessary. ▲ Collapse
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