Thumbprint rule stymies man trying to cash check at bank

The bank requires a thumbprint and the customer has no arms. Now what? "We should have offered alternative requirements if an individual is not able to give a thumbprint," admits a Bank of America rep. (TampaBay.com)

Comments

[Bill B.]

This is just one reason out of many others that I hate doing business with the Bank of America.

[Worker]

Well, off hand, I'd say Bank of America is about to have a huge lawsuit.

[Displaced]

This is one of the problems with businesses becoming huge. The teller makes a bad decision, based on policy, and probably has no one to ask about an override. That person is worried about losing his/her job. This guy gets the bad treatment. And it takes a news story and a few weeks to figure out who might be responsible.

[Navy Chief]

@Worker - 'off hand'? HAHAHAHAHAHA!

[American Veteran]

Give them the finger

[angrysockmonkey]

I hear no two penis's are the same. someone should invent a penis scan.

[Jim]

How about a butt print!! Its what Bank of America deserves!

[Pegarama]

Peg? You out there?

[RockyMtnMac]

A good rule of thumb would be to have an alternate plan. Ooh. Rule of thumb, sorry..

[Bachmann]

Once Obama's Death Panels are set up we won't have to worry about this problem anymore.

[Phranqlin]

Bank of America could have used other biometrics as an alternative to fingerprints: toe prints, iris and retinal scans, face identification ... but apparently treating the disabled like crap is cheaper.

[NitroPress]

Yeah, that's BofA for you. All sensitivity. I remember how "sensitive" they were when I was an employee, back when we still had a ride-up for dinosaurs.

When NationsBank (outta Nort' Cah'linuh, you know) bought the California operations, they had to send a memo suggesting that no one be sent to NC for meetings or presentations if they had a "San Francisco accent."

[jojo]

I wouldn't use a bank that required a thumb print from me to cash a check (although I do possess thumbs). That is way to big brother for me!!

[nellagain]

Nitro,

You are kidding, yes?

No!?!

Yikes.

When I went renew my green card last year, I had to get go in for "biometrics" It took less than 30 seconds--a face scan and whammo I was id-ed but good.

[Lis of Ace Cash Express]

Yes, they should have offered another form of identification such as other biometrics(e.g. retinal scan). The problem is that the teller nor the manager is not well trained to handle this kind of situation. It is impossible for the bank to not anticipate this kind of situation.

[Charles Brobst]

Americans with Disability Act, it can break a business. A bank not so much.

[sometimesilie]

man, I don't even know what a San Francisco accent is. A lisp?

/hastily backs out of the room/

[Kee]

Angrysockmonkey, And for those of us who have no penis to scan?

[Lambiepie]

Kee,
have 'em scan the penis nearest to you

[nauip]

forehead print?

Ink forehead here.

ok, and just put your forehead here on the check, sir.

All done.

[Jeff R.]

I believe Nations bank was doing this before the merger, but I could be wrong. They also wanted to charge me (or open an account, which I wouldn't do since there were fees attached) to cash a BofA check after the merger but before the name change. The charge was more like $5 for a check that was about $15. I walked out and have not been back. Credit Unions only for me...

[The Asshole Guy]

First of all I love Bank of America and today while I was in my local branch I told my teller Paula about this story. She was shocked to hear it.

Nobody would ever be treated the way this man was in Maine in any Bank of America branch. When I walk into my local branch even after not stepping inside for almost two months they know who I am. We chit chat, we laugh. We ask how life is going and when you are heading towards the exit they thank you for coming in by your first name.

I love my local Bank of America branch. They have never done me wrong and I doubt they ever will.

[fredzilla]

I like my bank. But it's not one of the big National chains, it's got a brand name but it's just a bunch of smaller banks got together to compete with the bigger banks.

I did have a bad experience with BoA while waiting for a check for some work I'd done to come in, they closed my bank account. I found this out when I went to deposit the check. The letter from them letting me know that they would close my account if I didn't get it out of negative balance within a certain amount of time, I can't remember how long it's been 10+ years ago, arrived 2 days after they closed my account.

[Big Kahuna]

Bank of America is the worst bank in america.

Personal experience: I went to the branch that issued a paycheck at my new job (25 years ago). I gave them my driver's license and a photo press pass with my thumbprint on it, signed by the chief of police.

They insisted the press pass was not "ID" and wouldn't cash the check. I got the company to stop doing business with them and haven't been back since....

And I hear all sorts of stupid stories to this day about B of A....

[dobie]

Couldn't they just put a "no arms" notation on the guy's account? I'd think that would be a pretty good method of identification.

[JayB]

This is obviously due to a poor branch manager, nothing more. Some people prefer not to have to think for a living. They go by the 'rules' no matter the situation, mainly because there's a limited upside in big organizations (like BofA) to thinking for yourself. They should remember however, as this story points out, there can be an extreme downside to NOT thinking for yourself.