By :Douglas Ogbankwa Esq.

Banking Procedure and more sure looks normal, but I tell you there is quite a lot you take for granted in your every day banking measures that might turn out to be the game changer when the chips are down.

The following are some profound banking protocols to take cognisance of:

1.Read every document carefully before signing same.Do not be carried away by the nuances of your account officer ,telling you ,”sign here “,” sign here “,and you keep signing ,you may well be signing away your fortune.

2.Do not be secretive with bank account details with your family members ,many bank accounts worth billions of Naira are abandoned ,because their deceased owners kept the details away from their loved ones.
Giving them access to your automated teller machine, ATM, PIN , will enable them access cash easily if there was an emergency and the account owner is incapacitated. A Man died with hundreds of millions in his account, when he needed money to be flown abroad ,owing to an ailment and his family could not access same because he was incapacitated. The Customary Court approached by his family refused to grant an Order granting access to the Account stating that ,that can only be done even if he was dead.That is exactly what happened .He died with hundreds of millions in his account because he was too secretive ,if the reverse was the case , perhaps he would be alive today .

3.Never assist any one on the queue to collect money from the ATM ,he may just be a fraud that needed a pawn to pick money for him or her and when the push come the shove , you will be held for a crime you know nothing about.

4. Never give some one your ATM Card to withdraw money for you except you know the person so well, he or she may use your ATM 14 Digits to configure a mobile money App and steal your money .Some of these thieves on the queue are so smart that can memorize your ATM’s 14 Digits in seconds .They have phographic brains .

5.If you lived abroad subscribe only to the email credit and debit alert system,because if you subscribed to the SMS Alert and your phone in Nigeria is not active for six months ,the line will be deactivated and resold to another subscriber who will be getting alert and then he can use the phone to configure the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data, USSD, to steal your money.I have seen a client lose 6 Million Naira from.this scam .Also be careful how tap unsafe links .Only type links that have https and not http.The later is unsafe .All your money in the Bank can disappear from a well programmed scam system.

6.,When you have an unresolved issue with the Bank ,before you submit any of the stamped Complaint Forms or any letter ,make a photocopy, because that is the only evidence you have to show that you have made a formal Complaint.They can deny you ever complained . Always make a photocopy of any document you submit.

7.Analyse your Statement of Account with a Forensic Auditor ,if you had a huge volume of transaction and perhaps you will find some obnoxious and sometimes fraudulent charges ,that will shock you.

8.Never have an affair with your account officer ,banking relationship is fiduciary ,it will make you vulnerable to be defrauded.

9.Do not use ATM at Remote places at night ,you could be attacked or even kidnapped.

10.,Avoid using Another Bank’s ATM , if you could ,Dispense Errors and Machine Confiscated ATM Issues are difficult to resolve with them .

11.To avoid unnecessary charges and to keep ready records , sign up to Email Statements of Accounts .

12.Do not give your account to any one ,no matter how close to receive money ,you could end up in deep shit, if it was fraud related .

13. Do not give some one on the ATM Queue your account Number ,for him to transfer to you ,to withdraw for him or her, it could land you in trouble.

14. Do not disclose your Bank Verification Number, BVN or Account Details to strange callers on the Phone ,they are likely to be frauds.

15. Delete your credit and debit alerts from your phone for safety reasons.

16. Do not sign recommendations as Guarantors for current account holders you don’t know so well ,you may land in Police or EFCC Trouble.

17.Do not carry huge cash to and from the Bank , it endangers your life !Many have died there from.

18.Do not Guarantee Loan Transactions for persons you can not vouch for.

19.Be aware that there are penalties for some infractions of the Bank against you ,for example ,for an unresolved ATM Dispute ,,Dispense Error,etc within time you are entitled to Ten Thousand Naira as compensation from your Bank .You can Google CBN Customer Complainants Department for the email of the director of the Department ,which is a Department dreaded by the Banks .

20.Alwsys show some random acts of kindness to Bank Officials around you .That 200 Naira you give to the security man could give you access to do your 200 Million Transaction that is time tied .Be nice to them,just like everyone around you .It makes life incredibly easy to you .

About the Author :

Douglas Ogbankwa Esq., @ [email protected] a Benin Based Lawyer is the President of the Benin Writers’ ‘Society .