The Bank And My Own Money

I received a notice from a bank at which I have a savings account.  The notice said the account had no official activity for a certain amount of time.  Therefore, it explained that I would need to create some account activity or the state of Illinois would take my money. 

What?!?  [My mouth is hanging open.  I thought I should mention that detail.]

The state simply gets to take my money just because I want to let a savings account sit and draw interest?  (A very piddly amount of interest, I might add.)  That seems dangerously similar to stealing from my perspective.  I have a bike I have not ridden in a couple of years, does the state of Illinois believe it can take that bike because of lack of activity, too?

(If this rule applies across the board, the state probably owns 75-80 percent of the treadmills in Illinois.)

I went to the bank and the personal banker I worked with seemed perplexed about how to handle the situation.

“Do you know what our letter said?” he asked me, after pulling up the account on his computer.

“Don’t you have all the information you sent to me in your data base?” I asked.

“No.” he replied.

Finally, after he had engaged in a lengthy phone conversation (during which I made faces and shifted around uncomfortably in my chair) and spoke with his manager, he was actually able to re-activate the account.  And I was able to keep my own money.

Did you catch that last sentence?  I was thrilled that “I was able to keep my own money.”

Then he said, “Can I help you with anything else, today, Mr. Marler?”

I said, “Yes, I would like to withdraw the money and close the account.”

He said, “Oh. You would?  Hmm, that may take a while.”

I said, “How long?”

He said, “About 24 hours.”

I said, “Go ahead and get started, I’ll wait here.”

(I didn’t really say that, but I wanted to.)

In the meantime, his manager came over, closed the account and gave me the money within 5 minutes.

We promptly deposited the money with another bank where we are more active.  But now I think I’m starting to understand why some people keep their money at home in a mattress.