Protecting You from Check Fraud: Important Policy Update at Lake Ridge Bank
Like most banks, Lake Ridge Bank continues to see increases in fraudulent activity targeted at both our clients and our bank in general. Recent industry reports show that one of the fastest growing and largest impacts in fraudulent activity today is where a fraudster deposits a check (or convinces an unsuspecting victim to deposit a fraudulent check) and then withdraws the funds before the victim has a chance to realize a fraud has been committed against them.
To help our clients and bank better identify and prevent these types of frauds from taking place, beginning January 7th, the funds from any deposits of checks will become available the next business day, instead of immediately after deposit.
While the next day availability of funds has always been our bank’s policy, we have often allowed immediate withdrawals for the convenience of our clients, which has led to some of the fraudulent activities we are seeing. This change to the next day funds availability instead of immediate availability may help to better protect our clients due to the fact that in the event a fraudulent check is deposited, the next day funds availability will give our clients time to review the deposit and take appropriate action if the deposit is fraudulent to minimize losses.
Funds from direct deposits, wire transfers, ACH transactions and cash deposits will continue to be made available immediately upon receipt. This change in enforcement is only for checks deposited.
If you have any questions regarding this process, please contact your banker.