The OCC issued AL 2001-9 to remind banks under its jurisdiction of their obligations under Regulation E and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to promptly and properly investigate claims of EFT errors. OCC expressed concern that some banks are not taking seriously customer claims of unauthorized ATM withdrawals in instances where the customer's ATM card or debit card and PIN were used in a transaction and the customer has not supplied information indicating the card or PIN was misappropriated.
Noting that the customer's card, PIN, or account could have been obtained through fraudulent means, OCC states that a bank cannot conclude its investigative duties are discharged merely by concluding the customer's card and PIN were used in the transaction.
An acceptable investigation would entail a review of one or more of the following:
Documentation or written, signed statements provided by the customer;
Historical information on the customer's pattern of use (e.g., time, frequency, location, and types and amounts of transactions);
Location of the transaction in relation to the customer's residence, place of business, or normal shopping locations;
Customer's location at the time of the unauthorized transaction;
Problems reported by other customers regarding the access device or ATM;
Signature information on point of sale transactions;
Police reports, if available;
Film from security cameras, if available.
After reviewing those types of factors (and they are just examples - your creative mind might think of others!), the institution could then make a determination of whether or not an unauthorized withdrawal actually occurred.
Keep in mind that Regulation E sets forth very strict time frames for commencing and concluding the investigation, correcting any error, and making notification of the outcome of the investigation if it finds no error occurred.
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