Money tip: Bank error in your favour? Spending it is straightforward theft

Bank error in your favour? Spending it is straightforward theft

The Guardian, by Patrick Collinson on 9 February 2013

Two similar cases of people receiving and spending someone else's money will no doubt receive differing responses
Three years ago an unassuming Kiwi couple working 16-hour shifts at a struggling petrol station made headlines around the world, as a latter-day Bonnie and Clyde in reverse. They never robbed a bank; instead their lender, Westpac, inadvertently handed them £4m when all they had asked for was a loan of £40,000. The accidental millionaires fled the country with much of the cash – and a "Good luck to you" from many who felt the couple had turned the tables on the thieving banks destroying the global economy.
This week, we report on a woman who lost £26,000 after wrongly sending her pay into someone else's Nationwide account. The recipient who found the money pouring into her account, withdrew the lot in cash from ATMs and is refusing to pay it back. The money's been spent, she says, and she can't afford to repay.
It's not so easy to say "Good luck to you" in this case, is it? Yet they are morally and ethically identical. What both cases amount to is straightforward theft. The Kiwis knew the cash wasn't theirs – if a bank mistakenly sets your credit card limit at £300,000 rather than £3,000, it hardly means it's yours to grab and never repay. The Kiwis fled to Macau to launder their cash through the city's casinos, but their caper ended in tears. After two years on the run, one was arrested in Hong Kong, while the other came back voluntarily to New Zealand....read continue..

Use These Tips To Keep Your Finances In Check

Personal finances will be out of control if you do not have a method in place of tracking your budget and being mindful about your spending. If your financial situation is in chaos, you need to acquire the right knowledge and learn to properly manage your finances. Read this article for some helpful tips that are easy to apply to your daily life. These tips can assist you in getting your personal finances under control and organized.

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