Yesterday, I screwed up. I admit it, it was a stupid mistake, and I accept full responsibility for it.
I left my debit card in an ATM at the mall. I walked away, and realized about 15 minutes later what I'd done. I walked right back to the ATM and it was gone. I went to a service desk right behind the ATM, and they informed me that it was drawn back into the machine (it does this automatically if the card is not taken within a few seconds) to prevent somebody from stealing it.
The problem is that once this has happened, there is no way to retrieve the card. It's stored inside the machine, and when the machine is opened to be emptied/filled, the card will be destroyed. So I now have to wait two weeks to have a new card mailed to me.
I realize I shouldn't have left my card there, but this is a hell of an inconvenience. I'm going to be late on my insurance payment now because I have to wait for the check to get to them, because I always pay with my card, over the phone. It was due yesterday.
What I'm proposing is a PIN you can enter to retrieve a card that has been stored in the machine.-- 21 Quest, Nov 03 2006 Make it harder, then. The retrieve PIN could be your phone # + 4-digit PIN. If either is incorrect, then it won't work.-- 21 Quest, Nov 03 2006 ... yanno, if there was a service desk right there, why couldn't they arrange for the service desk person to have a key, remove forgotten cards immediately, and then check ID to return to customers?
Bun for an alternative to stupid secuirty measures.-- gisho, Nov 03 2006 How bout a voice that says "Take your card". I know this would not work for the hearing impaired so a flashing screen might be in order as well. Alot of the new ATM machines only allow for a swipe. Sorry bout your insurance.-- Chefboyrbored, Nov 03 2006 You ought to be glad that the machine got your card and not someone else. If you would have dropped it lost it in the mall, you still would be waiting 2 weeks for a new card. Also, what if you were the 20th person that day to get their card stuck in the machine? How do you know that you would get the right card back? Many people use the same pin number that follows a particular pattern like straight down the middle (2580) or a circular pattern of 1793 or 2486 or even 1234.-- Jscotty, Nov 03 2006 Note to self: Change pin number..He is on to me.-- Chefboyrbored, Nov 03 2006 I am glad the machine got my card. I'd be a lot more glad if it would give it back. Had I dropped it, that would be different. But knowing it's 2 feet away from me and not being allowed to have it adds insult to injury. As far as predictable PIN's, that why I suggested a special, more individualized retrieval PIN. Hell, you could include the CVV number on the back for added security/accuracy.-- 21 Quest, Nov 03 2006 [Chefboyrbored] //Note to self: Change pin number..He is on to me.//
Yikes! He guessed one of mine too! Mine happens to be the last four digits of a work phone I had 10 years ago but....-- MoreCowbell, Nov 03 2006 ATMs in UK display a message "Take your card and wait for your cash"; I wonder if they could detect card removal, and not spit your cash out until then. Of course, this wouldn't help if you just want a balance enquiry.-- angel, Nov 03 2006 //Yikes! He guessed one of mine too//
[Jscotty] is good. I'll give him that much, he's very, very good. No security measures are safe around him, he's that good.
On idea- If you tickle the bottom of the ATM near the back left foot, sometimes you can get it to spit up what it just ate.
...or is that my dog? Whatever.-- NotTheSharpestSpoon, Nov 03 2006 Im all for this. PIN (to identify which card) + SS# will do the trick. If theres a guy out there with your bank pin # and SS# you got bigger things to worry about.
Still I wouldnt like this automated. Ideally youd have to call the bank to unlock the card for this kind of retrieval. I doubt the tellers can access the ATMs directly. If so they would already have some kind of retrieval option in place like giving you a random number to put in.
This does go against good ATM design. Most banks are building foyers that require a card to open the door. If you dont have a card you cant get it and the bank cant tell people to ask other people to let them in. I also dont want shady people hanging around the ATM telling me "i lost my card" as they keep punching in numbers.
I think the best solution would be for the bank manager to be an ATM admin with limited rights. One of which is using an access card which will bring up an eject card screen. But I would think all the extra work and mechanical doodads (who says the machine is even capable of releasing the card after it takes it?) isnt worth it. 2 weeks is still pretty ridiculous though.-- lowbot, Nov 03 2006 Down here in Florida, my ATM won't dispense the cash until after you take the card out of the slot. AND it tells you "Please remove your card" with a nice lady voice.-- Barbecue, Nov 06 2006 I like nice lady voice. It nice.-- NotTheSharpestSpoon, Nov 06 2006 Most ATMs I have been to dont give you your cash till you take your card. Thats one way of doing it. They also beep the hell at you if you dont take the card.-- energy guy, Nov 06 2006 Same here. "Please remove your card" "Please remove big wodga cash"
Seems a bit nutty to do it the other way around.-- squeak, Nov 06 2006 I assume that this function would only allow you to retrieve the TOP card that's in there (e.g. it wouldn't scan all the cards to see if any one of them matched the PIN you entered). You could get your card back provided no one after you had also had their card eaten by the machine.-- phundug, Nov 06 2006 how would this work on a third party ATM? Will it be encoded on hte magstripe as well? I've been to several ATMs which dont even take your card, you insert and immedately remove like at a gas pump. it doesent read the stripe until you remove the card. what we need is some continuity amongst ATMs, (i almost made a redundancy error there. {ATM machine} whew!) so we can all get in the habit of doing it.-- bleh, Nov 06 2006 How about an ATM that measures your height and if you don't take you card 5 seconds after the receipt is printed it shoots the card (gently) at your midsection.-- craziness, Nov 06 2006 That's not a bad idea, craziness, but if you don't know it's going to shoot it out at you and happen to be wearing a thick sweater or coat you might not feel it hit you. Then it drops on the ground and somebody steals it.-- 21 Quest, Nov 08 2006 I especially like that it would measure your height. Not content to just fling your card at you, it takes specific measures to make sure that it hit you.
What [angel], [Barbecue], [energy guy] and [squeak] said.
A mate of mine had his card swallowed by a machine that chose to use the precise moment that he was using it to develop an error. Luckily it was a machine directly outside a bank and he was able to go inside and convince the manager to let him have his card back.-- hidden truths, Nov 08 2006 [hidden truths] your friend is lucky, not all of us use ATMs that are located outside or close to a bank and even if we do, not all bank managers will rush to get an ATM opened. I believe the best option is that of forcing the user to remove the card before the request is obliged, be it account/balance enquiries or actual cash withdrawal.-- DubbyDubby, Nov 08 2006 I recently left my card in an ATM at a bank. Figured it out the next day, gave them a call, they confirmed it and they told me to come over with an id and they gave me the card back. I was surprised the ATM had allowed me to take money without removing the card and I agree that this should not be possible.-- jmvw, Nov 08 2006 I bank with a credit union. I left my card in a Bank of America machine. I was S.O.L.-- 21 Quest, Nov 08 2006 \\I was S.O.L.\\ What does this mean? All I can imagine is Swearing Out Loud.-- hidden truths, Nov 08 2006 Shit Out of Luck. One of my favourite American expressions.-- stilgar, Nov 10 2006 Well actually, I was both... but stilgar has it right.-- 21 Quest, Nov 10 2006 I also like 'sumbitch'. They sure can cuss well here.-- stilgar, Nov 11 2006 Does it help that I was an aircraft mechanic, stilgar? I learned lots of "sentence enhancers" there....-- 21 Quest, Nov 11 2006 Cool, I've not experienced much avionic obscenity, enhance away.-- stilgar, Nov 11 2006 random, halfbakery