American Bank Customers,
Our updated Funds Availability Policy will take effect on July 1, 2020. Changes are bolded below.
FUNDS AVAILABILITY POLICY – Effective July 1, 2020
PURPOSE OF THIS DISCLOSURE. Our general policy is to allow you to withdraw funds deposited in a transaction account on the first Business Day after the day of deposit. Funds from electronic direct deposits will be available on the day we receive the deposit. In some cases, we may delay your ability to withdraw funds beyond the first Business Day after the day of deposit. Our complete policy is summarized below.
For purposes of this disclosure, the terms “you”/”your” refer to the customer and the terms “our”/”we”/”us” refer to American Bank.
Generally, transaction accounts are accounts which would permit an unlimited number of payments by check to third persons, and also an unlimited number of telephonic and preauthorized transfers to third persons or other accounts you may have with us.
DETERMINING THE AVAILABILITY OF YOUR DEPOSIT. The length of the delay varies depending on the type of deposit and is explained below. When we delay your ability to withdraw funds from a deposit, you may not withdraw the funds in cash, and we will not pay checks you have written on your account by using these funds. Even after we have made funds available to you and you have withdrawn the funds, you are still responsible for checks you deposit that are returned to us unpaid and for any other problems involving your deposit.
When we delay your ability to withdraw funds, the length of the delay is counted in Business Days from the day of your deposit. The term “Business Day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or federally declared legal holiday, and the term “Banking Day” means that part of any Business Day on which we are open to the public for carrying on substantially all of our banking functions.
If you make a deposit before the close of business on a Business Day that we are open, we will consider that day to be the day of your deposit. However, if you make a deposit after the close of business or on a day that we are not open, we will consider the deposit made on the next Business Day we are open.
AVAILABILITY SCHEDULE. Our policy is to make funds from your cash and check deposits available to you on the first Business Day after the day we receive your deposit. Electronic direct deposits will be available on the day we receive the deposit. Once the funds are available, you can withdraw them in cash and we will use them to pay checks that you have written.
LONGER DELAYS MAY APPLY. In some cases, we will not make all of the funds that you deposit by check available to you according to the previously stated availability schedule. Depending on the type of check that you deposit, funds may not be available until the second Business Day after the day of your deposit. The first $225.00 of your deposits, however, may be available on the first Business Day after the day of deposit.
If we are not going to make all of the funds from your deposit available to you according to the previously stated availability schedule, we will notify you at the time you make your deposit. We will also tell you when the funds will be available. If your deposit is not made directly to one of our employees, or if we decide to take this action after you have left the premises, we will mail you the notice by the day after we receive your deposit. If you will need the funds from a deposit right away, you should ask us when the funds will be available.
Funds you deposit by check may be delayed for a longer period under the following circumstances:
- if we believe a check you deposit will not be paid;
- if you deposit checks totaling more than $5,525 on any one day;
- if you redeposit a check that has been returned unpaid;
- if you have overdrawn your account repeatedly in the last six months; or
- if an emergency condition arises that would not enable us to make the funds available to you, such as the failure of computer or communications equipment.
We will notify you if we delay your ability to withdraw funds for any of these reasons, and we will tell you when the funds will be available. They will generally be available no later than the seventh Business Day after the day of your deposit. If you will need the funds from a deposit right away, you should ask us when the funds will be available.
SPECIAL RULES FOR NEW ACCOUNTS. If you are a new customer, the following special rules may apply during the first 30 days your account is open.
Funds from electronic direct deposits to your account will be available on the day we receive the deposit. Funds from deposits of cash, wire transfers, and the first $5,525 of a day’s total deposits of cashier’s, certified, teller’s, traveler’s, and federal, state and local government checks will be available on the first Business Day after the day of deposit if the deposit meets certain conditions. For example, the checks must be payable to you (and you may have to use a special deposit slip). The excess over $5,525 will be available on the ninth Business Day after the day of your deposit. If your deposit of these checks (other than a U.S. Treasury check) is not made in person to one of our employees, the first $5,525 will not be available until the second Business Day after the day of deposit.
Other Check Deposits. Funds from all other check deposits will be available on the second Business Day after the day of deposit.
FOREIGN CHECKS. Checks drawn on financial institutions outside of the U.S. (foreign checks) cannot be processed the same as checks drawn on U.S. financial institutions. Foreign checks are exempt from the policies outlined in this disclosure. Generally, the availability of funds from deposits of foreign checks will be delayed for the time it takes us to collect the funds from the financial institutions upon which they are drawn.