{"id":1212697,"date":"2023-12-18T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-18T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1212697"},"modified":"2023-12-18T13:30:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T18:30:00","slug":"four-ways-an-atm-can-ruin-your-day-and-how-to-protect-yourself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prime-wow.com\/?p=1212697","title":{"rendered":"Four Ways an ATM Can Ruin Your Day (and How to Protect Yourself)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cash may increasingly seem like a relic of a bygone age (less than 10%<\/a> of Americans use cash as their primary way of paying for stuff these days), but paper money is still useful. Sure, it\u2019s almost impossible to live a cash-only life<\/a> these days, but when emergencies hit and the power and data connections shut down, cash is still king<\/a>. Even if you rarely use cash, chances are you have a debit card linked to your bank accounts and use it at an ATM from time to time.<\/p>\n

ATMs are pretty reliable and secure as long you take some basic precautions and stay abreast of the clever scams people employ to rob you<\/a>. But like any machine or computer, ATMs can malfunction\u2014and when they do it\u2019s often much more than a simple inconvenience, because it involves your money. Bounced checks, late fees\u2014the consequences of getting screwed over by your ATM can be disastrous. You can\u2019t necessarily predict when an ATM is going to ruin your day, but you can be aware of what can go wrong and how to deal with each scenario. Here are all the ways an ATM can screw you over\u2014and what to do about it.<\/p>\n

When an ATM give you the wrong amount of cash<\/h2>\n

The primary way people use ATMs is to withdraw cash from their accounts. Usually, this is a pretty straightforward process: You insert or tap your card, punch in your personal identification number (PIN), and follow on-screen instructions to choose the account you\u2019re accessing and the amount of money you want.<\/p>\n

If that particular ATM is in the mood to screw you, one of two things happens next: You don\u2019t get any cash, or you get too much<\/em> cash. While the latter situation might seem like cause for celebration, chances are your bank will figure out what happened eventually and you may be hit with penalties for keeping the cash\u2014or have your account closed entirely. So whether it\u2019s zero cash or just an incorrect amount of it, you need to take a few steps:<\/p>\n