With wallets being squeezed and the cost of living rising, the idea of randomly depositing millions of dollars may feel like winning the lottery.
That’s what happened to TikTok user @shawnainchapterland, who went viral after she said Fidelity Investments mistakenly wired a whopping $8.7 million into her account.
According to a recent Newsweek article, she said she immediately called the company to report the bug, prompting a wave of comments from users who said they wouldn’t say a word (1).
In a viral TikTok, @shawnainchapterland said notifying Fidelity of the mistake was her “biggest regret.” “I can see this chaos on a beach in the Seychelles right now,” @shawnainchapterland said in her TikTok caption (2).
However, while the idea of suddenly gaining millions of dollars may feel like a dream, the reality is far less glamorous. If she spends the money, this is what will happen.
Unlike lottery winnings, mistaken deposits are not something you keep.
Keeping funds sent to you in error often falls under a legal doctrine called unjust enrichment. This means that if you receive money in error, you must return it as the cost of retaining the money will be borne by the sender(3).
Even if you’re not at fault, or don’t realize it at first, things can escalate if you spend the money in your account.
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), if a deposit is made to your account in error, your bank or credit union can remove it without your permission once the error is discovered (4).
How an erroneous transfer is recovered depends entirely on how the funds were originally sent:
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ACH Transfer (Automated Clearing House): The formal refund process for correcting erroneous federal payments (5).
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Wire transfers: Governed by Article 4A of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). The sender has the right to recover erroneous payments(6).
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Brokerage errors: The firm can correct the error and file a claim for compensation(7).
But what if you’ve already spent the money?
Just like any other outstanding debt, the situation can escalate. Depending on state laws and circumstances, a bank may freeze your account, file a lawsuit to get your funds back, garnish your wages, or report an unpaid debt to a credit bureau, which may affect your credit score(8).
If prosecutors believe someone knowingly kept and used money they knew was not theirs, the next step may be to file criminal charges under state theft or fraud laws.
Read more: The average American net worth is a surprising $620,654. But that makes almost no sense. Here are the numbers that matter (and how to make them soar)
Real-world cases show how serious it can become.
In 2020, Citibank made a huge mistake when acting as a loan agent for Revlon, wired nearly $900 million to the cosmetics company’s lenders(9). It turned into a Wall Street horror story about wire transfers gone wrong when some asset managers refused to return their share of the errant funds.
Another Louisiana woman allegedly spent $1 million after money was mistakenly deposited into her account(10). Brokerage firm Charles Schwab claims Kelyn Spadoni refused to return funds mistakenly deposited and ignored their attempts to contact her, The Guardian reported. Spadoni was arrested for theft, bank fraud and illegal transfer of monetary funds.
According to Experian, what to do if an unexpected deposit comes into your account(11):
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Don’t spend or transfer it
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Tell your bank immediately
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Keep everything in writing
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Keep an eye on your account
When average Americans feel their budgets are tight, it’s easy to see why the idea of ”breaking the system” strikes a nerve. Research from the Pew Research Center shows that public perceptions of banks and financial institutions are mostly negative (12).
So when comment sections are flooded with people saying they’ll spend the wrong money, it’s probably a reflection of wishful thinking and frustration rather than realistic advice.
A wrong deposit isn’t a windfall like winning the lottery; it’s just a mistake.
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Newsweek (1); @shawnainchapterland (2); Cornell Law School (3); Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (4, 8); Federal Reserve (5, 6); SECLaw.com (7); Reuters (9); The Guardian (10); Experian (11); Pew Research Center (12)
This article provides information only and should not be considered advice. It is provided without any warranty of any kind.
