As of: February 17, 2024, 5:02 a.m
By: Hannah Blanket
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A savings bank sends a reminder letter because of an AfD donation.
It was probably an accident.
However, banks are allowed to intervene in payments in certain cases.
Hamm - A customer received a letter from Sparkasse Mittelfranken-Süd about a donation to the AfD.
According to media reports, it said that the recipient of the payment had a right-wing extremist orientation and that the savings bank did not accept such payments.
A spokesman for the financial institution speaks of a “human error”.
We apologized to the affected customer.
The question remains: When are banks allowed to intervene in payments?
Dunning letter about AfD donations: When banks intervene in payments
When asked by
wa.de
, Volker Willner, press spokesman for the Westphalia-Lippe Savings Bank Association in North Rhine-Westphalia , explains that there are certainly cases in which banks have to intervene.
There are people, organizations and companies that are on financial sanctions lists.
According to Willner, these are issued by the federal government or the financial regulator.
“No money can then be transferred there,” explains the savings bank spokesman.
Whether online or by traditional transfer, banks can prohibit or at least withhold payments in certain cases.
(Symbolic image) © Imago
A current example: Against the backdrop of Russia's war of aggression across Ukraine, the European Union imposed sanctions against Russia.
These include, among other things, that no funds may be made available to certain people, organizations and institutions.
In addition, certain Russian credit institutions were excluded from the international banking network SWIFT.
A spokesman for Sparkasse Mittelfranken-Süd also explained, according to the
German Press Agency
, that as a public credit institution, all social groups and people, regardless of their political goals, are given access to credit services.
Other things only apply to parties and associations that have been legally determined to be unconstitutional.
Suspicious transfers: Banks can withhold payments
Payments to recipients who are on sanctions lists are automatically filtered out and stopped by the banks.
The situation is different with certain “abnormalities,” as Volker Willner explains.
“If there are any anomalies, payments can be withheld in order to ask the payment originator again whether this is correct.”
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As an example, the Sparkasse spokesman cites a sum of money that is transferred abroad even though the customer has never made such a transfer.
Even exceptionally large sums could result in the bank initially withholding payment.
Keyword: grandchild trick.
A bank employee in Hamm recently saved an 81-year-old from paying a considerable sum to fraudsters.
According to Willner, in such cases it is important to rule out misuse.
In this area, the Sparkasse is now increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) “to identify appropriate transfers,” explains the spokesman.
It would not be possible to have employees review thousands of payments per day.
Caution: It is not always real bank employees who contact customers.
A 79-year-old woman from Lünen lost 18,000 euros in a scam because she fell for the wrong bank employee.