What is the punishment for not returning money mistakenly deposited into your account, and what are the bank's rules?

Bank Recovery Rules: If money is mistakenly deposited into someone's account and they refuse to return it, it is considered a crime. In such cases, the bank can file a complaint, and if found guilty, the person may face serious consequences.

Bank Recovery Rules: Sometimes, errors occur in bank transactions, resulting in someone else's money being deposited into your account. Seeing a sudden increase in their balance, many people initially think it's a refund or some kind of payment from the bank. Some even spend the money without checking. However, legally, this money does not belong to you. You haven't earned it, nor was it given to you.

This is an amount that has been wrongly deposited into your account. In such a situation, it is the account holder's responsibility to immediately inform the bank. If a person deliberately keeps this money, spends it, or refuses to return it, the matter becomes a criminal offense, which can lead to imprisonment. Learn how the bank recovers the money in such cases.

What happens if you keep money that was mistakenly deposited?

Many people believe that once the money is in their account, they have a right to it. However, this is absolutely not true. If you know that the money is not yours and yet you use it, the law considers it a criminal breach of trust. In such cases, a case is filed under Section 316 of the Indian Penal Code.

This section applies to situations where a person temporarily receives someone else's property or money and misuses it or refuses to return it. If found guilty, the person can face imprisonment for up to three years, a fine, or both.

How does the bank recover the money?

When the bank discovers that money has been mistakenly deposited into an account, it first sends an official notice to the account holder. If the person cooperates, the matter ends there. However, if they refuse or have already spent the money, the bank files a complaint with the police. Following this, a criminal case is filed under Section 316 of the BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita).

Upon conviction by the court, along with the sentence, recovery proceedings are initiated. The bank can file a case in the civil court to recover the money from the accused's property, bank balance, salary, or other movable and immovable assets. In short, keeping money received by mistake is not a minor matter.