An ATM ate my checks

I went to deposit two checks this evening. The machine apparently crashed. I was able to highlight text on the screen. After about 10 minutes it auto-rebooted, and still having my card inside asked me to continue my transaction, until finally stating in text, “Sorry, it was not possible to return your check.” It didn’t deposit them, either.

At least I got my card back. I guess. I don’t know, I kinda don’t like this credit union anyhow, so depending on how they deal with this tomorrow, I may be looking elsewhere. Fortunately I got a couple of videos showing the issue and catching that error message, which blinked on the screen and then was gone. I’ve taken it for granted that we use computers hooked up to touchscreens and keypads to process our banking activities.

If the machine crashed with your card and checks in it on a Friday night, what would you do? I asked a few people coming to use the machine as I waited around looking vaguely threatening until they saw why I was just hanging out by the ATM. No one had a clue.