Bank Code Bank Code Errors 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A wire transfer was sent to the wrong account due to a routing number error. What should the sender do first?
- File a police report
- Contact their bank immediately to initiate a wire recall (Correct answer)
- Wait for the recipient to return the funds
- Contact the Federal Reserve
Correct answer: Contact their bank immediately to initiate a wire recall
The sender should immediately contact their bank to initiate a wire recall, as speed is critical — the sooner you act, the better the chance of recovery.
Question 2: What does it mean when a check is returned with the notation 'Refer to Maker'?
- The routing number is invalid
- The bank cannot process the check and is referring the issue back to the check writer (Correct answer)
- The account has been closed
- The check amount exceeds daily limits
Correct answer: The bank cannot process the check and is referring the issue back to the check writer
Refer to Maker means the bank cannot honor the check for an unspecified reason and is directing the payee to contact the person who wrote the check.
Question 3: If you accidentally provide your savings account routing number instead of your checking account routing number for direct deposit, what typically happens?
- The deposit is automatically redirected to the correct account
- The deposit goes to the savings account instead of checking (Correct answer)
- The deposit is rejected and returned
- Nothing happens until payroll is notified
Correct answer: The deposit goes to the savings account instead of checking
If you provide a savings account's routing and account number instead of checking, the deposit is directed to the savings account, which may cause issues if it's a money market or restricted account.
Question 4: What error occurs when a routing number passes the check digit validation but still fails to identify a valid bank?
- R04 — Invalid Account Number
- R03 — No Account / Unable to Locate Account
- A routing validation error at the Federal Reserve (Correct answer)
- R06 — Returned per ODFI's Request
Correct answer: A routing validation error at the Federal Reserve
A routing number can pass the mathematical check digit test but still fail if the number has not been assigned to any bank — this triggers a routing validation error at the Federal Reserve level.
Question 5: What is a 'nostro account' discrepancy in the context of international bank code errors?
- When a SWIFT code is entered incorrectly
- A mismatch between what two banks each record as the balance in their shared correspondent account (Correct answer)
- When an IBAN has an invalid check digit
- A currency conversion error in a wire transfer
Correct answer: A mismatch between what two banks each record as the balance in their shared correspondent account
A nostro account discrepancy occurs when two correspondent banks disagree on the balance recorded in their shared interbank account, often due to coding or timing errors.
Question 6: Which tool can verify whether a US routing number is valid before submitting an ACH payment?
- The FDIC BankFind database
- The ABA routing number lookup tool at routingnumber.aba.com (Correct answer)
- The Federal Reserve's Fedwire directory
- The CFPB complaint database
Correct answer: The ABA routing number lookup tool at routingnumber.aba.com
The ABA offers a routing number lookup tool at routingnumber.aba.com that allows verification of whether a routing number is valid and which bank it belongs to.
Bank Code Bank Code Errors 2
A wire transfer was sent to the wrong account due to a routing number error.
What should the sender do first?