Here’s a story which illustrates why you or someone you trust needs to look at your out of home company’s bank balances every day.  Billboard Insider talked with an out of home company owner who had a rent dispute with a landlord.  One day the billboard company owner happened to look at his out of home company bank account and found an ACH debit for the disputed rent amount.  The landlord had taken his company’s banking information off his last rent check and used the information to originate an electronic debit against his bank account using the Automated Clearing House network by which banks clear electronic transactions.  Some things to know about ACH’s

• Any business check contains the information (checking account number, bank name and ABA routing number) to originate an ACH.
• Before someone takes an ACH they need your authorization in writing to take the ACH.  Sometimes this is a separate form.  Sometimes the permission is built into an ad or lease or loan contract.
• Most online banking platforms do not ask the originator to prove they have permission before originating an ACH against someone else.  If you take an ACH without permission the transaction can be challenged and unwound but that takes time and is a hassle.

The billboard company called the landlord and told them they had taken the payment illegally and to never take any ACH’s again.  This highlights the importance of checking your bank account every day.  People try fraudulent transactions all the time.  You can’t afford to wait for a month to know that someone is trying to steal money from your bank account.  If someone gets away with a fraudulent transaction they will repeat it, sometimes in ever increasing amounts, until you discover it.  The best way to be aware is to look at your bank balance once a day to make sure you understand what transactions are occurring.

You should apply the same vigilance to credit cards.   Look at the balance every so often or sign up to be notified of the balance once a day or once a week.  A month is a long long time to permit someone to be running up fraudulent charges.

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