Man's account accidentally overdrawn by $2 million
Sydney man Calum Mawson recently suffered the expensive consequences of what he said was a bizarre corporate error, but which others have called a typing mishap.
It started when Mawson went to pay his A$225 (US$161) Telstra phone bill Friday. Everything seemed normal, but he got a surprise when he saw the receipt. He'd somehow wound up handing over $2,250,623 (US$1,612,526) -- just a casual couple of million he didn't have.
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"I was pretty shocked to put it lightly," he told Mashable Australia. Mawson called Telstra's customer service staff, who he said assured him the outrageous amount would not go through.
The next day, however, he woke up at a friend's house, went to order an Uber and was rejected for having insufficient funds. "It ruined me for the weekend, I just had absolutely no money," he said.
After he called the Commonwealth Bank, the staff helped him out, he said, suggesting they were shocked the amount had even been approved for withdrawal.
By Monday afternoon, everything had been returned, and the bank said his credit rating wouldn't be affected.
Telstra, for its part, attributed the incident to Mawson's own error when paying his bill. "We are sorry the customer has had to experience this but this is the result of accidental user error," a spokesperson told Mashable Australia. "We have worked with him and his financial institution to resolve the issue."
The Commonwealth Bank suggested the same. "We understand errors such as this can be distressing for anyone and we always want to ensure we can assist as soon as we can," a spokesperson told Mashable Australia. "When making bill payments or account transfers it is important to double check all amounts and details you enter."
Mawson rejects the idea he made a mistake typing out the amount. "I 100 percent did not do that," he insisted.
The whole experience has left him feeling a little jaded. "Commonwealth [Bank] sorted everything out and were helpful, but Telstra's customer service has been horrific," he added.
But Mawson's got the yarn, at least, and the press furore to go with it. "I just feel like it's one of the more outrageous stories I've ever heard, and it's happened to me."
UPDATE: May 25, 2016, 4:56 p.m. AEST Commonwealth Bank statement added.
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Ariel Bogle was an associate editor with Mashable in Australia covering technology. Previously, Ariel was associate editor at Future Tense in Washington DC, an editorial initiative between Slate and New America.
