UNDERSTANDING SIGNATURE CARDS AND ACCOUNT AGREEMENTS

Overview:

The signature card and account agreement is the most important document on the deposit side of the bank.  It is in this document that many regulations and state ownership issues merge.  Historically, the signature card was a small three by five index card where we housed sample signatures for our account owners.  Today the signature card and account agreement house the W-9, proof of receipt of federal disclosures, state ownership and many of the legal issues of checks.  It is an amazing document and varies some from state to state and financial institution to financial institution. 

This program is designed to help you break down and understand your signature card and account agreement.  It will help you to understand and build better relations and understanding with your customers.  

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:

• Legal Ownership of accounts
• W-9 requirements
• Legal issues of checks:  post-dated, state-dated, rights and liabilities
• What happens when your card is incomplete
• Legal stuff that is helpful to have in your agreement regarding check legends, power of attorney, and other outside documents.
• What does your card say about the right of offset
• The danger of whiteout, highlighting, lining through names and penciling in changes on existing accounts

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

Customer Service Representatives, New Accounts Representatives, Personal Bankers, Branch Administration, Retail Operations and anyone who opens deposit accounts or manages this function.