Thousands of Desjardins members are dealing with unexpected withdrawals after a computer problem caused certain pre-programmed Interac e-Transfers to be processed twice over the weekend.
The issue happened Sunday, November 1, when many people had scheduled their monthly rent and other payments. Some members suddenly found themselves with twice the amount taken out of their accounts, creating financial headaches at the beginning of the month.
Desjardins has confirmed that approximately 2,000 pre-programmed Interac transfers were duplicated. The institution says the problem was limited to certain scheduled transactions and did not affect every Interac transfer.
On Monday, Desjardins acknowledged the problem and apologized to affected members.
Mathieu Staniulis, vice-president of Products and Solutions at Desjardins, said the financial institution would correct the situation, refund the duplicate transactions and cover any fees caused by the problem.
The institution says the technical issue has been resolved and that its teams are working to make sure affected members do not suffer financial consequences.
Desjardins also confirmed that the problem was not connected to its ongoing modernization of its credit card management system, which involves American company Fiserv.
Desjardins initially advised members to contact the person or business that received the duplicate payment to recover the extra money.
If a duplicate transfer has not yet been accepted, members can cancel it through AccèsD.
To check or cancel a transfer, members can:
- Log into AccèsD.
- Go to the Interac transfer section.
- Check the status of their transfers.
- Cancel a duplicate payment if it has not been accepted.
If the duplicate payment has already been accepted and the money cannot be recovered directly from the recipient, members should contact their Desjardins caisse for assistance.
Desjardins has said it will correct the duplicate transactions and reimburse fees caused by the incident.
The problem came at the beginning of the month, when many households have rent, mortgage payments and other bills coming out of their accounts.
For people living paycheque to paycheque, an unexpected second withdrawal can mean trouble paying other expenses, even if the money is eventually returned.
The incident has also raised concerns among members about the reliability of scheduled payments and the importance of checking account activity.
The Interac issue follows reports last week of problems involving credit card payments made through Desjardins.
Some members reported that payments intended for credit cards at other financial institutions had not been processed properly following maintenance work on the AccèsD platform.
Those delays left some customers concerned about outstanding balances and interest charges.
Desjardins says the duplicate Interac transfers were a separate technical problem.
Members are encouraged to review their recent transactions and contact their caisse if they notice duplicate withdrawals or unexpected fees.
Desjardins says it regrets the inconvenience and is working to ensure affected members are not left out of pocket.