About 150,000 Commonwealth Bank customers have today pocketed a free $50 deposit to their bank account, after being left short-changed due to a recent network outage.

The network crash left millions of Commonwealth Bank (CBA) customers unable to make payments or access their money last Thursday, while some had to wait several days for funds – such as salaries – to clear.
The bank announced on Tuesday that it would refund fees and charges associated with the 12-hour network outage.
This morning some CBA customers, who still hadn’t received their wages on Saturday and Sunday due to the outage, woke up to an extra $50 in their bank accounts. The deposit carried this simple description: “Sorry from CBA”.
“Commonwealth Bank has made a payment into the accounts of customers who were unable to access their funds over the weekend, due to the delay in payments,” CBA confirmed on its website today.
lol did commbank really just send me $50 and a sorry because of last thursday’s outtage? pic.twitter.com/73U7rNv3zc
— s. (@pieceofcupcakes) October 22, 2019
But not all of its 8 million-plus customers who were left stranded with no money at some point during the outage have received the refund.
Those eligible would receive it automatically into their bank accounts, but the bank said any customer could contact CBA if they have any issues or questions regarding their payments.
@CommBank apparently you guys are depositing $50 into accounts of those who were affected. I couldn’t access my money when I needed it most and haven’t received anything. The outage meant I couldn’t buy food or pay for my petrol and put me in tough spot. pic.twitter.com/ewugusMUEU
— emily (@emilymissmay) October 23, 2019
CBA said at 11.30am AEDT today on its website that all missing funds should now be in customer accounts and again apologised to everyone affected by the delay in payments.
In case it happens again, here’s what customers can do to survive a bank outage in Australia.
CommBank issues scammer warning after outage
For those who are eligible for a $50 deposit, CBA said it would not be contacting any customers to obtain their account details in order to process the payment.
“If a customer is approached for their account details they should not provide this and the customer should let us know by phoning our call centre or visiting us in branch,” the bank said.
Image source: Olga Kashubin (Shutterstock)
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