ACCOUNT INFORMATION
CHECKING, SAVINGS, AND TIME DEPOSIT
DISCLOSURE INFORMATION
Your Community Banker
™
Deposit Agreement
and Disclosure
Contents
Introduction .................................................................. 1
Important Information about Procedures for
Opening a New Account ........................................... 2
Definitions ..................................................................... 3
Fees, Service and Other Charges ............................. 4
Your Deposits ............................................................... 5
Checks and Other Deposits.......................................... 5
Lost Items and Delayed Returns ................................... 8
Check Truncation......................................................... 8
Post-Dated and Stale-Dated Checks ............................. 8
Stop Payment Orders for Checks ............................... 10
Checks with Legends Conditioning Payment ............. 11
Endorsements............................................................. 11
Signatures Generally ................................................... 12
Sample Signatures ...................................................... 13
Facsimile, Mechanical or Electronic Signatures .......... 13
Remotely Created Checks .......................................... 14
Check Conversion Into ACH Debit Entries ............... 15
Safeguarding Blank and Cancelled Checks ................. 15
Check Printing ........................................................... 15
Foreign Currency Instruments.................................... 16
Check Processing........................................................ 16
Your Transfers and Withdrawals ........................... 17
Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and Other
Electronic Withdrawals .............................................. 18
Federally Required Notice for Withdrawals from
Interest-Bearing Accounts .......................................... 18
Transaction Limitations .............................................. 19
Large Cash Withdrawals ............................................. 19
Processing Your Transactions ................................. 19
Order of Payment, and Overdraft Fees and Services ... 19
Overdrawn Accounts .................................................. 19
Managing Your Account .......................................... 20
Compliance with Laws, Rules, and Regulations ......... 20
Cash Reporting .......................................................... 21
Cuto Hours .............................................................. 21
Fraud Prevention Guidelines ...................................... 22
Authorized Signers ..................................................... 23
Reserve Account ........................................................ 24
Security Interest ......................................................... 24
Registered Warrants ................................................. 24
Electronic Signatures, Contracts and Records .... 26
Communications ........................................................ 27
Communications and When ey are
Deemed Received ....................................................... 27
Electronic Communications...................................................28
Additional Electronic Notication Provisions for
Consumer Accounts ................................................... 29
Consent For Us to Contact You By E-mail
and Phone .................................................................. 29
Change of Name, Contact information or Authorized
Signers........................................................................ 30
Additional Information about Your Accounts
and Transactions ........................................................ 31
FDIC Insurance ......................................................... 31
Seto .......................................................................... 31
Legal Process .............................................................. 32
Disputed Payments .................................................... 33
Early Withdrawal Penalties ......................................... 33
Electronic Presentment ............................................... 33
ird-Parties and ird-Party Fees ............................. 34
Transactions by Persons Who Are Not Bank Customers .... 34
Information About You and Your Account ................. 34
Safe Deposit Box Disclosures ..................................... 34
Dormant Accounts ..................................................... 35
Escheat ....................................................................... 35
Right to Close or Suspend Account ............................ 35
Death or Incapacity of Depositor ............................... 37
Direct Deposits .......................................................... 37
Suspected Forgeries/Alterations: Review of
Your Account ............................................................. 37
Disputes .................................................................... 39
Power of Attorney ...................................................... 40
Changing Accounts .................................................... 41
Account Structure ...................................................... 41
Opening Additional Accounts .................................... 41
Taxpayer Identication Number................................. 41
Limitation of Liability; Hold Harmless and
Indemnity .................................................................. 42
Legibility of Deposited Checks ................................... 44
Legibility of Issuer’s Checks ........................................ 44
Funds Availability Policy ......................................... 45
Your Ability to Withdraw Funds ................................ 45
Longer Delays May Apply .......................................... 45
Special Rules for New Accounts ................................. 46
Holds on Other Funds (Check Cashing) .................... 46
Holds on Other Funds (Other Account) .................... 46
Substitute Checks and Your Rights ....................... 46
What is a Substitute Check? ....................................... 46
What are my rights regarding Substitute Checks? ....... 47
How do I make a Claim for a Refund? ....................... 47
Electronic Fund Transfer Services .......................... 48
Your “ATM Card” and Your “ATM/Debit Card” ........ 48
Transfer Types ............................................................ 48
Issuance of a Card ...................................................... 49
Protecting the Card and PIN...................................... 49
Stay Safe at the ATM ................................................. 50
Account Linkages ....................................................... 50
Designation of Primary Transaction Account ............. 50
Designation of Primary vs. Other Accounts ............... 50
Limitations Generally ................................................. 50
Dollar Limits .............................................................. 51
Available Funds .......................................................... 51
POS Purchases ........................................................... 51
Transactions Outside the United States ...................... 52
Fees ............................................................................ 52
Illegal Transactions ..................................................... 53
Shared Network ATMs .............................................. 53
Adustments ................................................................ 53
Deposit at ATMs - Deposit Verication ..................... 53
Documentation .......................................................... 53
Receipts at ATMs ....................................................... 54
When a Transaction is Posted ..................................... 54
Termination of Card Privileges ................................... 54
Changes in Terms Aecting Electronic Transactions ... 54
Termination of Electronic Fund Transfer Privileges .... 55
Accounts at May be Used ....................................... 55
Preauthorized Payments.......................................... 55
Financial Institution’s Liability ................................... 55
Automatic Account Updating Feature ........................ 56
Electronic Check Conversion ..................................... 56
Condentiality ........................................................... 56
Online Banking .......................................................... 56
In Case of Errors or Questions About Your Electronic
Transfer ...................................................................... 56
POS and Other Transactions Not Covered by
Regulation E .............................................................. 57
Contact in Event of Unauthorized Transfer ................ 57
Consumer Liability .................................................... 58
Visa’s Zero Liability Policy .......................................... 58
Transactions Outside of Visa ...................................... 59
Commercial Accounts ................................................ 59
ACH & Wire Transfers ............................................... 60
Individual and Multi-Party Accounts .................... 63
Individual Accounts ................................................... 63
Joint Accounts ............................................................ 63
Tenancy in Common ................................................. 64
Community Property ................................................. 64
Custodian for Minor .................................................. 64
Payable on Death (POD) Account ............................. 65
Totten Trust Account ................................................. 65
Trust and Other Fiduciary Accounts .......................... 65
Commercial Account Types ........................................ 66
Limitation on Time to Sue ......................................... 66
Dispute Resolution .................................................... 66
Miscellaneous ............................................................. 68
Bank Policies and Procedures ..................................... 68
Severability ................................................................. 68
Waivers ...................................................................... 68
Heading/Terms .......................................................... 68
Credit Reports, Financial and Other Information ...... 68
Additional Information ............................................ 70
Monitoring, Recording and Retaining ................. 70
Introduction
is Deposit Agreement and Disclosure (“Deposit
Agreement”), the signature card and all Additional
Documentation (as dened below) constitute your agreement
with us and set forth the terms and conditions of your deposit
accounts and services with the Bank. It is important that you
carefully review these documents and keep them for your
later reference. e Deposit Agreement contains important
information about your accounts and services, important terms
and agreements of the Bank that can be enforced by you, and
important terms and commitments made by you that can be
enforced by the Bank.
NOTE THAT THIS DEPOSIT AGREEMENT
INCLUDES IMPORTANT CONSUMER DISCLOSURES, INCLUDING
DISCLOSURES PROVIDED PURSUANT TO THE ELECTRONIC FUND
TRANSFER ACT AND THE EXPEDITED FUNDS AVAILABILITY ACT.
FURTHER NOTE; IF A DISPUTE ARISES BETWEEN YOU AND US,
THIS DEPOSIT AGREEMENT MAY REQUIRE THE DISPUTE TO
BE RESOLVED THROUGH ARBITRATION.
See the section titled
Dispute Resolution for further details.
Our business days are Monday through Friday, excluding
legal holidays.
When you sign a signature card (that is, our signature
card) and thereby accept the terms of this Deposit Agreement
whether in writing or electronically, and/or continue to have
an account with us, you and each authorized signer agree to
this Deposit Agreement and to the terms of any Additional
Documentation. Collectively, the signature card, this Deposit
Agreement and any Additional Documentation may be
referred to as the Deposit Agreement. e Deposit Agreement
applies to all deposit accounts you have with us and to the
services that are described in this Deposit Agreement or in the
Additional Documentation. e Deposit Agreement applies
to the Bank and to you and to banking transactions that
take place with us or otherwise at our oces. is Deposit
Agreement supersedes any previous deposit agreements with
us.
e terms of this Deposit Agreement and those in any
Additional Documentation may be changed (to include
amendments, modications, additions of new terms, or other
changes) at any time by the Bank without notice to you, except
as required by applicable law. Any change will take eect
immediately, unless stated otherwise in any notice we make
available to you. Unless otherwise expressly required by law,
a notice of the changes, or a copy of the revised Agreement
or schedule, may be sent to you to the address as it appears
on our records, by posting information in our oces, on our
website, or by otherwise making the information available to
you in writing or electronically. Unless otherwise set forth in
the change in terms notice, your continued use of an account
or service after notice of a change has been sent or made
available to you will constitute your consent to the change. If
you do not accept a change in terms, you may be required to
close an account or terminate a service. A change in terms may
(unless otherwise prohibited by law) apply to your existing
accounts and the funds already on deposit in them. Please read
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all communications from us carefully, and call the Bank if you
have questions or comments.
Except as stated herein, or as otherwise may be required by
law, the provisions of this Deposit Agreement are governed
by the applicable laws of the State of California and federal
law and applicable local clearinghouse rules, including the
operating circulars of the Federal Reserve Banks, as amended
from time to time. In addition, our rights under this Deposit
Agreement may be limited by laws, rules or regulations; to
the extent this is so, this Deposit Agreement is modied to
the extent needed to prevent representing that a transaction
confers or involves rights, remedies, or obligations which we
do not have or which are prohibited by law. However, where a
law, rule, or regulation that is not otherwise capable of being
modied by this Deposit Agreement results in a limitation on
the Bank’s rights, then the Bank’s rights under this Deposit
Agreement are limited to the extent (but only to the extent)
necessary to prevent a violation of that law, rule or regulation.
Important Information about Procedures
for Opening a New Account (Including USA
PATRIOT Act)
To help the government ght the funding of terrorism and
money laundering activities, federal law requires all nancial
institutions to obtain, verify, and record information that
identies each person who opens an account.
What this means to you: When you open an account,
we will ask for your name, address, date of birth, tax
identication number (TIN) and other information that will
allow us to identify you. We may also ask to see a driver’s
license or other identifying documents for account owners
and authorized users.
We may further ask you for specic information regarding
the nature of anticipated activity, the sources of your funds,
the purposes of transactions, the relationship you have with
persons to whom you send funds and persons who send
funds to you, the anticipated frequency of such transactions,
the ultimate beneciaries of funds you send and receive,
and other questions that may help us clarify the nature
and purpose of transactions. We may close accounts if we
are unable to understand the purpose of the account or
transactions, the structure of the organization, the authority
of the signers, the documentation provided or the general risk
associated with the establishment of the account. We may
elect not to disclose the specic reason for our action.
Owners for duciaries, partnerships, corporations, and
ctitious business names or other business entities may
also be asked at account opening and from time to time to
provide us with valid documentation of trust agreements (or
certication of trust), court orders, partnership agreements,
certicates of limited partnership, articles of incorporation,
and led ctitious business name statements, in addition to
any other documents deemed necessary by us. e Bank may
restrict access to any account, such as preventing withdrawals
and deposits, until requested documentation is provided.
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Definitions
In the Deposit Agreement, the term “check” includes a check
as dened under Federal Reserve Board Regulation CC (12
CFR Part 29) (for example, image replacement documents
or substitute checks, and remotely created checks), drafts,
withdrawal slips, items or similar instruments, as well as
paper or electronic images or copies of any of the foregoing.
e word “item” as used in this Deposit Agreement includes
a check, draft, demand draft, preauthorized draft, or other
order or instruction for the payment, transfer or withdrawal
of funds including a withdrawal slip, deposit slip/adjustment,
automatic transfers, electronic transactions, and miscellaneous
charges to your account. An item also means any other
document created or authorized in your name that would be
a check or draft but for the fact that it has not been signed.
e term “other deposit” means a deposit or credit to your
account that is not a check (for example, an incoming wire
transfer or electronic credit to your account). e term
“other payments” means a withdrawal or transfer from your
account that is not by check. Examples of “other payments”
are wire transfers and other payment orders or funds transfers
from your account, processed or rejected ATM or debit card
transactions, debits due to point-of-sale (POS) transactions,
bill payment instructions, telephone transfers, automatic
transfers, preauthorized debits or wire transfers, automated
clearing house or other electronic debits, or other orders or
instructions for the payment, transfer or withdrawal of funds.
“You” and “your” mean all account owners and all
authorized signers. An “account owner” includes each
individual, joint tenants, tenants in common, both spouses
on a community property account, the trustees of a trust and
the executors, administrators, and conservators acting under
letters of administration (notwithstanding ownership may
be in a duciary capacity). When only an account owner
is intended, this Deposit Agreement refers to an “account
owner”. Otherwise, the term “authorized signer” includes
all account owners. “Authorized signer” means persons
authorized by you or otherwise authorized to transact on
an account (for example, under your signature card). “We,”
“us,” “our” and similar terms refer to Westamerica Bank, also
referred to as the Bank.
“Additional Documentation” means agreements or
contracts, fee schedules (including our “Schedule of Fees
and Charges”), user guides, and other documentation that
the Bank delivers to you in connection with your opening
or use of an account or service. You agree to the Additional
Documentation applicable to an account or service if
you use the account or service or if you sign or otherwise
agree to another document that contains the Additional
Documentation. If there are inconsistencies between this
Deposit Agreement and any Additional Documentation, then
the terms of the Additional Documentation will govern.
Except to the extent otherwise dened herein, the term
“commercial account” shall mean an account that is not
primarily established for personal, family or household
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purposes. e term “consumer account” shall mean an
account that is primarily established for personal, family or
household purposes.
e word “may,” or “reserves the right” or similar language
when used in reference to action or inaction by the Bank,
is permissive and means that the Bank is allowed at its sole
discretion to take action or inaction but is not required to act
or to refrain from acting. To “communicate” is to provide,
send or deliver a communication and where authorized or
allowed under this Deposit Agreement may occur verbally, in
writing or via electronic communication. e Bank will have
no liability for inaction where it has discretion not to act. e
word “include(s)” means “including but not limited to” the
examples given.
Unless expressly provided otherwise in this Deposit
Agreement, all references to time will refer to Pacic Time.
Other terms have the denition given to them in this Deposit
Agreement.
Fees, Service and Other Charges
Depending upon the type of account you have, various
charges may be imposed. You agree to pay the fees we charge,
and you give us the right to collect any fees, as earned,
directly from any of your account balances. You further
authorize us to impose multiple fees as well as the same fees
multiple times (such as fees for overdrafts, returned unpaid
items, and returned deposited items) in connection with a
single check or other debit transaction that has been returned
or presented multiple times. is includes, for example,
when an overdraft results from an item or ACH debit that
is returned after being redeposited, or paid or rejected after
being re-presented for payment.
Because the amount and types of these charges will change
from time to time, details about these charges are separately
described in our Schedule of Fees and Charges. You agree
that the Bank may change (including increase, add new
charges or otherwise amend) our Schedule of Fees and
Charges from time to time and you agree to pay the charges
imposed on your account according to our Schedule of
Fees and Charges in eect. You will be given notice of these
changes as required by law. You will receive a copy of the
current Schedule of Fees and Charges when you open your
account and additional copies are available at the Bank.
From time to time we may list fees for some non-account
services (such as wires and cashier’s checks) in our Schedule
of Fees and Charges. We may change non-account fees at
any time without notice. You can get current information
about non-account services and fees that apply at any of our
banking oces.
You understand that the fees and charges imposed by
the Bank are developed as a whole, taking into account the
Bank’s overall operating expenses, direct expenses associated
with various services for which fees or charges are imposed
(to the extent that these expenses can be segregated) and
prot margins both from the particular services to which the
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fee or charge is associated and on an overall basis. You agree to
pay these fees and charges knowing that they are not intended
merely to reect the actual costs to the Bank of performing
the particular service.
Your Deposits
Checks and Other Deposits
You authorize us to accept an item for deposit to your account
from anyone. We are not required to question the authority of
the person making the deposit. We may refuse any deposit
(whether in cash or by item or other charge) to an account,
limit the amount of any deposit or funds that may be
maintained in an account, or return all or any part of a
deposit to you without prior notice, whether the deposit is
attempted to be made by you or anyone else on your behalf.
We reserve the right to return to you any item or other charge
that we receive for deposit to your account, if we decide not
to handle that item or other charge. If we make this decision,
we will send a notice by the next business day after we receive
it. You agree to notify us immediately if you become aware of
any unauthorized deposit to your account.
You authorize us to present an item again for payment,
after it has been returned or dishonored, without telling you
that the item was returned unpaid or that we are presenting it
again. If we present a returned item again, there may be a
charge. See our Schedule of Fees and Charges. You also
authorize us to process and deliver to you a photocopy or
other image of a returned item or other returned item, in lieu
of the original, whether it is charged back to your account or
automatically presented again, and whether or not the
original item is available.
Deposits received at unstaed facilities will be credited on
the day funds are removed, veried and processed by us. We
may delay the verication of large currency and coin deposits
until such time as armored transportation to a secure facility
is completed, and delay the posting of the deposit to your
account until verication and processing is complete. We may
pass-through the costs or otherwise charge you a fee for the
additional secure logistics that we require. We are not
responsible for transactions initiated by mail until we actually
receive them. Deposit receipts do not necessarily indicate the
correct balance in the account or the amount being deposited.
If we accept a deposit or payment from you or on your
behalf that is not accompanied by instructions indicating how
or where it is to be credited, we may apply it at our discretion
to any loan or deposit account you maintain with us.
When you make a deposit to your account, the Bank may
credit your account for the amount stated on your deposit
slip. e amount of the deposit is subject to subsequent
verication by the Bank, though we reserve the right not to
do so in every case. If, after any review, the Bank determines
that the amount credited to your account is incorrect, the
Bank may adjust your account for the amount of the
discrepancy but reserves the right not to do so if the
discrepancy would not be a disadvantage to you.
5
When you deposit or endorse a check, or receive credit for
another deposit, you accept and are assuming full
responsibility for payment of that check or other deposit to
us. If we credit your account for an item or other charge, we
may charge back that item or other charge at any time if we
do not receive payment for the item or other charge or if we
receive notice that the item or other charge will not be paid. If
a check or other deposit is returned to us unpaid for any
reason, you agree to repay the Bank for the full amount of the
check or other deposit. Your obligation to repay the Bank
arises whether or not (i) you endorsed a check or authorized
the deposit, (ii) the check or other deposit is returned to us
within any time limits applicable to the deposit, to the payor
nancial institution or to any other party to the transaction,
(iii) the payor nancial institution or any other party to the
transaction met the requirements of any law, rule or
regulation applicable to the handling of the check or other
deposit, or (iv) there exists defenses that the Bank might have
or may assert against the returning institutions or any other
party to the transaction. You waive any right you may have to
protest or present notice of dishonor. You authorize the Bank
to reverse any deposit credit given to your account if a check
or other deposit is returned even if the credit is no longer
provisional. You authorize the Bank to charge your account in
connection with any check or other deposit the Bank has
cashed for you or credited to your account if the check or
other deposit is not paid by the institution upon which it is
drawn (whether or not you have been allowed to withdraw
the funds). Without limiting the foregoing, you authorize the
Bank to charge your account when a check is returned if the
person who drew the check or any other person or nancial
institution claims that the check is counterfeit, the signature
of the purported drawer is forged or otherwise unauthorized,
or any required endorsement on the check (including that of
a co-payee or previous payee) is forged, unauthorized or
missing, and we may do so without liability even if these
allegations ultimately turn out to be untrue. We may charge a
dishonored, returned or unpaid item or other charge against
the applicable account even if the charge results in an
overdraft. In addition to returned items fees, you agree to pay
applicable overdraft fees. You authorize us to charge your
account for the amount of the item and for any returned item
fee for each item returned unpaid, even if there is a delay in
notifying you or in returning the unpaid item (or photocopy
or other image) to you.
Without limiting the foregoing, you authorize us without
notice to you to charge an item back to your account, even if
you have already used the funds, if we receive an adavit of
forged, missing or unauthorized endorsement or alteration, or
similar document, and we have no obligation to investigate
the accuracy of such adavit or similar document. You
acknowledge that we may not return an item to you if we
cannot recover its full amount from your accounts.
e Bank reserves the right to accept checks on a collection
basis, in which case the check will not be considered
deposited to your account and any credit given will be
6
considered provisional until nal payment of the check is
received by the Bank and all rights of return for the drawee
bank have expired. Handling an item as a “collection” item
means that instead of accepting an item for deposit, we send
the item directly to the issuer’s nancial institution for
payment. If the item is returned unpaid, we will return the
item to you. We are obligated only to use ordinary care in
collecting items on your behalf. You agree that we have sole
discretion to determine whether to accept an item or check
for deposit or collection. If we do credit your account for a
collection item, but do not receive nal payment for an item
or if the item is later returned, we may charge your account
for the item plus any interest earned and associated fees. You
agree to be responsible for all fees and charges assessed in the
collection process as outlined in our Schedule of Fees and
Charges. We may notify you that an item is not a deposit,
but rather a collection item, as soon as practical after we
determine to handle the item as a collection item. is may
include after you have left a branch oce, for example. Items
drawn on an institution located outside the United States are
handled on a collection basis only. Collection items may be
credited to your account; however, you agree that availability
of these funds may be delayed by us until we receive nal
payment. You waive any notice of nonpayment, dishonor, or
protest regarding any items purchased or received by us for
credit to your account or for collection. An item or check
accepted for collection will not be deemed accepted for
deposit for purposes of Regulation CC and is not governed
by the Bank’s funds availability policy.
In accepting a check for deposit to your account, we may
supply your missing endorsement. You authorize the Bank to
endorse and collect any check payable to you or your order
whether or not you have endorsed the check and whether the
check is deposited to your account or the Bank cashes the
check for you. is authorization also applies if you
improperly endorse any check payable to you or your order.
Joint accounts include accounts held as joint tenancy,
tenancy-in-common or as community property. A joint
account holder authorizes the other account holder(s) to
endorse items in that person’s name and to cash the items or
deposit them into the joint account, with or without an
endorsement. You will be responsible for any loss because of
your failure to identify your account properly by name and
number on any deposited item. We may accept for deposit to
your account all items made payable to or endorsed by you as
an individual payee or joint payee, regardless of whether those
items bear your endorsement, subject to our verication and
nal inspection. You guarantee to us the payment of all such
deposited items.
We act as a collection agent for you when we receive an
item for deposit or when we cash an item for you, and are
not responsible for the actions, whether or not negligent,
or inactions of other nancial institutions during the
collection process. You assume all risk of loss of an item in
transit. e Bank will not be responsible if any check is
delayed or lost in transit after it leaves the Bank. You
7
authorize us to reverse any credit given and any interest
accrued for an item that is lost in transit or otherwise not
paid, and we may recover from any account you maintain
with us the funds given to you for a cashed item that is
lost in transit or otherwise not paid. You agree that we can
notify you of the return as part of the account statement
or other communication method (including electronic
communication).
Lost Items and Delayed Returns
We act only as a collection agent for you when we receive
an item for deposit or which we cash for you. If that item is
lost, stolen or destroyed in the process of collection, we may
reverse the credit for any deposit or charge your account for
the cashed item.
You are responsible for the condition of an item when you
issue it, or present it for deposit to your account. If an item
is returned or payment is delayed as a result of any writing or
marking that you or a third party placed on the front or back
of the item, you will be responsible for any costs or liabilities
incurred as a result.
Check Truncation
Unless otherwise agreed, you waive any right to receive any
original item after it is paid. Instead of returning the original
items to you, we provide you with sucient information on
your monthly statements to reasonably identify your checks
(that is, the check number, amount, and date of payment).
Additionally, we maintain electronic images of both sides of
your cancelled checks and store the images for seven years
from the date the checks are posted. You may obtain copies
of two checks from each account statement at no charge. You
may request these copies by calling the telephone number
shown on your periodic statement. Additional copies
of cancelled checks are subject to a fee as shown in our
Schedule of Fees and Charges. By opening or using your
account, you acknowledge that the original items and checks
may be destroyed without being returned to you. You agree
to allow any imaged document, or copy thereof, to serve as
an original item for any and all purposes, including charging
your account or determining the validity of any signatures or
otherwise.
Post-Dated and Stale-Dated Checks
Portions of the Bank’s payment system have been automated
to facilitate the ecient and economical processing of a large
number of checks each day. We may pay checks drawn on
an account even if one or more of the following are true: the
check is dated after the date we pay it; the check is presented
to us for payment more than six months after the date on
the check; a stop payment previously requested has expired;
the check contains language that purports to make it void
before the time it was paid; or the check contains other
language that purports to establish conditions under which
it may be paid. Unless you give us and we agree to honor
a special “notice of post-dated check,” we may charge your
8
account for an item that is otherwise properly payable from
the account, even though we pay the check before the date
on it. Your notice of post-dated check will remain in eect
for a total of six months. If you want to continue your notice
of post-dated check for additional six-month periods, then
you must renew your notice before the current notice of
post-dated check expires. We impose a Stop Payment fee for
each notice of post-dated check and each renewal. Refer to
our Schedule of Fees and Charges. We may pay the item as
of its date, even if you have given us a notice of post-dated
check. If you do not want the item to be payable as of its
date, you must give us a stop payment order in time for us to
act on it before the date of the item. You can give this notice
of post-dated check to us verbally, but it must be received by
us so as to give us a reasonable opportunity to act on it before
nal payment of the item. Your notice of post-dated check
will remain in eect for a total of six (6) months, unless we
require a verbal notice to be conrmed in writing and you do
not do so (in which case your notice will expire after fourteen
(14) days.) In placing your notice of post-dated check, to
meet our computer system requirements, you must describe
the check by giving the date, the check number, the exact
amount of the check and the name of the payee in order for
us to return the item if it is presented for payment before
the date on the check. If you provide us with any incorrect
information, we will not be responsible for our failure to stop
payment on the check.
Despite proper completion and delivery of this notice,
you may nevertheless be liable on the check to the payee
or any subsequent holder in due course. You agree that
delaying payment of the check until the check date is for
your accommodation only and you agree to release the Bank
from all claims and liability in the event the check is paid
for any reason prior to the check date and further agree not
to hold the Bank liable if by reason of such payment an
overdraft occurs or other items drawn or authorized by you
are returned unpaid due to insucient funds on deposit in
your account, for which you may incur one or more fees
according to the terms of the account. You also agree to
defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Bank from any
expense, loss or damage incurred as a result of carrying
out this authorization, including any claim by any person,
organization, association, corporation or business entity
arising from any transfer or pledge of, or the assertion of
any interest in, the check. In requesting the Bank to delay
payment of the check, you further agree to hold the Bank
harmless from any and all expenses and costs incurred by the
Bank on account of refusing payment before the check date.
Upon presentment of an item for payment more than six
(6) months after its date, you agree that we may, in our sole
discretion and without notice or inquiry to you, charge your
account for the item. However, we are not obligated to do so.
You agree that our obligation of good faith does not require
us to make any inquiry of you or require us to give you notice
prior to the payment of an item more than six (6) months
after its date. Our payment of the item will be in good faith
9
absent written notice from you in the form of a timely
received stop payment order. If you want to ensure that
we do not pay a stale dated item, you should place a stop
payment order on the item.
Stop Payment Orders for Checks
You have the right to order the Bank not to pay or honor
a check. e Bank may accept a written or verbal stop
payment order from any authorized signer or other person
acceptable to the Bank (the Bank may, at its option,
honor orders received electronically). If you provide verbal
instructions, we may require conrmation in writing. If
written conrmation is not received, we may remove the
stop payment order after fourteen (14) days. e stop
payment order must reach the Bank soon enough to give the
Bank a reasonable opportunity to act upon the order. Stop
payment orders automatically expire after six (6) months. If
you wish to extend the stop payment order, you must renew
the order in writing or verbally by phone. e stop payment
order must specically identify the check you do not want
paid. Because portions of the Bank’s payment system are
automated, the Bank must know the exact amount of the
check, to the penny, the preprinted number of the check
and, as applicable, the payee of the check, the date of the
check, and the drawer of the check. If you are unsure of any
of these factors, it is important that you specically advise
the Bank in your stop payment order. If you provide us
with any incorrect information, we will not be responsible
for our failure to stop payment on the check. We will not
be responsible for a stop payment order if we do not have a
reasonable opportunity to act on it before nal payment of
the item. You may not stop payment on a check guaranteed
by us. You authorize the Bank to charge your account the
Bank’s stop payment fee if you use this service. If you wish
to terminate a stop payment, you must submit the request
in writing. e Bank may accept a request to cancel a stop
payment order from any authorized signer or other person
acceptable to the Bank. In some cases, we may pay an item
even if a stop payment request is in eect. If we, or another
person or entity, is determined by us to be a “holder in due
course” of the item, we may pay the item. If we pay a check
which has a valid stop payment order on it with correct
information, we may be responsible to you for up to the face
amount of the item if you establish that you have suered a
loss because we paid the item. You agree to assign to us all
of your rights against the payee and/or any other holder of
your check. You also agree to cooperate fully with us in any
legal actions that we subsequently take against such persons.
Anyone holding the check, including the Bank, may be
entitled to enforce payment against you despite the stop
payment order. You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold us
harmless from all costs (including attorneys’ fees), actions,
damages, claims and demands related to or arising from our
action in stopping payment on the check.
You do not automatically have the right to stop payment
on cashier’s checks you purchase or obtain from us. In the
10
event that a cashier’s check is lost, stolen, or destroyed, you
will have to complete a Declaration of Loss form describing
the cashier’s check and how it came to be lost, stolen, or
destroyed, and sign the Declaration of Loss under penalty
of perjury. We will then wait 90 days from the date the
cashier’s check was issued before we will pay your claim. If
ninety (90) days has already passed, then we will act on your
claim within a reasonable time. If the check is presented
during the 90-day waiting period, we may pay the person
entitled to enforce the check. If this happens, we will not
pay your claim. If we determine that any such instrument is
presented by or on behalf of a person who may be a holder
in due course or who may otherwise have the right to obtain
payment of the cashier’s check from the Bank, we may,
without notice to you, pay the cashier’s check, even though
you may have paid us a fee to not honor the cashier’s check.
Checks with Legends Conditioning Payment
You agree not to print, or otherwise directly or indirectly
present any checks, withdrawal orders or other items with
special limitations, including when drawn on your account.
Examples of special limitations include, but are not limited
to, “Void after 90 days,” “Void if over $500,” “paid in full,”
“not eligible for electronic processing,” or other restrictions
that may aect negotiability or processing of the check. If
you do print, or otherwise present, checks, withdrawal orders
or other items with any special limitations, you agree that
we will not be bound by such limitations. You authorize
us, but we will not be obligated, to pay such items, or take
them for deposit, without regard to the stated limitation(s).
In no event will the Bank be liable for our refusal to honor
your restrictions (whether or not we had previously honored
or dishonored similar restrictions). You further agree to
indemnify us and hold us harmless for any claims or losses
arising out of our refusal to honor your restrictions.
Endorsements
You warrant that all endorsements on items deposited to
your account are genuine and further warrant that you
are authorized to negotiate and/or deposit any items that
contain no endorsements. You authorize us to supply your
endorsement to any item taken for collection, payment, or
deposit to your account. Also, you authorize us to collect any
unendorsed item made payable to you without rst supplying
your endorsement, provided the item was deposited to your
account, but we may, at our option, require your personal
endorsement prior to accepting an item for deposit.
We may require that each payee personally endorse any
items, including government checks, insurance company
items, or other special types of items. You agree to indemnify,
defend, and hold us harmless from and against any and
all losses, damages, claims, costs or expenses (including
attorneys’ fees and costs) incurred by us in connection
with your failure to endorse an item exactly as it is drawn
or for any item that is alleged to have a forged, missing or
unauthorized endorsement.
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We are not bound by any restrictions you make on the face
of an item or in the endorsement of any items unless we agree
in writing to them.
We reserve the right to refuse items that bear or require
more than one endorsement, including the endorsements of
individuals who are not known to us. If you wish to deposit
or cash an item which has been previously endorsed by one or
more individuals, we reserve the right to require all endorsers
to be present before we accept the item or to require
that their endorsements be guaranteed by their nancial
institution.
To the extent legally permitted, each co-owner of an
account appoints the other co-owner as their attorney-in-fact
with full power to endorse the name of any co-owner on any
item for deposit, or to deposit without endorsement any such
item, into the account or cash the item.
Signatures Generally
e authorized signatures for an account are noted on the
account signature card. Any one of the authorized signers
may sign items or withdrawal orders and give us instructions
regarding the account. If you indicate on your signature
card or other account opening documents that more than
one signature is required, this indication is for your own
internal procedures. It is not binding on us. We may attempt
on occasion to enforce any multiple signature requirement,
but we may cease to do so at any time without prior notice
to you. We may act on the instruction or pay out funds
from your account if the item or other charge is signed or
authorized by (or otherwise authenticated as being the act
of) any owner or by any authorized signer (including when
acting alone). We have no liability to you if we do this.
However, if there is a conict, the Bank reserves the right to
require all authorized signers to sign an item or withdrawal
order.
If your negligence contributes to a check being altered,
changed or forged, we will not be responsible if we pay the
check in good faith and in accordance with the reasonable
commercial standards of our business. If anyone disputes the
payment of a check because it was altered, changed, forged,
bore an unauthorized signature or was otherwise improper,
we may not credit the amount to your account until the
dispute has been resolved.
We will have a reasonable period of time to investigate
the facts and circumstances surrounding any claim of loss.
Unless a law, rule or regulation provides otherwise, such a
claim is deemed not to have been made until submitted in
writing to us. You agree to fully cooperate in our investigation
of such a claim. Your cooperation may include among other
things, at the Bank’s discretion: (1) a requirement that you
submit a declaration under penalty of perjury describing
your claim; (2) a report led with the appropriate police
and/or investigatory authority; (3) promptly providing
documentation in support of your claim that the Bank
requests them from you; and (4) if your claim arises from
employee fraud or embezzlement, the Bank may require you
12
to make a claim against any insurance coverage that you
might carry for such a claim. Our liability to you will be
reduced by the amount your insurance company pays you
for any claim you tendered to it. Any failure to cooperate
in the Bank’s investigation may result in our decision not to
honor your claim. We may, although we are not required to
do so, provisionally credit your account pending the nal
outcome of the investigation. If we determine, in our sole
discretion, that the debit to your account was not improper,
then we may reverse any provisional credit made to your
account.
We will not be liable for special or consequential damages,
including loss of prots or opportunity, or for attorneys’
fees incurred by you to recover your loss against the person
responsible and you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless
from any such losses. In the event that we reimburse your
loss, you agree that you will not waive any rights you have
to recover your loss against anyone who is obligated to
repay, insure, or otherwise reimburse you for your loss. You
will pursue your rights or, at our option, assign them to us
so that we may pursue them. Our liability will be reduced
by the amount you recover or are entitled to recover from
these other sources, including insurance coverage. At our
request, you will provide us with all reasonable information
about your insurance coverage, including the name of your
insurance carrier, policy number, policy limits and applicable
deductibles.
Sample Signatures
To determine the authenticity of your signature, we may
refer to the signature card or to an item or other document
upon which your signature appears. We may use an
automated process to reproduce and retain your signature
from an item based on the format and other attributes of
checks we oer to customers.
Facsimile, Mechanical or Electronic Signatures
Many customers use a facsimile, electronic or other
mechanical signature, including those computer generated
or created via a stamp, referred to herein as (“facsimile
signature”) to execute agreements, authorize transactions,
provide and authorize instructions and to endorse or
otherwise complete other documents. If you use any form
of facsimile signature in connection with any account, you
agree to deliver a sample to us before you begin using it, and
to execute and deliver agreements in a suitable form, if we
so require. If you use a facsimile signature for any of these
purposes, you are responsible for any such transactions,
instructions or endorsements that appear to us to bear a
signature that resembles the signature of a person authorized
to sign on your account. When you use a facsimile signature
in connection with any account, you agree you shall have the
sole responsibility for maintaining security of the facsimile
signature or device by which it is axed, and you shall
bear the entire risk for unauthorized use thereof, whether
or not you are negligent, except as may be required by law.
13
You agree that we may rely on facsimile signatures that
resemble the appropriate original or any signature specimen
given to us and that appears to have been made through
an authorized medium, regardless of how the facsimile
signature came to be placed on the item. We may rely on
facsimile signatures, even if they were placed on agreements,
transactions, instructions, items or otherwise without your
knowledge or consent. We may pay items bearing facsimile
signature, regardless of the persons to whom they are drawn
or paid. A facsimile signature that resembles an authorized
signer’s signature or any facsimile signature specimen is not
considered a forgery or an unauthorized signature, and such
a facsimile or automated signature shall be eective as your
signature or endorsement, without regard to color variation,
whether or not you have been negligent. You further agree
to indemnify, defend, and hold us harmless from and
against any and all losses, damages, claims, costs or expenses
(including attorneys’ fees and costs) incurred by us as a result
of the unlawful use, unauthorized use, or misuse by any
person of any such facsimile signature or the device by which
it is axed. is means that we are not responsible for any
misuse of a facsimile signature we believe you authorized.
Remotely Created Checks
A remotely created check is a writing not signed by the
customer that is created by a third party under the purported
authority of the customer for the purpose of charging the
customer’s account with a nancial institution. A remotely
created check is also known as a demand draft. A remotely
created check must contain the customer’s account number
and may contain the customer’s printed or typewritten name,
a notation that the customer authorized the draft, or the
statement ‘no signature required’ or words to that eect. An
electronically created item is an electronic image resembling
a check, created from your information that was not actually
derived from an original paper check.
If you voluntarily give information about your account (such
as our routing number and your account number) to someone
and authorize them to draw against your account, we may
charge your account and pay any items, including remotely
created checks and electronic items initiated by the person to
whom you gave the information. You also agree that we may
pay an electronically created item even though the item was
not created from an original paper check, whether presented in
the form of a remotely created check or an electronic item. You
authorize us to continue to honor items or debits from a payee
previously authorized by you, until you instruct us to cease to
do so, whether or not the payee is acting within the scope of
your initial authorization, subject only to such liability as may
be imposed upon us by law. If you want us to stop honoring
items from a payee previously authorized by you, you must
tell us in writing. Until you notify us that such items are not
authorized, we can continue to pay them and will not be liable
to you even though the items are not in accordance with any
authorization you may have given.
is does not, however, obligate us to honor remotely
14
created checks, electronically created items or similar items
or entries. We may refuse to honor remotely created checks,
electronically created items or similar items or entries without
cause or prior notice, whether or not we have honored or
dishonored similar items or entries previously.
You agree that we are under no obligation to verify whether
the name and account number shown on the remotely created
checks or electronically created items are consistent. If any
information on a remotely created check or electronically
created item is incomplete, inaccurate, or in error, you agree
that we may, at our sole discretion, either pay the remotely
created check or electronically created item and charge your
account for the check or item as drawn or refuse to honor the
check or item and, without prior notice to you, return the
check or item unpaid. You further agree to indemnify and
hold us harmless for losses resulting from our honoring or
dishonoring any such debit.
You further agree not to present remotely created checks or
electronically created items for deposit, unless we have given
prior express written approval.
Check Conversion Into ACH Debit Entries
Merchants may take a check you provide and convert it
into an ACH debit entry for electronic collection against
your account. When this happens, we will not provide you
a copy of the original check with your periodic statement.
Treat the voided check with care because someone else
who obtains possession of it could use the information to
initiate additional debits against your account. When you
provide the merchant with your check by mail, the merchant
should give you notice of their intent to convert the check
into an ACH debit, and the merchant in these instances
should destroy your original check. Whether your check is
converted to an ACH debit at the point of sale or by the
merchant when they receive the check by mail, a description
of the transaction will appear on your periodic statement
from us.
Safeguarding Blank and Cancelled Checks
You agree to safeguard your blank and cancelled checks and
to take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorized access to
or use of your checks. is means that you will store them
under proper control in a secured, locked location accessible
only to authorized signers. You further agree to notify us
immediately if one or more of your blank checks are lost or
stolen. You agree to accept all responsibility for any failure to
safeguard your blank checks.
Check Printing
You agree that the name(s) printed on your checks will
agree with the name(s) on our account records. We oer
checks in a number of styles and at various prices, with fraud
prevention features. If you choose not to use them or other
checks that include fraud prevention features, you agree to
assume a heightened degree of care for safeguarding your
checks, and for reviewing all returned checks and statements
15
as soon as you receive them. e cost of any checks
purchased through us will be automatically charged to your
account. See our Schedule of Fees and Charges. If you
create your own checks, or obtain them from someone else,
and we cannot accurately verify your signature on an item
by comparing it with an item that posted to your account,
you are responsible for any losses that may result from our
inability to use that check to verify your signature.
Foreign Currency Instruments
You may not write items or other withdrawal orders on your
account which order payment in a foreign currency.
e processing and collection of foreign instruments
are not subject to United States laws and regulations. We
may refuse to accept for deposit or collection an item that
is payable in a currency other than U.S. dollars or that is
drawn on a bank or a branch of a bank located outside of the
United States (a “foreign instrument”). If we accept a foreign
instrument for deposit or collection, you bear all the risks
associated with the collection process and foreign currency
uctuation (exchange rate risk). A foreign instrument may
be returned unpaid much later (sometimes several months
after we process the foreign instrument) than instruments
that are drawn on banks located in the United States. You
bear all the risks of a late return. We may decide not to credit
a foreign instrument to your account until we receive the
proceeds in cleared funds from the paying bank. If we do
provide credit, such credit is provisional and we may reverse
the credit at any time if the foreign instrument is returned
unpaid or is initially paid but then subsequently returned
for fraud or any other reason. You agree that we may use
the current exchange rate and we may charge your account
for the full value of the foreign instrument, including any
applicable fees, which may result in a loss to you. You are
responsible for all fees incurred including exchange rate, our
collection fee, and other charges assessed by the payor bank.
You understand that foreign instruments sent for collection
are sent solely for you and at your risk and that we are not
liable for any event in the collection process which is beyond
our control including a default by any banks or agents
involved in the collection process or for loss of the foreign
instrument in transit.
Check Processing
e Bank has automated collection and payment procedures
to process a high volume of checks. ese automated
procedures rely primarily on information encoded on each
check or item in magnetic ink. In paying or processing a
check, the Bank may rely on the information encoded on
the check’s magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) line,
according to general banking standards, whether or not
that information is consistent with the other information
on the check. You will reimburse us for any loss or expense
we incur because you issue or deposit a check containing
altered or extra information in the MICR line. You agree
that automated check processing is reasonable and that you
16
have responsibility for preventing and reporting forgeries,
alterations and other unauthorized use of your account.
Since some types of check fraud have become more dicult
to detect, the Bank may elect in some cases to make
further inquiries about certain checks or other items that
are presented for payment against your account. If we are
unable to contact you or take other steps to determine with
reasonable certainty that you authorized these payments, we
may either pay the checks and other items or return them
unpaid. We do not fail to exercise ordinary care by posting or
paying checks without sight examination of checks.
e Bank may incur losses or expenses due to a delay
in returning an unpaid check if the check is defective (for
example, the check is not capable of automated processing,
or the check’s endorsement is obscured by other material on
the back of the check, or the endorsement is misplaced).
We will not be obligated to monitor items deposited
to, or drawn against, accounts held by a trustee or other
duciary to determine whether a trustee or duciary is
acting consistently with or in breach of any duciary duty.
When we take an item for processing by automated means,
“ordinary care” does not require that we examine each
item. “Ordinary care” requires only that we follow banking
standards prevailing in the area in which we are located and
that do not vary unreasonably from the general standards
followed by similarly-situated nancial institutions. A mere
clerical error, or an honest mistake, is not considered a failure
of the Bank to perform any of our obligations. e Bank’s
own policies and procedures are used solely for our internal
reasons and do not establish a higher standard of care for the
Bank other than that which is provided by law or regulation.
e Bank is not responsible for the neglect, mistake or
fault of another nancial institution or person, including for
the loss or destruction of an item or misrouting of an item
in transit or in the possession of others. If a deposited item is
lost or misrouted and we gave you provisional credit for that
item, you agree that we may charge back the amount of the
item to your account if we do not receive payment for the
item, even if the item is not returned in a timely manner.
Your Transfers and Withdrawals
You may transfer or withdraw all or any part of your account
balance from your account in accordance with the terms
of this Deposit Agreement and any relevant Additional
Documentation.
You authorize the Bank to honor checks signed by any
one authorized signer without notice to or concurrence of
any other authorized signer, unless another document agreed
to by the Bank for your account specically and expressly
states otherwise. In other words, no agreement between you
and any other authorized signer on the account which limits
your or the other signer’s authority over the account will be
binding on us, unless another document agreed to by the
Bank for your account, reects the terms of that agreement.
Under certain conditions the Bank may also follow
17
other forms of transfer or withdrawal instructions for
you or others with signing authority over your account,
such as instructions given by letter or over the telephone.
Withdrawals may occur even if you maintain control
over all preprinted personalized checks, the receipt book,
certicate of deposit or other deposit record for your
account because the Bank may not require that the person
making the withdrawal present a preprinted check, the
receipt book, certicate or other deposit record, although
the Bank reserves the right to do so, at its option. erefore,
if you as the account owner want to assure that no one else
can withdraw money from your account, you must be the
sole authorized signer on your account and not authorize
anyone else to withdraw or transfer funds by check or
other payment. At our discretion, we may require suitable
identication and/or presentation of account ownership
records, and may require all of your signatures for the
withdrawal of funds and/or the closing of an account. We
may refuse to honor any transaction if the funds on deposit
are insucient or unavailable to cover the transaction or
there is a dispute or question as to the ownership of account
funds. Withdrawals will rst be made from collected funds,
and we may, unless prohibited by law or our written policy,
refuse any withdrawal request against uncollected funds,
even if our general practice is to the contrary. Without
limiting the foregoing, we reserve the right to refuse any
withdrawal or transfer request, which is attempted by
any method not specically permitted, which is for an
amount less than any minimum withdrawal requirement,
or which exceeds any frequency limitations. We may limit
the amount of cash that can be withdrawn each day. Even
if we honor a nonconforming request, repeated abuse of
the stated limitation may eventually force us to close this
account. Additional withdrawal limitations may be disclosed
elsewhere.
Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and Other Electronic
Withdrawals
Regardless of what your signature card indicates, if an ATM Card
or ATM/Debit Card has been issued to an authorized signer or
at the direction of an authorized signer, you agree that we may
honor transactions using the cards, and that the Bank may do
so even if more than one signature is something we have agreed
to require to authorize a withdrawal from your account in other
cases.
For consumers, additional information appears in this Deposit
Agreement concerning your rights. Please refer to the Electronic
Fund Transfer Services section of this Deposit Agreement
for details. Note that the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and
Regulation E do not apply to business and other non-consumer
accounts or transactions.
Federally Required Notice Regarding Withdrawals from
Interest-Bearing Accounts
Federal law requires all banks to reserve the right to require
all customers holding interest-bearing accounts (other than
18
time deposit and demand deposit accounts) to give seven (7)
days advance notice in writing of any intended withdrawal.
Transaction Limitations
Transaction limitations on your particular account may apply.
If you exceed these limits, we may refuse to honor excessive
transactions, remove your transfer privileges, close the
account, impose a fee and/or convert your account to another
account type. Refer to our Schedule of Fees and Charges.
Large Cash Withdrawals
e Bank may require reasonable advance notice for large
cash withdrawals. e Bank may also refuse to honor a
request to withdraw funds in cash from your account or to
cash a check (including a cashier’s check or other ocial item)
at a branch if we believe that the amount is unreasonably
large or that honoring the request would cause us an undue
hardship or security risk. e Bank may require that such
withdrawals be made at one of our cash vaults by an armored
courier, acceptable to us and at your sole risk and expense.
e Bank is not responsible for providing for your security
in such transactions. Rather than permitting a large cash
withdrawal, we reserve the right instead to provide you with a
cashier’s check for the amount requested.
Processing Your Transactions
Order of Payment, and Overdraft Fees and Services
Refer to our separate Overdraft Disclosure for Consumer
Accounts and Overdraft Disclosure for Business Accounts,
as applicable, for details regarding our processing of your
transactions, including the order of payment, treatment of
overdrawn accounts, overdraft fees and related services.
Overdrawn Accounts
If your account becomes overdrawn (whether the Bank is
unable to collect a deposit you have made to your account,
because the Bank intentionally or unintentionally posts a
check or other payment, or you have insucient funds or for
any other reason), in addition to paying any applicable Bank
fees or charges, you agree to pay the Bank the amount of the
overdraft.
If you do not have sucient available funds on deposit
in your account at the time a check or other payment is
presented for a transfer from your account, or any other
transaction is posted to your account or received by us, the
Bank may return the check or other payment unpaid or
otherwise reject the transaction.
e Bank has no liability to you for rejecting some checks
or other payments from your account while we continue
to pay others, or for otherwise processing a transaction
when your account is overdrawn, even if the check or other
payment that we choose to pay is payable to us; or your
account is overdrawn due to our Bank charges.
Each account owner is jointly and severally responsible for
paying all overdraft amounts created by any authorized users,
regardless of whether the account owner authorized the check
19
or other payment or received any benet from the check
or other payment. You agree that we may, to the maximum
extent permitted by law, apply deposits (including Social
Security, SSI, and similar benets) to overdrafts and overdraft
fees or other Bank fees and charges, without notice to or
further specic consent from you.
If the Bank pays a check or other payment, cashes a check for
you, or processes a transaction, and the amount we pay or process
is more than the available balance in the account on which it is
drawn, we may hold balances in other accounts of yours, up to the
amount we have paid until we have received nal payment for the
check we paid or the transaction we processed.
Managing Your Account
Compliance with Laws, Rules, and Regulations
You agree to comply with all laws, rules, and regulations
applicable to you, to your business activities and to your
use of our banking services. is includes your agreement
to comply with (to the extent applicable to you and your
actions) federal anti-money laundering laws, sanctions
laws administered by the Oce of Foreign Assets Control,
currency transaction or Bank Secrecy Act reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, and any state counterpart of the
same. You must inform the Bank about and disclose to us the
identity of all persons who have a benecial interest in you
(if you are a non-natural person) and in your transactions.
You further agree that you will comply with any state or local
laws that may apply to you, including, but not limited to,
laws governing the payment of interest on escrow or other
similar laws, and you agree that you are solely responsible
for compliance with such laws, including the payment or
nonpayment of any interest due under such laws.
Without limiting the foregoing, you represent and warrant
that you will not use, and agree not to use, your account for
any unlawful purpose. For example, you represent, warrant
and agree not to accept or make payments in connection
with the participation of any person (including yourself) in
unlawful internet gambling. You acknowledge that “restricted
transactions” (as dened in the Unlawful Internet Gambling
Enforcement Act and its implementing regulations) are
prohibited from being processed through your accounts or
your relationships with us. e Bank reserves the right to
deny transactions or authorization from merchants apparently
engaging in the internet gambling business or identifying
themselves through card transaction records or otherwise as
engaged in that or any other illegal or improper business.
Further, we reserve the right to block or close any account
which we believe may be involved in any such restricted
transactions.
You represent and warrant that you are not, and you agree
to take no action that would result in your being deemed or
treated as, a money service business under any applicable state
or federal law, except to the extent that you have specically
and in writing previously informed us that you are a money
service business. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we reserve
20
the right to refuse to open or to continue to maintain any
deposit account.
You covenant, represent and warrant that the foregoing is
true and correct, as of the opening of your account and again
each time you make a deposit or withdrawal or otherwise use
a banking service oered by us. You agree to provide us with
evidence showing that you are in compliance with the above,
reasonably satisfactory to us, upon our request. If we are
uncertain regarding the legality of any transaction, we may
refuse the transaction or freeze the amount in question while
we investigate the matter. You agree to indemnify, defend
and hold us harmless from every action, proceeding, claim,
loss, cost and expense (including attorney’s fees) suered or
incurred by us due to any U.S. or foreign government entity
seizing, freezing or otherwise asserting or causing us to assert
control over any account or funds in an account of yours
(or ours) when purportedly caused by or arising out of your
action or inaction. is will apply whether or not such action
is ultimately determined to be authorized under the laws of
the U.S. or its territories, or of any foreign jurisdiction. We
are not required to inquire or determine the authority of any
action taken by the U.S. or foreign government entity prior
to acceding to any legal process initiated by it.
Cash Reporting
e Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”), a federal law, requires all
nancial institutions to report currency transactions of more
than $10,000 to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
(“FinCEN”). In addition, we may report to FinCEN multiple
cash transactions which together total more than $10,000 in
any one day. In order to better comply with the law, we may
maintain a log of all sales of bank checks or drafts, cashier’s
checks, money orders or traveler’s checks for $3,000-$10,000 in
currency. We may also report to FinCEN or other government
agency transactions that may be structured to avoid the
reporting requirement and other transactions that appear to
involve illegal activity. In order to satisfy the BSA’s requirement,
we may, and, in many cases, must request certain information
about the individual presenting the transaction, as well as the
organization or individual for whom the transaction is being
conducted. is includes the individual’s/organization’s full
name, permanent street address, social security number or other
taxpayer identication number, identication number (such
as a driver’s license, government issued photo identication, or
passport), date of birth (if applicable), and business, occupation
or profession.
Cuto Hours
A number of our services are subject to processing cuto hours.
Transactions or communications received after the cuto hour
or on a non-business day may, in our discretion, be deemed
received as of the next business day. Alternatively, some services
may require you to resubmit a transaction or communication
when it is received after the cuto hour or on a non-business day.
21
Fraud Prevention Guidelines
To help prevent check fraud and other criminal activities
against you, you agree to comply with the following fraud
prevention guidelines.
• Do not preprint your driver’s license or Social Security
Number (SSN) on your checks.
• Call the Bank at the number listed on your account
statement immediately if new checks do not arrive within
ten to fteen (10-15) business days of your order.
• Call the Bank immediately if there are discrepancies you
cannot explain on your account statement, or if you do
not receive your statement or an ordered ATM or debit
card.
• Store blank and cancelled check copies in a safe place.
• Remember that your checks provide access to your
account. Even blank and cancelled checks have
information on them that someone could use to obtain
funds from your account. Notify the Bank immediately if
any check is lost or stolen.
• Do not leave any outgoing mail containing checks in
an unlocked mail collection box or in your residence
mailbox. Whenever possible, deposit this type of mail in
the designated slots inside your local post oce.
• oroughly destroy unused deposit slips, transaction
receipts, cancelled checks, and statements for your
account before discarding them.
• Notify the Bank immediately if any form of identication,
your checkbook, or any blank checks are missing, lost or
stolen.
• Write your checks in ink and ll in all lines completely.
• Write your checks carefully. Make sure that your numbers
are legible and that they begin as far to the left side of the
line as possible so someone cannot easily insert additional
numbers.
• Sign your checks clearly, as illegible signatures are more
easily forged.
• Do not give anyone permission to sign your name on
checks.
• Do not give anyone a pre-signed, blank check.
• Do not provide account information, including account
numbers or Personal Identication Numbers (PINs), to
callers, even if they claim to be Bank representatives.
• Use tamper-resistant checks at all times. If you do not
order your checks through the Bank, ask your check
vendor about checks with special security features.
• Keep accurate records. You can avoid many fees to your
account by keeping an accurate record of your account
balance. e statement for your account provides space
for you to balance your account for each statement
period. Remember to record any transaction you make
at an ATM, or by telephone or online. Also remember to
record every point-of-sale (POS) transaction or automatic
payments from your account.
Please refer to the Your ATM Card and Your ATM/
Debit Card section of this Deposit Agreement for
22
information about safety when using your cards or an ATM.
Business customers should consider assigning
responsibilities for opening mail, reconciling bank statements
and issuing checks to dierent individuals. Do a thorough
background check on agents, bookkeepers, accountants
or other employees who may be handling any part of
your banking and/or who have access to your condential
records. You must contact us immediately if you discover any
irregularities.
You should be cautious about giving someone your
account number. If you give your account number to a third
person and authorize that third person to initiate one or
more transactions on your account, you may be liable for all
transactions initiated by the third person even if you did not
intend to authorize a particular transaction.
Positive pay is an additional fraud prevention service
oered by the Bank. is service allows the business
customer to transmit a list of checks that are written on their
account to the Bank. e bank, in turn, compares the list
to incoming items presented for payment. In cases where
there is a discrepancy, the business customer is notied and
can make an accept or return decision, subject to defaults
and cuto hours within the system. If you are a business
customer and elect not to utilize the check positive pay
service, ACH positive pay service, or other fraud tools that
we make available to you, you agree to hold us harmless
against any losses you may suer as a result of your failure
to identify fraudulent or unauthorized account activity that
could have been detected with the fraud prevention services.
Authorized Signers
An authorized signer is someone to whom you give all rights
you have now or in the future to make regarding your account,
including the authority to make withdrawals and deposits,
to obtain ancillary services (for example, electronic funds
transfer services, wire services, and online banking access),
and to otherwise transact on your account, receive account
information and provide instructions to us regarding your
account. Merely by designating an authorized signer you do
not give any ownership rights in the account. Any one of
the authorized signers may sign checks or withdrawal orders
and give us instructions regarding the account, including an
instruction to close the account. However, if there is a conict,
we reserve the right to require all authorized signers or account
owners to sign an item, withdrawal order, or other instruction
on the account.
You agree that we may honor checks drawn by an
authorized signer against your account even if these checks are
made payable to that authorized signer and even if cashed or
deposited into that signer’s personal account. We have no duty
to investigate or question the nature of the signer’s withdrawals
or payments.
Even if the authorized signers on an account change, we
may continue to honor checks, withdrawal orders, and other
instructions by authorized signers until we are notied in
writing not to do so by an account owner.
23
Reserve Account
You agree that you will, if requested by us at any time,
establish one or more reserve accounts to be maintained
with us in type (including time deposits) and amount
satisfactory to us, to serve as collateral for and to secure your
obligations to us under the Deposit Agreement. We may
restrict or prohibit your access to any reserve account(s)
and the funds on deposit in them, and we may hold such
accounts following termination of the Deposit Agreement
for a period of time sucient to protect us against loss.
We may increase or decrease the required reserve account
amount from time to time, upon notice to you and you agree
to provide immediately available funds to cover a reserve
amount requested by us. In addition, we may transfer funds
from another account of yours, or use funds payable to you
or owed by us to you under the Deposit Agreement, and
credit such funds to a reserve account if a deciency exists
between the available funds in your reserve account(s) and
the amounts specied by us as the required reserve amount.
Security Interest
You grant us a security interest in your accounts to secure
the repayment of any obligation that you incur under the
Deposit Agreement. e security interest provided under
the Deposit Agreement is in addition to any other security
interest we may have in your accounts or other assets. is
security interest will survive termination of the Deposit
Agreement.
Registered Warrants
Registered warrants are State “IOUs” or a “promise to
pay” with interest when there is not enough cash to meet
California or other state payment obligations. ese IOUs
are issued in place of a regular check or warrant. e Bank
policy regarding registered warrants is available at our
branch oces, or you may ask your Community Banker.
Depending on our policy, the Bank may or may not accept
registered warrants for deposit, encashment or otherwise. e
Bank reserves the right to change our policy on registered
warrants at any time, at our sole discretion, and with or
without advance notice. If we do provide notice, it may be
by communication to you or by posting notice in our branch
lobby oces. e Bank reserves the right to reject individual
registered warrants, with or without cause or advance notice,
even during a period of time when our general policy is to
accept them.
As a general matter, the following terms will apply to
California registered warrants. (ese general terms may,
however, be modied by us, including by posting notice of
the modied terms in our branch lobby oces.)
• If the Bank accepts registered warrants for deposit, it
may be for a limited time period, to be established and
24
modied at our discretion. Contact us at 1-800-848-1088
for specic details. During any period of time when we
accept registered warrants, the warrants will need to be
deposited at a branch location or mailed in for deposit to
us. You will not be able to use remote capture, lockbox
(or as a general matter any of our correspondent bank
branches) to deposit any registered warrants with us. You
will need to provide the Bank with the original warrants.
Ask us for the delivery options and the address to be used.
• If you deliver a registered warrant to the Bank and we
accept it, we will provisionally credit your account. You
agree we are entitled to all interest on the warrant or any
replacement warrant, including interest from the date of
the issuance of the warrant. You also agree that the Bank
may hold the registered warrant until it matures or is
called, and while we seek to validate or revalidate it. You
agree to provide reasonable assistance to us.
• e Bank may charge back any registered warrant if we are
unable to validate (or revalidate) it, or if it is dishonored
(regardless of the reason for dishonor) or returned, or we
are otherwise unable to obtain payment on it. If there are
insucient funds in your account, we may charge the
warrant(s) back and create an overdraft. You agree to pay
the overdraft and any related fees or charges as otherwise
provided in this Deposit Agreement. You waive any
rights of presentment or notice of dishonor. You agree
that registered warrants are not covered by our Funds
Availability Policy if deposited with us before the warrant
has matured or been called. e Bank may hold funds on
these registered warrants at our discretion. We anticipate
holding funds for two (2) business days following deposit
to, among other things, validate the warrant. If the hold
we apply to your deposit is longer, or if we extend it, we
will notify you.
• If the Bank receives any registered warrants from you
during a period when our policy is not to accept registered
warrants, or if we at our sole discretion choose not to
accept a particular registered warrant, then your account
will not be credited for the amount of the warrant. In the
event that a registered warrant is accepted, or if we charge
back or otherwise return a warrant to you for any reason,
the Bank will return the original registered warrant (or
a paper image of the original warrant conforming to the
technical requirements applicable to a substitute check) to
you.
• If you use remote capture during any period of time when
our policy is not to accept registered warrants, you are
responsible for retaining the original item. Do not destroy
it in this case. You will need the original item to present to
the State Treasurer when the warrant matures or is called.
Without the original item, you may not be able to receive
payment.
25
Electronic Signatures, Contracts and Records
When any payment order or other service generates items
or transactions to be charged to an account of yours, you
agree that we may charge the aected account without
requiring your signature and without prior notice to you.
Any transactions resulting from your instructions which we
receive in your name and under your credentials shall be
deemed to have been “a writing” and authenticated by you
“in writing” for purposes of any law in which a writing or
written signature is needed or required.
You agree that we may use electronic communications
to enter into agreements and contracts between you and
us and otherwise to establish terms and conditions for
products and services you receive from us. Your consent to
or acceptance of the electronic communication or agreement
may occur by your clicking “agreed” or similar terms, or by
your subsequent use of a product or service, or otherwise
as may be specied in the communication or agreement
or as provided by law (subject to any limitations set forth
in the communication or agreement). Your signature and
agreement may be obtained by us electronically and includes
mouse clicks, key strokes, your use of passwords or other
authentication systems, or as is otherwise set forth in the
particular electronic communication or agreement.
All records we maintain of agreements or transactions
under your name or credentials shall be deemed to have been
“signed” by you and will further constitute an “original”
when printed from electronic or paper records established
and maintained by us or our authorized agent in the normal
course of business. e foregoing includes, but is not limited
to, instances where we or our authorized agent has scanned
an original paper copy of a contract or record, including, but
not limited to, your account signature card. You agree not
to contest the authorization for, or validity or enforceability
of, our electronic images, records, contracts and documents,
or the admissibility of copies thereof, under any applicable
law relating to whether certain agreements or records are to
be in writing or signed by the party to be bound thereby.
Records, contracts and electronically “signed” documents,
if introduced as evidence on paper in any judicial or other
proceedings, will be admissible to the same extent and under
the same conditions as other documentary business records.
You and we further agree that delivery of a signature page
to this or any agreement with us, including, but not limited
to, your account signature card, by e-mail transmission of
a scanned image, facsimile, or other electronic means, shall
be eective as delivery of an originally executed signature
page. Upon our written request, you agree to manually sign
or place your signature on any paper original of any record,
contract or “signed” document which we provide to you
containing your purported signature.
26
Communications
Communications and When ey Are Deemed Received
Except as otherwise provided in this Deposit Agreement,
and subject to the notice requirements provided in our other
agreements with you, all notices and other communications
by you to us shall be in writing and, addressed to:
Westamerica Bank, P.O. Box 1200, MAC B-2N, Suisun
City, CA 94585 or at such other address as we may specify
in writing. Notices, disclosures, statements, documents and
other communications and messages (“communications”)
from the Bank to you may be sent by us to you via
U.S. Postal Service, messenger service or via electronic
communications (for example, via fax, e-mail, by posting at
our website, via SMS or other mobile phone text, or other
means). Any notice or communication sent or made available
by us to you will be deemed given and eective when sent
or otherwise made available to you, or as otherwise stated
in the notice or communication. Certain notices and
communications may be provided to you by telephone,
facsimile or other electronic transmission at the telephone
number, facsimile number or other location or number as
shown in our records.
Any communication you send to the Bank will not be
eective until we actually receive it and have had a reasonable
opportunity to act upon it. Electronic communications from
you to us may be treated by us as a written communication,
but where this Deposit Agreement or any Additional
Documentation requires a written or paper act or document,
the Bank reserves the right to require that a communication
by you to us be provided or conrmed in a written or paper
form before we will be deemed to have received it.
Without limiting the foregoing, we are entitled to
rely on any notice, instruction, or other communication
believed by us in good faith to be genuine or to have been
signed or authorized by your authorized representative. If
there are multiple authorized signers, the Bank may send
paper or electronic communications to any one or more of
them (unless you have otherwise instructed us in writing).
You assume the risk of loss in the mail or in electronic
transit. If we hold mail for you and a statement or other
communication is not picked up within sixty (60) days,
we may send it to you at the address shown in our account
records or destroy it. If one or more statements and/or
notices are returned to us by the U.S. Postal Service for any
reason, we may destroy such statements and notices, and
discontinue sending statements and notices of every kind
until we receive forwarding information from you. You may
instruct us to change the physical or electronic address to
which we send communications, which will be eective after
we have had a reasonable time to act. e Bank may also
change the mailing address of record we have for you if we
receive an address change notice from the U.S. Postal Service
or via our online banking services.
27
Electronic Communications
An electronic communication is a notice, disclosure,
statement document or other communication or message
that we provide to you via electronic means in a format
that allows visual text or images to be displayed on
equipment such as a computer, mobile phone screen or
other electronic equipment. You agree that we may at our
option use electronic communications to provide you with
any information, notice, disclosure, statement, document or
other communication or message from us to you, including
communications that we are required by law to provide
to you in writing. e Bank may at any time terminate
paper delivery of communications and substitute electronic
communications in lieu of the paper communication. Refer
to the Electronic Signatures, Contracts and Records
section of this Deposit Agreement for further details
regarding electronic communications.
If the Bank receives an electronic communication
in your name that was authorized by you or by someone
authorized by you, you are bound by the communication
and we may rely upon and treat the communication as
an authorized communication from you. is is true
even if we did not authenticate the communication using
security procedures applicable to the system or service
and notwithstanding our use of those security procedures
may have detected error. If the Bank receives an electronic
communication in your name that was NOT authorized by
you or by someone authorized by you, you are nevertheless
still bound by the unauthorized communication and we may
rely upon it and treat the communication as an authorized
communication from you if we verify the authenticity of the
communication using security procedures applicable to the
system or service. NOTE: (a) is paragraph does not apply
to consumer transactions where federal or state law protects
you against liability (or limits your liability) for unauthorized
use. Consumer liability for unauthorized use in these cases
is described in the Electronic Fund Transfer Services
section of this Deposit Agreement; and (b) is paragraph
does not supersede the terms and conditions of Additional
Documentation if the term or condition in that agreement
would result in your being bound by an authorized or
unauthorized communication, but does supersede the
Additional Documentation if application of its terms or
conditions would not result in your being bound by the
communication.
You agree that an electronic communication from
us to you may be used by us to serve as and fulll any
need for written notice for purposes of any requirement
that a document be provided to you in a written or paper
form. You agree to provide us with an email address when
requested, and to keep the email address(es) that you provide
to us up-to-date. e Bank may use any email address of
yours that appears on our records to send any electronic
communication to you (so, for example, communications
regarding transactions or activity regarding one banking
service or account may be sent to you via the email address
28
you provided to us to facilitate your use of a dierent service
or account).
Additional Electronic Notication Provisions for
Consumer Accounts
Owners of consumer accounts have certain rights under law
to receive notices about their accounts in a non-electronic
form, unless you armatively consent to the receipt of the
information electronically and have not withdrawn your
consent. If you are a consumer, the Bank will not substitute
electronic communications in lieu of written disclosures
unless your consent is rst obtained electronically in
accordance with applicable law. Even if you have consented
to receive one or more types of communications only
in an electronic format, you may, upon request, receive
a paper copy of the electronic communication. For fees
associated with paper copies of various written records
or communications, please refer to our Schedule of Fees
and Charges. To withdraw your consent as a consumer
to electronic communications, send a written notice to:
Westamerica Bank, P. O. Box 1200, MAC B-1B, Suisun
City, CA 94585.
e revocation of consent should specify the account(s)
involved and the types of written communications you no
longer wish to receive electronically. e Bank will act on
your request promptly (normally, within thirty (30) days).
Some of our banking accounts or other services are only
oered to those who accept electronic communications.
Otherwise, we may resume sending written communications
to your most recent address as shown in our records. e
Bank will also inform you of any fee or charge for receiving
the written instead of the electronic communication(s).
Consistent with the above, the Bank may require you
to use and receive electronic statements of accounts (also
called “eStatements”) in place of paper or written statements.
You will be given the opportunity to consent to receive
your statement electronically. You may view, print, or save
your eStatements and check images from the secure Bank
website after using your login ID and password credentials
to access the website. Any legal notices or disclosures that
normally accompany your mailed statement or that we
would otherwise deliver to you by mail concerning your
account will also be delivered to you electronically. Other
communications with respect to your accounts or banking
relationship with us may also be sent electronically. If you
choose not to receive an eStatement, the Bank may close the
aected account. For fees that may be applied to accounts
that are not enrolled in eStatements, refer to our Schedule of
Fees and Charges.
Consent For Us to Contact You By E-mail and Phone,
Including Cell Phone and Text Messaging
You agree that we and our aliates and agents may contact
you at any e-mail address or telephone number you
provide to us (including cell phone calls and text messages)
to communicate with you regarding your account, any
29
transaction with us, and/or your relationship with us. You
further represent to us that you are the current subscriber
or owner of any e-mail addresses and/or telephone numbers
you provide to us, or that you are authorized to provide this
consent on behalf of the subscriber or owner. You authorize
us to make autodialed, prerecorded or articial voice (“PAV”)
calls to any number(s) you provide and you acknowledge
that, in any event, by voluntarily providing your telephone
number(s) to us, you expressly agree to receive autodialed,
PAV messages and texts from us, including from our aliates
and third parties calling on our behalf. Your service provider
may impose a charge for those calls/messages, including
message and data rates. If necessary, you may change or
remove any of the e-mail addresses or telephone numbers at
any time by contacting us at 1-800-848-1088.
Right to Opt-Out. You may opt-out of autodialed, PAV
calls or text messages from us at any time. To opt-out of
autodialed and PAV calls (but not text messages), call us at
1-800-848-1088. You may also opt-out of receiving text
messages from us, subject to applicable law. To opt-out of
text messages, reply STOP to any text message you receive.
For help, text HELP. You acknowledge and agree that you
may receive a text message conrming your opt-out.
Link to our Privacy Notice can be accessed at
Westamerica.com/about/privacy.
Change of Name, Contact Information or Authorized
Signers
It is important that the Bank’s record of your address for mail
and electronic communication be kept current. Otherwise,
you will not receive notices or other correspondence the
Bank may send you from time to time. You agree to accept
full responsibility for keeping the Bank’s record of your
addresses up-to-date. You agree to notify us immediately
in writing of any change of name, contact information
(including address, e-mail address, telephone and mobile
numbers), or change of authorized signers. Your notice to
us regarding the change will be eective after we have had
a reasonable time to act. We may also change the mailing
address of record we have for you if we receive an address
change notice from the U.S. Postal Service. Any account
owner or signer can update the address for the account. e
address is changed only for the accounts you specify and does
not aect your other account relationships with us unless you
specify that you want the address changed for those accounts
as well. In addition to the provisions regarding electronic
communication, any notice sent by mail (including notices
of interest rate changes, changes of the fees and charges
imposed by the Bank, and any other notice the Bank sends
you), will be eective if sent to the last address as shown on
the Bank’s records. You also agree that any mail or electronic
communication to or from any account owner on your
account will be eective for all account owners, except as
otherwise stated in this Deposit Agreement in connection
30
with disputes. You agree that if mail sent to your address
according to the Bank’s records is returned by the U.S. Postal
Service as undeliverable for any reason other than the Bank’s
failure to pay proper postage, the Bank need not send future
notices to you until you have furnished the Bank with a new
address.
You agree to be bound by any notice not sent to you
because previous mailings were undeliverable. You agree to be
bound by any mail held by us under a “hold mail” program
and that such mail will be deemed received by you as of the
date it was rst made available for you to pick up. You agree
that we may, at our option and from time to time, send
mail to you (or deliver held mail) notwithstanding any prior
agreement or instruction to hold mail or otherwise hold your
notices and communications for pick up by you.
If an authorized signer on your account changes, we
may continue to honor items and instructions given earlier
by any previously authorized person(s) until we receive
specic notice from you in writing not to do so (note: A
new or updated signature card, by itself, does not constitute
notice to terminate any pre-existing payment or transfer
plan). In some instances we may require you to close your
account or provide us with stop payment orders in order to
prevent transactions from occurring.
Additional Information About Your Accounts
and Transactions
FDIC Insurance
We are a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (FDIC). At this time, the standard deposit
insurance amount is $250,000 per depositor, per insured
bank, for each account ownership category.
For current information relating to deposit insurance
coverage, you may contact the FDIC toll-free at 1-877-275-
3342 or visit the FDIC website at www.fdic.gov.
Seto
e law provides that the Bank may, but is not obligated to,
take funds on deposit in your account to satisfy a debt you
owe the Bank which is not paid when due. is is called the
right of seto. If the Bank exercises this right of seto, the
Bank will comply with all applicable laws and regulations,
and will notify you of the action taken. To the fullest extent
permitted by law, all sums in a deposit account are subject to
the Bank’s right of seto for liabilities owed to the Bank by:
any one or more of the account holders, including any other
person who is a joint account holder; or any partnership
of which you are a general partner; or any other person or
entity with whom you are a co-obligor, or have agreed to act
as surety or guarantor, or for whose debts you are liable or
may be contingently liable. You authorize us to use account
funds to pay your debts and obligations to us even if the
seto results in an early withdrawal penalty or the dishonor
of items. If your account is a checking or money market
account and if we exercise our right of seto, our duty to pay
31
any items presented for payment on your account during the
business day preceding the day on which the seto occurs
may be terminated, and you agree that we may return those
items unpaid. If we do return items, we also will charge you
an insucient funds fee for each returned item. Refer to our
Schedule of Fees and Charges.
If the debt arises from a note, “any due and payable
debt” includes the total amount of which we are entitled to
demand payment under the terms of the note at the time
we charge the account, including any balances for which we
properly accelerated the due date under the note.
We will not be liable for the dishonor of any item
or draft when the dishonor occurs because we charge and
deduct an amount you owe us from your account. You agree
to hold us harmless from any claim arising as a result of our
exercise of our right to repayment.
is right of seto does not apply to this account if: (a)
it is an IRA or a tax-deferred retirement account; (b) the debt
is created by a consumer credit transaction under a credit
card plan; or (c) the debtor’s right of withdrawal only arises
in a representative capacity.
Legal Process
You authorize us to accept and act on any legal process
that we believe in good faith is valid and applies to your
account without any liability by us to you, whether served
in person, by mail, by facsimile transmission or electronic
communication, and whether at locations other than the
branch or oce at which the account, property, or records are
held or in one state for property or records held in another
state. “Legal process” includes a subpoena, restraining
order, injunction, writ of attachment or execution, levy,
garnishment, or other legal order relating to you or your
account. It includes orders issued by governmental entities
other than courts, such as taxing authorities. We may, and in
some instances must, comply with legal process issued from
another state or jurisdiction. If we are permitted, the Bank
will use good faith eorts to send you notice of any legal
process received by us, but this Deposit Agreement does not
require us to do so. If we receive legal process against your
account before our cuto time and you do not have enough
funds in the account to cover the order, we may return checks
or other items presented against your account the previous
business day and apply the funds to satisfy the conditions of
the order.
If legal process directs us to turn over funds or other
property, then, depending on the type of order, we may either
immediately deliver the funds or property or hold them for
a legally permitted period. e Bank does not pay interest
on the funds during the period we hold them. If we use
funds from a time deposit account, we may impose an early
withdrawal penalty.
e Bank may charge your account a legal process fee
for each order. You agree to pay our fees and expenses for
research and copying of documents and all other expenses,
including administrative expenses, we incur in responding to
32
any legal process related to your account. ese may include
attorneys’ fees. e Bank may deduct these fees and expenses
from any of your accounts without prior notice to you. Any
legal process against your account is subject to our right of
seto and to any security interest we have in the account.
e Bank is not liable to you for not paying items because
we have withdrawn funds from your account or in any way
restricted your access to funds because of a legal process.
Additionally, subpoenas, search warrants and other legal
processes may compel disclosure of information about your
account or any other business you may have with the Bank.
Disputed Payments
If you have a dispute regarding an amount you owe to us,
you must direct all correspondence regarding the dispute
to us at: Westamerica Bank, P. O. Box 1200, MAC B-2N,
Suisun City, CA 94585. Any communications regarding the
disputed payment that are sent elsewhere or to someone else
will be of no legal eect. We will disregard any notations
such as “payment in full” or similar language, and may cash
the check or draft without agreeing to settle for the face
amount of the instrument. We will only be bound to settle
for the face amount of the instrument if we have expressly
agreed to do so, in writing.
Early Withdrawal Penalties (and Involuntary
Withdrawals)
We may impose early withdrawal penalties on a withdrawal
from a time account even if you don’t initiate the
withdrawal. For instance, the early withdrawal penalty may
be imposed if the withdrawal is caused by our seto against
funds in the account or as a result of an attachment or other
legal process. We may close your account and impose the
early withdrawal penalty on the entire account balance in the
event of a partial early withdrawal. See our Time Deposit
Agreement or IRA Agreement for further details.
Electronic Presentment
We may charge your account on the day that a check or
other transaction is presented (or returned) to us directly or
electronically for payment. We may charge your account or
place a hold on funds at an earlier time if we receive notice
that a check or other item deposited to your account is being
returned, or if we receive notice that your check or electronic
payment (e.g., at a point-of-sale) is being processed for
collection. Some merchants may obtain authorizations in
advance for point-of-sale transactions in an amount greater
than the nal transaction amount. You agree that we may
place a hold on sucient funds to cover the amount of the
authorized transaction, pending its nal settlement through
the system, even if that amount exceeds the actual amount
of the transaction. is could aect the balance available to
cover other transactions.
33
ird-Parties and ird-Party Fees
You authorize us to, and we may, use third-parties to provide
banking services to you. We are not, however, responsible for
any act or omission by the third- party, except as specically
set forth in this Deposit Agreement or where imposed by
law. To the extent allowed by law, or except where otherwise
provided in this Deposit Agreement for consumers, our
liability to you for any harm or loss suered by you in
connection with or arising from any banking service you
receive will be limited to your actual losses (or, if Additional
Documentation establishes a lower amount, such lower
amount), and the Bank will not be liable for incidental,
special or consequential damages, including loss of prots
and lost opportunity, even if we were aware of the possibility
of these damages.
For some services, including but not limited to
collection services and wire transfer services, third-party
or other banks’ charges may apply in addition to charges
assessed by us.
Transactions by Persons Who Are Not Bank Customers
If a person who does not hold deposit accounts with us
presents a check written by you for payment at one of our
branch oces, the Bank may require authorization from you
before paying the check. e Bank may require identication
from the payee, which may include nger printing or other
fraud prevention methods. If a payee presents a check of
yours for payment that is drawn on an account you hold
with us, you agree that we may also impose fees or charges
for non-customers in connection with our handling of the
check. is may include, for example, assessing a fee or
charge on a non-customer payee that presents or seeks to
cash a payroll check(s) issued by you. You agree that none of
the foregoing will be deemed to be wrongful dishonor by us.
Information About You and Your Account
e Bank carefully protects personal information that we
have about you and your account. e Bank’s practices are
described in our Privacy Notice, which is available separately.
Safe Deposit Box Disclosures
Safe deposit box rentals will be subject to separate terms
and conditions with us. Safe deposit boxes and their
contents are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (FDIC). e FDIC insures funds in deposit
accounts, subject to certain limitations. Safe deposit boxes
are considered storage facility/services. Check with your
insurance carrier to determine whether your safe deposit box
contents are covered under your own property insurance
policy or if you need to acquire additional insurance. We
are not obligated to provide safe deposit box insurance
information to safe deposit box customers.
e following additional notice applies to safe deposit
boxes: e State of California requires us to inform you that
your property or the proceeds of the sale of your property
may be transferred to the appropriate state upon the time
34
period specied by law running from the earlier of: (i) the
date the lease or rental period on the safe deposit box expired;
or (ii) the date of termination of any agreement because of
which the safe deposit box was furnished to you without cost.
Dormant Accounts
If there has been no activity by you on your account or
any indication of an interest by you in your account for
an extended period of time, then the Bank may classify
the account as dormant (except where applicable state law
regarding unclaimed property prevents us from doing so).
You authorize us to refuse to permit withdrawals from an
account that has become dormant until we are satised that
we are dealing with the true owner or authorized user of the
account. We may, but are not obligated to, try to contact
you before we classify the account as dormant. Also, if your
account is dormant, then the Bank may, but will not be
required to, hold all statements for your account, but normal
maintenance and other fees continue to apply except where
prohibited. Such fees do not count as activity on your account
for purposes of dormancy and escheat. Statements with a
hold status will continue to be held at the designated location
for pick-up and review by you. Held statements are, however,
deemed delivered to you when they are rst made available
to you under the hold statement program. Furthermore, card
privileges (including ATM and point-of-sale access) may also
be blocked or terminated.
Escheat
If your account remains dormant and is unclaimed by you
for more than three (3) years (or other escheat period or
as required by escheat law as may apply to the account or
property), then the Bank is required by that law to “escheat”
the funds; that is, to deliver the funds in your account to the
custody of the applicable state agency. To the extent required
by law, we will send a notice to your last known address
before we turn your account or other property over to the
state. If allowed by applicable law, the Bank may charge a fee
for mailing an escheat notice. If your mail has been returned
to us as undeliverable, we may not send you any notice.
When the funds in your account are sent to the custody of a
state agency, your account is closed and no interest accrues.
To recover funds delivered to the custody of a state agency,
you must le a claim (or follow the procedure in eect at the
time of escheat as set forth by applicable law) with the state
agency.
Right to Close or Suspend Account
We may, at any time and in our sole discretion, close or
suspend your account or any service we are providing to you.
We may do so for cause or without cause. We may deliver the
balance after an account is closed by any means chosen by
us, including mailing a check for the balance by U.S. Postal
Service, sent postage prepaid, to your last address as shown
on our records. We may remit the balance by check payable
to the name on the account as shown on our records, even if
35
contrary evidence of account ownership has been given to us.
We will provide you with notice before or after taking this
action, unless prior notice is required by law, in which case
we will provide you with such notice as is required by law.
e account closing balance will be subject to any right the
Bank may have under any security agreement covering the
account or the Bank’s rights of seto.
e Bank may automatically close most accounts when the
account balance is $0. e Bank does not give advance notice
of such closure. If you do not want the Bank to close your
account when the balance is $0, you should notify the Bank
before this occurs.
Except to the extent otherwise agreed with us, you may
close your account at any time upon notice to us, unless
your account has a scheduled maturity date, subject to
any applicable early withdrawal penalty. We may continue
to process deposits, checks, withdrawal orders, items or
transactions as we receive them while we process your
closure request. You will remain liable for the payment of
accrued fees on the account and for checks in the process of
collection, as well as any other obligations relating to actions
or inaction prior to account closure. If you close an account,
it may be subject to accrued or prorated fees or charges. You
agree to reimburse us immediately upon request for any
overdrafts that arise after you request your account be closed.
We may honor any account holder’s or authorized signer’s
request to close or suspend an account or transaction. At
our discretion, we may require the signatures of all account
holders and/or authorized signers before permitting the
withdrawal of funds or the closing or suspension of an
account.
Without limiting any of the foregoing, you authorize
us, in our sole discretion, to “freeze” or place a hold on the
balance in your accounts at the Bank if we suspect that there
is uncertainty regarding the ownership of the funds, we
suspect irregular, fraudulent or illegal activity, or we receive
conicting instructions involving your accounts. Should we
place a “freeze” on your accounts to reasonably investigate
our concerns, you agree that we shall not be liable to you
for any claims you might have, including but not limited to
claims of wrongful dishonor.
We may dishonor any check, withdrawal order, item or
transaction presented for payment after an account is closed
or frozen by you or by us. At our option, we may reopen
your account and honor deposits or other credits, checks,
withdrawal orders, items or transactions after an account is
closed or frozen if the transaction was guaranteed by us under
any check guarantee program or was part of an electronic
fund transfer system, if you fail to place a stop payment order
for any outstanding checks or other items or if we otherwise
elect to honor the transaction in our discretion. You shall
remain responsible and liable for any overdrafts that arise
after an account is closed, whether closed by you or by us.
If your account is closed and later reopened, the account
is subject to our standard terms and fees for that type of
account. Any fee waivers or other privileges that applied
36
before the account closed do not apply when we reopen the
account.
Death or Incapacity of Depositor
You agree to immediately notify us about the death or
incapacity of any owner or authorized signer on your
account. Until we receive notice satisfactory to us in writing,
and have a reasonable opportunity to act on it, we may
continue to honor items drawn on your account by the
authorized signer(s). We may suspend, refuse, and reverse any
transactions or deposits (for example, automatic federal direct
deposits of benet payments belonging to the decedent) if
any owner or authorized signer dies or is declared by a court
to be incompetent. However, even with knowledge, we may
pay checks drawn on the account for ten (10) days after the
date of death. Refer to the section regarding the treatment of
Direct Deposits.
Direct Deposits
If, in connection with a direct deposit plan, we deposit or
credit any amount in your account which should have been
returned to the state or federal government or any other third
party for any reason, you authorize us to deduct the amount
from your account or from any other account you have with
us without prior notice and at any time, except as prohibited
by law. You also authorize us to use any other legal remedy to
recover the amount of our liability.
Suspected Forgeries/Alterations: Review of Your Account
You agree to examine your monthly statements immediately
after receipt or after made available to you, whichever
is earlier. If you suspect any unauthorized transactions,
errors, or discrepancies, including forgeries, alterations,
unauthorized items, or missing or diverted deposits, you
must make a report to the Bank immediately.
You assume full responsibility for monitoring and
reviewing the activity of your account, including the work of
your employees, agents and accountants (as applicable). You
agree to review your account statement as a fraud prevention
measure. If you suspect a check or other payment was issued
or charged against your account without your authorization
(including a forgery or alteration), or you suspect other
unauthorized use of your account (we refer to all of these
as “unauthorized uses”), report your ndings to the Bank
immediately. Unless you notify us promptly, we will assume
the monthly statement is correct.
Prompt action on your part can prevent further losses.
Except as otherwise expressly provided elsewhere in this
Deposit Agreement, any unauthorized use or other error
must be reported to the Bank NO LATER THAN THIRTY
(30) DAYS from the date the statement containing the
unauthorized use or other error is made available. If you do
not report to us within this time, you are precluded from
asserting a claim against the Bank for forgery, alteration,
unauthorized use or other error. If you do not notify us of
any unauthorized use or other error within thirty (30) days
37
from the date your statement is made available, we may also
refuse to reimburse you for any subsequent unauthorized use
by the same wrongdoer(s).
e previously stated thirty (30) day limitations apply
whether the statement is made available in paper or via
electronic communication, and without regard to whether we
did or did not use ordinary care and do not otherwise restrict
any right we have at law or under our agreements with you.
An “other error” for purposes of this section includes, but is
not limited to, missing deposits, unauthorized checks or other
charges, unauthorized endorsements or signatures, illegible
copies or images of checks, encoding errors and counterfeit
checks.
If you claim a credit or refund because of a forgery,
alteration or any other unauthorized use or other error,
you agree to provide the Bank with an adavit containing
whatever reasonable information we require about the
transaction and the circumstances surrounding your claim
and to assist with our investigation and recovery attempts. We
must receive your declaration within 10 days of our request.
If applicable, you also agree to make a report to the police
and to provide us with a copy of the report, upon request.
We will have a reasonable period of time to investigate the
circumstances surrounding any claimed loss.
e Bank may provisionally credit your account during
our investigation, although we have no obligation to do so
except as may be required by law. If we do, we may withdraw
the credit if our investigation reveals we are not liable for the
loss. Our maximum liability will never exceed the amount of
actual damages proven by you. Our liability will be reduced:
(a) by the amount of the loss that is caused by your own
negligence or lack of care; (b) to the extent that damages
could not have been avoided by our exercise of ordinary care;
and (c) by any loss recovery that you obtain from third parties
(apportioned in accordance with this provision). We will not
be liable for any loss that is caused in part by your negligence
if we acted with ordinary care. e Bank will not reimburse
you for unauthorized uses of your account that directly or
indirectly benet you. Unless otherwise required by law, the
Bank will not be liable for incidental, special or consequential
damages, including loss of prots and lost opportunity, or for
attorneys’ fees incurred by you, even if we were aware of the
possibility of these damages.
Many businesses carry special insurance for these risks. If
you do, we may require that you le your claim with your
insurance company before making any claim against us. In
that case, your claim against us will be considered only after
we have reviewed your insurance company’s decision. Our
liability to you, if any, will be reduced by the amount your
insurance company pays you.
If you do not receive your scheduled statement, it is your
obligation to notify the Bank of that fact.
Notwithstanding the previous, consumers may have
greater rights in connection with substitute checks (see the
Substitute Checks and Your Rights section of this Deposit
Agreement) or in connection with electronic funds transfers
38
(as set forth in the Electronic Fund Transfer Services
section), or in any Additional Documentation for consumers.
Disputes
If we have any uncertainty regarding the ownership of
an account or its funds, if a dispute arises over control
of or access to your account, or if we receive conicting
instructions from you (including any owner, joint account
holder, contracting ocer and/or other authorized signer on
your account), or in the case of a corporate or partnership
or association/LLC account, conicting board resolutions
or partnership authorizations or member instructions, we
may require, but are not obligated to require, the signatures
of all account owners and authorized signers on items,
withdrawals, or other transactions. We may also, but are
not obligated to, “freeze” the account until we get evidence
satisfactory to us that either the dispute is resolved or there
is general agreement on payment of or access to the funds in
the account.
Without limiting the foregoing, you also authorize us to
do one or more of the following:
• We may refuse all transactions to the account until we are
provided with satisfactory evidence that either the dispute
is resolved or there is general agreement on the payment of
the funds in the account;
• We may ignore any instruction (such as an instruction
by one account owner not to honor checks or other
withdrawal orders by another account owner) that conicts
with the terms of the signature card for the account unless
all account owners sign the instructions;
• We may reverse any debits or credits to the account in
dispute, or other accounts with us, to correct what we
believe in our sole discretion resulted from action taken to
the disadvantage of one account owner, over another;
• We may return items unpaid, marked “Refer to Maker” or
otherwise at our discretion;
• We can require that all account owners sign any check or
other withdrawal order even though the signature card
for the account does not require all those signatures to
authorize a withdrawal;
• We can close the account and issue a single cashier’s check
for the available account balance jointly payable to all
account owners, and we may mail or deliver that check
to any one of the account holders or signatories, or to the
address of record;
• We can deposit the account balance with the clerk of a
court in connection with an interpleader action the Bank
brings or in response to a court action naming the Bank as
a party. e court would then decide who is entitled to the
funds. If the Bank makes an interpleader deposit with the
court, the court will be asked to award the Bank its costs,
including attorneys’ fees, for the lawsuit. e law provides
that this award is payable out of the deposit. We may use
interpleader at our option, including when not otherwise
specically provided as a procedure under relevant law, and
you agree that we will not be liable to you for your losses
39
or damages if a court initially accepts our interpleader
action and then later determines that interpleader is not
available to us;
• Continue to pay items and other withdrawals when
the instructions to do so are given to us by an owner or
authorized signer of the account according to our records;
and/or
• We can take any other action we believe to be reasonable
under the circumstances even if the action is not listed
here. ese actions include, but are not limited to, any
specic procedures that may be applicable under a law or
regulation.
You agree to assume all liability for, and you agree to
indemnify, defend, and hold us harmless from and against
any and all losses, damages, claims, costs or expenses
(including attorneys’ fees and costs) incurred by us as a result
of any dispute that arises under this section. In addition to
the foregoing rights, you authorize us in our sole discretion
to elect to close your accounts pursuant to this Deposit
Agreement.
Power of Attorney
Under certain types of account ownership, you may authorize
another person as your agent and attorney-in-fact to act on
the account (“agent”). You shall be bound by and responsible
for the actions of your agent, even if the agency relationship
is not indicated on the item, withdrawal order or other
instruction. Prior to accepting the authority of your agent,
we may require the appointment to be in a form satisfactory
to us. Unless prohibited by law, we may reasonably refuse
to honor a power of attorney or agency that you grant to
others for any reason. We may require you or your agent to
present the original form. In some cases, we may require that
the agent conrm in an adavit that the powers have not
been revoked or terminated. We may continue to rely on
the instructions and actions of your agent until we receive
written notice in accordance with applicable law and this
Deposit Agreement that the agent’s authority has been
terminated, and we have had time to act upon it. You must
tell us of any changes involving the power of attorney. We
will not be liable to you or anyone else if we, in good faith
and without actual knowledge that the power of attorney
is decient or has terminated for any reason, act on the
instructions of your purported agent. You agree that a
signature by your authorized agent (e.g., your attorney-in-fact
under a power of attorney that we have on le) is valid, even
if the principal agent relationship itself is not indicated on
the check or instruction. We may charge you a fee to cover
our costs to review any power of attorney document other
than the form we provide. You agree not to hold the Bank
responsible for any loss or damage you may incur as a result
of the decision the Bank makes, or any delays that arise due
to the Bank’s decision making process, on whether to follow
the instructions given to us, as long as the Bank’s decision is
made in good faith.
40
Changing Accounts
Except to the extent limited by applicable law, if you change
the type of account you have during the statement period,
your account will be charged the monthly fees of the new
account for the entire statement period. Without limiting
our ability to close your account, we may alternatively
convert your account to another type of account or revoke
privileges when we consider it appropriate or necessary to
do so. For example, we may revoke privileges, or convert
your account to another account type if you make frequent
transactions in excess of account restrictions, if your account
frequently has debits against uncollected funds, if your
account has excessive deposit activity or if you use an account
for a purpose that is dierent than the purpose for which
the account was opened (for example, if you use a consumer
account for business purposes).
Account Structure
We may structure your account to consist of two or more
sub-accounts to take advantage of an interpretation of
federal regulations. e sub-accounts, a checking account,
and savings account, will be used to allow for the transfer of
funds between the accounts, subject to federal regulations.
is structure will occur solely on our books and will not
be visible to you, nor will it aect your account in any way.
Also, this will not aect the FDIC coverage of your account.
Opening Additional Accounts
e Bank may open additional accounts under the same
signature card and Deposit Agreement on the instructions
of any signer. For each additional account, the Taxpayer
Identication Number (TIN) must be the same as the
one on the signature card. e same signer(s) must sign
on the new account and only those signers designated on
the signature card may withdraw funds from the account.
If you want dierent signers on the new account, you
must complete and sign a new signature card and Deposit
Agreement. You authorize us to use the TIN that you give
us on the signature card on any new account any signer
subsequently opens on the same signature card.
Taxpayer Identication Number
We are required to obtain an identication number from
you for each account you open or maintain with us. As an
example, this may include a taxpayer identication number
(TIN) for an individual, such as a social security number
(SSN). e identication number for a business is usually
an employer identication number (EIN). If your account is
interest bearing, the identication number may be included
on reports we must le with state and federal tax authorities
about interest we pay you.
U.S. persons, including resident aliens may be required
to complete a Form W-9 to certify their TIN and backup
withholding status. To establish that you are not a U.S.
citizen or other U.S. person (including a resident alien
individual), we may require you to complete a Form W-8.
41
We may report interest in cases where it is not mandated
for us to do so. We are not responsible for your action
or inaction in selecting or completing a form, and no
information in these matters that may be supplied by us to
you should be relied upon by you. In all tax matters, you
should consult your own tax advisor. You agree to notify us
and submit a new Form W-9 or W-8, as applicable, within
30 days if any certication made on the form becomes
incorrect. You further agree to provide us with a newly
executed and valid W-8 prior to any expiration of the form.
If you fail to provide your TIN and certify that it is
correct, or if you fail to certify that you are not subject to
backup withholding or if the IRS noties us that you have
furnished an incorrect taxpayer identication number, then
federal tax rules may require us to re-solicit your TIN and/
or withhold a percentage of interest paid to you. We forward
amounts withheld to the IRS. If there are any nes, penalties,
or charges assessed upon us due to any incorrect name/TIN
mismatch or error not caused by us, you agree to reimburse
us for the ne, penalty, or charge, and we may charge your
account for the same.
When an account earns interest, we may report the
interest paid and the amount withheld to the IRS (and to the
California Franchise Tax Board). You will receive a copy of
the information reported to the tax authorities.
Limitation of Liability; Hold Harmless and Indemnity
Except as otherwise stated in this Deposit Agreement or
as specied by law, the Bank will be liable to you only for
damages arising directly from our intentional misconduct
or gross negligence. “Ordinary care” requires only that we
follow standards that do not vary unreasonably from the
general standards followed by similarly situated banks. Our
policies and procedures are general internal guidelines for our
use and do not establish a higher standard of care for us than
is otherwise established by the laws governing your account.
A mere clerical error or an honest mistake will not be
considered a failure by us to perform any of our obligations.
Except to the extent limited by applicable law, the
Bank is not liable for loss, damage, harm or expense (“Loss”)
from: (a) any inaccuracy, act or failure to act of any person
not within our reasonable control (such as the failure of
other nancial institutions to provide accurate or timely
information); (b) the failure of other nancial institutions
to accept or perform in connection with checks or other
charges; (c) your negligence or breach of this Deposit
Agreement (such as failing to recognize unauthorized
transactions or to keep security procedures condential);
(d) any ambiguous or inaccurate instruction; or (e) any
error, failure or delay caused by accident, re, ood, war,
riot, electrical, mechanical or communication failure, acts
of third-parties, acts of God, or any cause beyond the
Bank’s control. We will not be liable or responsible for the
acts or omissions of any other nancial institution or any
third party or for any inaccuracy or omission in a notice
or communication received by us from you, your agents,
42
your authorized signers, other nancial institutions, or any
other third party. In addition, we shall be excused from
failing to transmit, or delaying the transmission of, any
transaction, if such transmittal would result in our having
exceeded any limitation upon its intra-day net funds position
established pursuant to present or future Federal Reserve
Board guidelines or in our otherwise violating any provision
of any present or future risk control program of the Federal
Reserve Board or any rule or regulation of any other U.S.
governmental regulatory authority. We shall not be liable
for any failure to perform any of its obligations under the
Deposit Agreement if such performance would result in
it being in breach of any law, regulation, requirement or
provision of any government, government agency, banking
or taxation authority in accordance with which we are
required to act, as shall be determined in our sole discretion.
Our liability for any act or failure to act is limited to
your direct loss (and interest on that loss, if required by
law, at the average Federal Funds rate at the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York for the period). Our liability will be
reduced: (a) by the amount of the loss that is caused by
your own negligence or lack of care; (b) to the extent that
damages could not have been avoided by our exercise of
ordinary care; and (c) by any loss recovery that you obtain
from third parties (apportioned in accordance with this
provision). We will not be liable for any loss that is caused
in part by your negligence if we acted with ordinary care.
Except if specically imposed by statute that cannot be
waived between parties, THE BANK IS NOT LIABLE
FOR CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL,
PUNITIVE OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, such as loss or
damage from subsequent wrongful dishonor from our acts
or omissions, even if we are aware of the possibility of the
same. You agree to pursue all rights you may have under
any insurance policy covering any loss and to provide
us with information regarding coverage. Our liability
will be reduced, proportionately in accordance with our
responsibility for any loss, by the amount of any insurance
proceeds you receive or are entitled to receive for the loss.
If we reimburse you for a loss and the loss is covered by
insurance, you agree to assign us your rights under the
insurance policy to the extent of our reimbursement, in
accordance with this provision. You waive all rights of
subrogation against us with respect to any insurance policy
or bond.
(Note: Dierent liability rules apply to certain
consumer account electronic fund transfers. See the
Electronic Fund Transfer Services section of this Deposit
Agreement.)
In addition to any other rights the Bank may
have under this Deposit Agreement or any Additional
Documentation, or at law or in equity, and except as
expressly limited by applicable law or regulation, you agree
that you will indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Bank
and our directors, ocers, shareholders, employees and
agents, against any and all third-party suits, proceedings,
43
claims, demands, causes of action, damages, expenses
(including reasonable attorneys’ fees and other legal
expenses), liabilities and other losses (“Indemnied Losses”)
that result from or arise out of: (a) the wrongful acts or
omissions of you, or any person acting on your behalf
(including without limitation your authorized processor,
if any), in connection with your use of your accounts or
services we oer to you under this Deposit Agreement,
including, without limitation: (i) the breach by you of
any provision, representation or warranty of this Deposit
Agreement; (ii) the negligence or willful misconduct
(whether by act or omission) of you, your customers, your
authorized processor (if any) or any third-party on behalf
of you; (iii) any misuse of the account or services by you, or
any third-party within the control or on behalf of you; or
(iv) the failure by you to comply with applicable state and
federal laws and regulations applicable to you; (b) any act
or omission of ours that is in accordance with this Deposit
Agreement or instructions from you; (c) actions by third-
parties, such as the introduction of a virus that delay, alter or
corrupt the transmission of information to us; or (d) any loss
or corruption of data in transit from you or your authorized
processor to us.
Our relationship with you concerning your accounts is
that of debtor and creditor. No duciary, quasi-duciary or
similar special relationship exists between you and us.
is Deposit Agreement is made exclusively for your
and our benet, and you may not assign this Deposit
Agreement without our written consent. As such, no other
person shall have any right against you or us hereunder. In
addition, your account may not be pledged, negotiated,
transferred or assigned without our prior written consent.
Legibility of Deposited Checks
In the event you deposit a check that is returned beyond
legal time requirements, or for which notice of nonpayment
is delayed beyond legal time requirements, because
markings on the back of the check impair the legibility of
endorsement, forward collection, or return information (e.g.,
imprints from rubber stamps or customer endorsements),
then you agree to be liable for any loss or damages arising
therefrom.
Legibility of Issuer’s Checks
In the event you issue a check whose condition adversely
aects the ability of a bank to endorse the check legibly
(e.g., because of carbon strips or preprinted information on
the back of the check), you agree to be liable for any loss or
damages arising therefrom.
If you have any questions or concerns about your
endorsement practices or your personalized checks, please
contact us at 1-800-848-1088.
44
Funds Availability Policy
Your Ability to Withdraw Funds
e Bank’s policy is to make funds from your cash and check
deposits available to you on the rst (1st) business day after
the day we receive your deposit. Electronic direct deposits
will be available on the day we receive the deposit. Once they
are available, you can withdraw the funds in cash and we will
use the funds to pay checks that you have written.
For determining the availability of your deposits, every
day is a business day, except Saturdays, Sundays, and federal
holidays. If you make a deposit before 2:00 p.m. at a branch
(some branch locations have a later cuto hour), or before
12:00 p.m. at one of our ATMs, and the deposit is on a
business day that we are open, we will consider that day to
be the day of your deposit. In this regard, the cuto hour
for deposits at our branches is no earlier than 2:00 p.m., but
may vary from branch to branch depending on the location
of the branch and the day of the week. Each branch’s cuto
hours are posted at the branch, for your convenience and
information. However, if you make a deposit after the
applicable branch cuto hour, or after the stated ATM cuto
hour, or on a day we are not open, then we will consider that
the deposit was made on the next business day we are open.
Longer Delays May Apply
In some cases, the Bank will not make all of the funds that
you deposit by check available to you on the rst (1st)
business day after the day of your deposit. Depending on the
type of check that you deposit, funds may not be available
until the second (2nd) business day after the day of your
deposit. e rst $225 of your deposit, however, may be
available on the rst (1st) business day.
If the Bank is not going to make all of the funds from
your deposit available on the rst (1st) business day, we will
notify you at the time you make your deposit. We will also
tell you when the funds will be available. If your deposit is
not made directly to one of our employees, or if we decide to
take this action after you have left the premises, we will mail
you the notice by the day after we receive your deposit.
If you will need the funds from a deposit right away,
you should ask us when the funds will be available.
In addition, funds you deposit by check may be delayed
for a longer period under the following circumstances:
• We believe a check you deposit will not be paid.
• You deposit checks totaling more than $5,525 on any one
(1) day.
• You redeposit a check that has been returned unpaid.
• You have overdrawn your account repeatedly in the last six
months.
• ere is an emergency, such as failure of computer or
communications equipment.
e Bank will notify you if we delay your ability to
withdraw funds for any of these reasons, and we will tell
you when the funds will be available. ey will generally be
45
available no later than the seventh (7th) business day after
the day of your deposit.
Special Rules for New Accounts
If you are a new customer, the following special rules will apply
during the rst (1st) thirty (30) days your account is open.
Funds from electronic direct deposits to your account
will be available on the day we receive the deposit. Funds
from deposits of cash, wire transfers, and the rst $5,525 of a
day’s total deposits of cashier’s, certied, teller’s, traveler’s and
federal, state and local government checks will be available no
later than the rst business day after the day of your deposit if
the deposit meets certain conditions. For example, the checks
must be payable to you (and you may have to use a special
deposit slip). e excess over $5,525 will be available no later
than the ninth (9th) business day after the day of your deposit.
If your deposit of these checks (other than a U.S. Treasury
check) is not made in person to one of our employees, the rst
$5,525 may not be available until the second (2nd) business
day after the day of your deposit.
Funds from all other check deposits will be available on
the eleventh (11th) business day after the day of your deposit.
Holds on Other Funds (Check Cashing)
If we cash a check for you that is drawn on another bank, we
may withhold the availability of a corresponding amount of
funds that are already in your account. ose funds will be
available at the time funds from the check we cashed would
have been available if you had deposited it.
Holds on Other Funds (Other Account)
If we accept for deposit a check that is drawn on another
bank, we may make funds from the deposit available for
withdrawal immediately but delay your availability, to
withdraw a corresponding amount of funds that you have on
deposit in another account with us. e funds in the other
account would then not be available for withdrawal until the
time periods that are described elsewhere in this disclosure
for the type of check that you deposited.
Substitute Checks and Your Rights
Important Information About Your Checking Account
What is a substitute check?
To make check processing faster, federal law permits banks
to replace original checks with “substitute checks.” ese
checks are similar in size to original checks with a slightly
reduced image of the front and back of the original check.
e front of a substitute check states: “is is a legal copy of
your check. You can use it the same way you would use the
original check.” You may use a substitute check as proof of
payment just like the original check.
Some or all of the checks that you receive back from
us may be substitute checks. is notice describes rights you
have when you receive substitute checks from us. e rights
in this notice do not apply to original checks or to electronic
46
debits to your account. However, you have rights under other
law with respect to those transactions.
What are my rights regarding substitute checks?
In certain cases, federal law provides a special procedure
that allows you to request a refund for losses you suer if a
substitute check is posted to your account (for example, if
you think that we withdrew the wrong amount from your
account or that we withdrew money from your account more
than once for the same check). e losses you may attempt
to recover under this procedure may include the amount that
was withdrawn from your account and fees that were charged
as a result of the withdrawal (for example, special handling
fees for overdrafts and/or returned checks).
e amount of your refund under this procedure is
limited to the amount of your loss or the amount of the
substitute check, whichever is less. You also are entitled to
interest on the amount of your refund if your account is an
interest-bearing account. If your loss exceeds the amount of
the substitute check, you may be able to recover additional
amounts under other law.
If you use this procedure, you may receive a refund
of the lesser of $2,500 or the amount of the check (plus
interest, if your account earns interest) within ten (10)
business days after we received your claim and the remainder
of your refund (plus interest, if your account earns interest)
not later than forty-ve (45) calendar days after we received
your claim.
e Bank may reverse the refund (including any interest
on the refund) if we later are able to demonstrate that the
substitute check was correctly posted to your account.
How do I make a claim for a refund?
If you believe that you have suered a loss relating to a
substitute check that you received and that was posted to
your account, please contact us at 1-800-848-1088 or write
to us at Westamerica Bank, P. O. Box 1200, MAC B-1N,
Suisun City, CA 94585. Hearing- or speech-impaired clients
may use TDDs to contact our Customer Service Department
at 1-800-TDD-1088 (1-800-833-1088). You must contact
or write to us within forty (40) calendar days of the date
that we mailed (or otherwise delivered by a means to which
you agreed) the substitute check in question or the account
statement showing that the substitute check was posted to
your account, whichever is later. e Bank will extend this
time period if you were not able to make a timely claim
because of extraordinary circumstances.
Your claim must include:
• A description of why you have suered a loss (for example,
you think the amount withdrawn was incorrect);
• An estimate of the amount of your loss;
• An explanation of why the substitute check you received is
insucient to conrm that you suered a loss; and
• A copy of the substitute check and the following
information to help us identify the substitute check: the
47
check number; the name of the person to whom you wrote
the check; and the amount of the check.
Electronic Fund Transfer Services
is section describes the Bank’s account-related electronic
banking services, and provides the terms applicable to these
services. In general, these services provide ways to transfer
funds electronically to and from your account, including
by using an ATM Card or ATM / Debit Card linked to
the account, including with use of a Personal Identication
Number (PIN). e Bank may limit the availability of these
services at any time, and all of these services may not be
available at each Bank location. e Bank may require you or
the cardholder to sign or agree to Additional Documentation
to obtain these services.
e Bank may, in its sole discretion, limit the availability
of electronic banking services as it considers appropriate.
Some provisions in this section are marked as applicable
to consumer accounts only. is shows which provisions of
this section do not apply if your account is not a “consumer
account” as dened under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act
(EFTA) or (b) the particular transaction is not covered by the
EFTA.
Your “ATM Card” and Your “ATM/Debit Card”
An “ATM Card” is an access device that may be used at a
Westamerica ATM and at other compatible ATM networks. An
“ATM/Debit Card” is an ATM Card that can be used at these
ATMs and also at participating merchants (including on-line)
for point-of-sale transactions. In this section, the Westamerica
Bancorporation ATM Card and the ATM/Debit Card may
both be referred to as “card,” unless otherwise specically
described.
Transfer Types
When you use a card with your PIN, you authorize us to accept
deposits, make transfers and permit withdrawals and advances
from or deposits and payments to your accounts with us. All
cards remain the property of the Bank, and are non-transferable.
Subject to there being sucient available balances in your
account and other restrictions we may place on your use, you
may use your card to:
• Withdraw available cash from your linked savings or
checking accounts;
• Make deposits to your linked checking or savings account at
one of our ATMs;
• Transfer funds between your linked checking and savings
accounts;
• Initiate point-of-sale (POS) transactions by using your card
and PIN to pay for purchases at merchant locations that have
agreed to accept the card. A card may be used with a PIN,
with a signature or without either, for POS transactions to
purchase goods and services at any merchant location that
displays the Visa logo;
• Obtain a cash advance at nancial institutions that accept
48
Debit Cards with the Visa logo; and
• Obtain the balance or transaction history of your linked
checking or savings accounts.
Information may not reect recent transactions, and
may include funds which are not available for immediate
withdrawal. Some of these services may not be available at all
ATMs, terminals, or merchant locations. When you use your
card at any electronic terminal operated by another institution
or company, the amount, frequency, and type of transactions
may be subject to limitations or fees imposed by the operator of
the terminal, in addition to those disclosed in our Schedule of
Fees and Charges.
Issuance of a Card
Subject to qualication, the Bank may issue a card to each
cardholder to access the account(s) that are linked to your
card (a “Linked Account”) at Automated Teller Machines
(an “ATM”) and for Point-of-Sale (POS) network merchant
transactions.
Protecting the Card and PIN
Take care of the card and PIN as you would your checks
and other important documents. Each cardholder must have
their own unique PIN for the card, which may be embossed
or printed with the cardholder’s name. Each cardholder is
responsible for maintaining the condentiality of the PIN.
Memorize the PIN. Never write the PIN on the card or
share it with anyone, including Bank personnel. Never allow
anyone else to use, borrow, or obtain the card or PIN. If the
card and/or PIN are given to another person, you will be
responsible for all transactions made by that person.
Each cardholder should care for their card as they would
any other valuable that they carry with them:
• To protect your account, the Bank recommends that you
change your PIN every six (6) months.
• When selecting your PIN, do not use any number or word
that appears in your wallet (such as birth date, name, or
address).
• Memorize your PIN and never share it with anyone.
• Shop with merchants you know and trust.
• Regularly review your account statements as soon as you
receive them to verify transactions. Contact the Bank
immediately if you identify any discrepancies.
• Make sure any Internet purchase activity you engage
in is secured with encryption to protect your account
information. Look for “secure transaction” symbols.
• Do not send your card number through email, as it is
typically not secure. Don’t provide it over the phone unless
you initiated the call.
• Always be sure to log o any site after a purchase
transaction is made with your card. If you cannot log o,
shut down your browser to prevent unauthorized access to
your account information.
• If you receive a replacement card, be sure to destroy your
old card.
49
Stay Safe at the ATM
• Be prepared. Get your transactions ready beforehand.
Have your card in hand when you approach the ATM.
• Stay alert. If you observe suspicious activity near you,
cancel your transaction and return at another time, or use
an ATM elsewhere.
• Bring someone with you. If you use the ATM at night,
don’t come alone. Avoid poorly maintained or poorly
lighted locations.
• Shield the ATM screen. Block the ATM with your body
when you input your PIN so others can’t see your secret
code.
• Take your receipt when you leave the ATM. Don’t
put it in a nearby trash receptacle. It contains valuable
information for your records and should never be left
behind.
• Pocket your cash immediately. You can count it in the
safety of your car, oce or home.
• At the Drive-Up, keep your engine running. Make sure
your windows are closed and doors are locked. Allow
for space between cars, which allows for a quick exit if
necessary.
Account Linkages
e Bank shall determine the number and type of accounts
that can be linked as “Linked Accounts” to your card. You may
link such additional Linked Accounts to your card as the Bank
permits from time to time. e permitted linkages may vary
depending on the type of card. e Bank may link to your
card any or all of the accounts on which you are an authorized
signer, unless you request the Bank not to link specic accounts.
Designation of Primary Transaction Account
If you link only one (1) account of a single type (e.g. checking,
or savings accounts) as a Linked Account to the card, the
checking account is automatically designated as the “primary”
account for purposes of electronic banking services.
Designation of Primary vs. Other Accounts
If you link more than one (1) account of a single type to
the card, you may designate a primary account, secondary
account, and other accounts from among the various
Linked Accounts. For example, if you link (4) four checking
accounts to your card, one account will be the primary
account, another will be the secondary account and the
remaining two (2) accounts will be other accounts. If you do
not designate (1) one of the Linked Accounts as the primary
account of a particular type of account, the rst account
of that type linked to your card is considered the primary
account for that type of account.
Limitations Generally
We reserve the right to impose dollar, volume, activity, exposure
or other limitations on card transactions, and to change them
at any time. We may increase dollar or other limitations for one
or more cards or card transactions upon request by any person
50
who is an authorized signer on the linked account. You accept
the risks associated with this possibility of higher dollar or other
limitations.
Dollar Limits
If the card may be used to make withdrawals and/or transfers at
an ATM or to make POS purchases, the following rules apply:
• ere is no limit on the number of times the card may be
used each day so long as the applicable daily limits for Linked
Accounts that are separately disclosed are not exceeded.
(ese limits can be found on your card mailer).
• e ATM daily dollar limit is the maximum amount of
cash that can be withdrawn from any combination of linked
deposit accounts by an individual card.
• e daily POS purchase limit is the maximum amount of
purchases (including cash back, if any) that can be debited
from the Linked Account used for POS access.
• For purposes of the daily limits only, a “day” is dened as the
24-hour period from 10:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Pacic Time.
If a transaction is initiated in another time zone, it will be
processed when the Bank receives it.
• Based on your account history, activity, and other factors,
we may increase or decrease your daily purchase or ATM
withdrawal limits. We will notify you if required by
applicable law.
If the cardholder already has a card and does not know
what the daily limits are, call the Bank at the telephone number
listed on your statement for your account.
Available Funds
Generally, a cardholder can withdraw funds up to the daily
dollar limits (including ATM or POS withdrawal limits),
subject to the available balance in any combination of linked
deposit accounts accessed for transfer or withdrawal. If the
transfer or withdrawal would create an overdraft on the
primary or any other Linked Accounts, the Bank may decline
to authorize or pay the transaction. See the Processing Your
Transactions section of this Deposit Agreement, as well as
our separate Overdraft Disclosure for Consumer Accounts
or Overdraft Disclosure for Business Accounts for further
information. e availability of deposits for withdrawal is
described in the Funds Availability Policy section.
POS Purchases
A cardholder may use the card to purchase goods and
services from merchants that accept Visa Debit Cards or
merchants that participate in any network that the Bank has
an agreement with. Some merchants may refuse to accept
your card as payment for goods or services, and we are not
responsible or liable for their actions.
If a cardholder authorizes a POS purchase, the purchase
will be processed using primary checking account funds. If
the Bank receives an electronic notice that a POS transaction
has occurred, a hold may be placed on the account
designated as the primary transaction account. e hold
51
will be for the actual amount of the purchase or, depending
on the merchant’s practice, for the anticipated amount of
the purchase (which may be greater or less than the actual
amount of the purchase), or for a pre-established amount in
excess of individual transactions (for example, hotel or car
reservations). e held funds may not be available for other
account purposes, and we have the right to return checks or
other items drawn against your account to maintain sucient
funds to pay for any previously authorized transactions. You
agree to maintain sucient available funds on deposit in
the account to cover all authorized transactions. e hold
may continue even if you do not purchase any goods or
services for which authorization was obtained. e hold may
remain in eect from the time the notice is received until
the merchant draft or other payment data is presented. e
amount of each POS transaction will be deducted from the
available funds in that designated account.
Some POS merchants may assess a fee for a purchase
made at their location. A sign describing any fee should be
posted by the merchant. is fee will be included in the total
purchase amount shown on the Bank account statement
linked to the card and reected on the receipt issued at the
time of the transaction.
Since your card is not a credit card, if you have a dispute
with the merchant regarding the quality, price, warranty or
otherwise of the goods or services you purchase with your
card, you will have to settle your dispute with the merchant
directly. We are not responsible for a merchant’s actions,
including any misrepresentations by a merchant.
Transactions Outside the United States
If a card is used to conduct a transaction in a foreign
currency, the network that handles the transaction will
convert the foreign currency amount to U.S. Dollars. e
network will use either a rate selected by the network from
the range of rates available in wholesale currency markets for
the applicable central processing date, which rate may vary
from the rate the network itself receives, or the government
mandated rate in eect for the applicable central processing
date. e conversion rate may be dierent from the rate in
eect on the date of the transaction or date posted on the
account. For each transaction outside the United States,
the Bank may also charge an International Transaction Fee.
Refer to our Schedule of Fees and Charges. is fee may
apply even if the transaction was originally denominated in
U.S. Dollars but is identied by the processing network as
being conducted outside the United States, or if an internet
transaction is made in the United States but with a merchant
who processes the transaction outside the United States.
Fees
When you use an ATM or terminal not owned by us, you may
be charged a fee by the ATM or terminal operator or through
the networks used (and you may be charged a fee for a balance
inquiry even if you do not complete a fund transfer).
52
Refer to our Schedule of Fees and Charges for our electronic
fund transfer fees.
Illegal Transactions
You agree not to use your card for any illegal transactions,
including but not limited to illegal Internet gambling. We may
deny, at our discretion, transactions from merchants who we
believe may be engaged in internet gambling.
Shared Network ATMs
A cardholder may use the card at a shared Network ATM
to conduct such non-Westamerica Bank ATM transactions
as withdraw cash from, transfer available funds between, or
check the balance on, the account designated as the primary
account. Some of these transactions may not be available on
certain accounts or terminals. A fee may be assessed for each
shared Network ATM transaction you perform. Outside
parties may assess additional transaction fees for transactions
made at their ATMs. ese fees may be included in the total
amount of the transaction amount that is withdrawn from
your account and shown on the statement for the account.
Refer to our Schedule of Fees and Charges for network
ATM fees.
Adjustments
We may make adjustments to your account from time to
time. is may be due, for example, to the return of an item
you deposited which was unpaid or if a deposit is posted in
the wrong amount. Adjustments will be reected on your
periodic statement (if any).
Deposit at ATMs - Deposit Verication
Checks that the cardholder wants to deposit to Linked
Account(s) must be endorsed by all payees. Checks made out
to payees who are not account owners may not be accepted
once the check has been examined. You may not deposit
foreign currency or checks with payment amounts stated in
foreign currency. If the cardholder makes a deposit at the
ATM and the deposit slip or amount keyed diers from the
sum of the deposited check(s), a debit or credit adjustment
will be made to the account. During the verication process,
checks that the Bank refuses to accept for deposit for any
reason will be returned by rst class mail to the address in
the Bank’s records for your account. A debit adjustment
will be made to the account for any check the Bank refuses
to accept. e availability of deposits for withdrawal is
described in the Funds Availability Policy section of this
Deposit Agreement.
Documentation
Terminal Transfers - You can get a receipt at the time you
make any transfer to or from your account using one of
our automated teller machines or at point-of-sale terminals;
however, receipts for transactions of $15 or less may not
always be available. All ATM transactions are subject to later
verication by us.
53
Preauthorized Credits - If you have arranged to have direct
deposits made to your account at least once every 60 days
from the same person or company, you can call us at
1-800-848-1088 to nd out whether or not the deposit has
been made.
Periodic Statements – You will get a monthly account
statement unless there are no electronic funds transfers in a
particular month. In any case you will get the statement at
least quarterly.
Statement of Balances of Linked Account – e cardholder
may use the card to obtain a printout of the balances of any
Linked Accounts. Any balance shown on the statement may
include deposits still subject to verication by the Bank,
and the balances may dier from the cardholder’s records
because of deposits in progress, outstanding checks, or other
withdrawals, payments, or fees.
Receipts at ATMs
You will be given the choice to receive a receipt each time
an ATM is used to make an electronic transfer, unless you
are notied otherwise before you complete your transaction.
e receipt is evidence of the transaction as recorded by
the ATM. All transactions are subject to posting, nal
payment, or verication, as applicable. e cardholder can
use the receipt to reconcile the statement for their account.
Any balance shown on the receipt may include deposits
still subject to verication by the Bank, and the balances
may dier from the cardholder’s records because of deposits
in progress, outstanding checks, or other withdrawals,
payments, or fees.
When a Transaction is Posted
e time required to debit or credit your account after the
card is used will depend on the location of the ATM or POS
and the type of transaction.
Termination of Card Privileges
e card is the property of the Bank. e Bank may terminate
the cardholder’s card privileges at any time without notice to
you or the cardholder. You or the cardholder may terminate
card privileges at any time by writing the Bank at the address
provided on your statement. You will immediately notify
the Bank in writing of the termination of the cardholder’s
authority to use a card. If the cardholder’s authority is
terminated, the account is closed or the card is cancelled, you
will immediately retrieve and destroy the card(s) and upon
request provide written conrmation that the card(s) has been
destroyed or upon request you must immediately surrender
the card(s) to the Bank. Termination of card privileges will not
aect any of your rights or obligations for transactions made
with a card before the privileges were terminated.
Changes in Terms Aecting Electronic Transactions
From time to time, the Bank may change the terms and
conditions applicable to electronic transactions.
54
e Bank will send you written notice as required by the laws
governing your account.
Termination of Electronic Fund Transfer Privileges
All of your electronic transfer privileges end if your account
is closed. Either you or the Bank may terminate specic
electronic transfer services without closing your account. You
may terminate a service by calling or writing the Bank at the
number or address listed on the statement for your account
or provided on the back page of this Deposit Agreement.
Accounts at May be Used
Electronic Payment Services are available to you from your
checking, money market checking, savings, or money market
savings account. You will be asked to sign or agree to separate
Additional Documentation if you elect to use one or more of
these services.
Preauthorized Payments
Right To Stop Payment And Procedure For Doing So - If you
have told us in advance to make regular payments out of
your account, you can stop any of these payments. Here’s
how: You may call us at 1-800-848-1088 or write to us at:
Westamerica Bank, P.O. Box 1200, MAC B-2N, Suisun City,
CA 94585 in time for us to receive your request 3 business
days or more before the payment is scheduled to be made.
If you call, we may also require you to put your request in
writing and get it to us within 14 days after you call. We will
charge you the stop payment fee listed in our Schedule of
Fees and Charges for each stop payment order you give.
Notice Of Varying Amounts - If these regular payments may
vary in amount, the person you are going to pay will tell you,
10 days before each payment, when it will be made and how
much it will be. You may choose instead to get this notice
only when the payment would dier by more than a certain
amount from the previous payment, or when the amount
would fall outside certain limits that you set.
Liability For Failure To Stop Payment Of Preauthorized
Transfer - If you order us to stop one of these payments 3
business days or more before the transfer is scheduled, and
we do not do so, we will be liable for your losses or damages.
Financial Institution’s Liability
If we do not complete a transfer to or from your account on
time or in the correct amount according to our agreement
with you, we will be liable for your losses or damages.
However, there are some exceptions. We will not be liable,
for instance:
• If, through no fault of ours, you do not have enough
money in your account to make the transfer;
• If the transfer would go over the credit limit on your
overdraft line;
• If the automated teller machine where you are making the
transfer does not have enough cash;
• If the terminal or system was not working properly and
55
you knew about the breakdown when you started the
transfer;
• If circumstances beyond our control (such as re or ood)
prevent the transfer, despite reasonable precautions that we
have taken; or
• ere may be other exceptions stated in our agreement
with you.
Automatic Account Updating Feature
If you have arranged with your merchant to make
recurring payments using your card and your card expires
or is reported lost, and a new card is issued, participating
merchants may electronically receive your updated card
information (new card number, expiration date or account
status). YOU MAY OPT OUT OF THIS AUTOMATIC
ACCOUNT UPDATING FEATURE AT ANY TIME
BY CALLING US AT 18008481088. Opting out of the
automatic account updating feature will only apply to your
card number identied in the opt out request. Please allow
two business days for us to process your opt out request upon
receipt.
Electronic Check Conversion
You may authorize a merchant or other payee to make a one-
time electronic payment from your checking account using
information from your check to: (1) pay for purchases, and
(2) pay bills.
Condentiality
We will disclose information to third parties about your
account or the transfers you make:
• Where it is necessary for completing transfers.
• In order to verify the existence and condition of your
account for a third party, such as a credit bureau or
merchant.
• In order to comply with government agency or court
orders.
• If you give us your written permission.
Refer to our Privacy Notice, applicable to consumer
accounts, for further details.
Online Banking
To use the online banking service, you must be at least 18
years old and enter into Additional Documentation with the
Bank. Your rights and obligations regarding online banking
are more fully explained in our separate online banking
agreement.
In Case of Errors or Questions About Your Electronic
Transfer
(Only Applicable to “Consumer Accounts” as Dened Under the
EFTA)
In case of errors or questions about your electronic transfers,
call 1-800-848-1088 or write Westamerica Bank, P. O. Box
1200, MAC B-2N, Suisun City, CA 94585 as soon as you
56
can if you think your statement or receipt is wrong or if
you need more information about a transfer listed on the
statement or receipt. We must hear from you no later than
sixty (60) days after we send the FIRST statement on which
the problem or error appeared.
• Tell us your name and account number;
• Describe the error or the transfer you are unsure about,
and explain as clearly as you can why you believe it is an
error or why you need more information and;
• Tell us the dollar amount of the suspected error.
If you tell us orally, we may require that you send
us your complaint or question in writing within ten (10)
business days. We will determine whether an error occurred
within ten (10) business days after we hear from you and
will correct any error promptly. If we need more time,
however, we may take up to forty-ve (45) days to investigate
your complaint or question. If we decide to do this, we
will credit your account within ten (10) business days for
the amount you think is in error, so that you will have the
use of the money during the time it takes us to complete
our investigation. If we ask you to put your complaint or
question in writing and we do not receive it within ten (10)
business days, we may not credit your account.
For errors involving new accounts, point-of-sale (POS),
or foreign-initiated transactions, we may take up to ninety
(90) days to investigate your complaint or question. For new
accounts, we may take up to twenty (20) business days to
credit your account for the amount you think is in error. We
will tell you the results within three (3) business days after
completing our investigation. If we decide that there was no
error, we will send you a written explanation. You may ask
for copies of the documents we used in our investigation.
POS and Other Transactions Not Covered by Regulation E
Under ACH rules, the Bank can return non-consumer ACH
entries as unauthorized on the business day following the
business day the Bank posts the entry to your account. In
order for the Bank to meet this deadline, you are required to
notify us to return the entry as unauthorized by 3:00 p.m.
Pacic Time. If you do not notify us in a timely manner of
the unauthorized entry, we may not be able to return it. Any
other eort to recover the funds must occur solely between
you and the originator of the entry.
For POS and other transactions not governed by
Regulation E, you are liable for all losses relating to
unauthorized EFTs that do not result solely from the
negligence or intentional misconduct of the Bank, unless the
laws governing your account require lesser liability.
Contact in Event of Unauthorized Transfer
If you believe your card or personal identication number
has been lost or stolen, call us at 1-800-848-1088 or write
us at Westamerica Bank, P.O. Box 1200, MAC B-2N,
Suisun City, CA 94585. You should also call the number
or write to the address listed above if you believe a transfer
57
has been made using information from your check without
permission.
Consumer Liability
(Only Applicable to “Consumer Accounts” as Dened Under the
EFTA)
Tell us AT ONCE if you believe your card or your PIN
has been lost or stolen, or if you believe that an electronic
fund transfer has been made without your permission
using information from your check. Telephoning is the
best way of keeping your possible losses down. You could
lose all the money in your account (plus your maximum
overdraft line of credit, if applicable). If you tell us within
2 business days after you learn of the loss or theft of your
card or PIN, you can lose no more than $50 if someone used
your card or PIN without your permission.
If you do NOT tell us within 2 business days after you
learn of the loss or theft of your card or PIN, and we can
prove we could have stopped someone from using your card
or PIN without your permission if you had told us, you
could lose as much as $500. For unauthorized Debit Card
transactions of individual California resident cardholders,
your liability will continue to be limited to $50, provided
you comply with the 60-day notication period described in
the following paragraph.
Also, if your statement shows transfers that you did not
make, including those made by card, code or other means,
inform us at once. If you do not tell us within 60 days after
the statement was sent to you, you may not get back any
money you lost after the 60 days if we can prove that we
could have stopped someone from taking the money if you
had told us in time. If a good reason (such as a long trip or
a hospital stay) kept you from telling us, we will extend the
time periods.
Visa’s Zero Liability Policy
If the Debit Card is used in a transaction that is processed
through a Visa, Interlink, or Plus network, including
ATM transactions, then the Visa Zero Liability Policy may
apply. e Visa Zero Liability Policy does not apply to
transactions not processed by Visa or certain commercial
card transactions. If the Visa Zero Liability Policy applies,
upon notication from you of unauthorized transactions,
we will limit your liability for those transactions to zero
and will provide you with provisional credit for those
transactions within ve business days from receipt of
notication; provided that you provide us with written
conrmation of those transactions. Subject to limits provided
under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, we may withhold
provisional credit, to the extent allowed under applicable
Visa rules or otherwise allowed by law, if we determine that
the circumstances or account history warrant the delay. For
purposes of this section and the Visa Zero Liability Policy,
the term “unauthorized transaction” excludes any transaction
not otherwise subject to the Visa Zero Liability Policy, as
set forth in the applicable Visa operating regulations, as
58
amended from time to time. e Visa Zero Liability Policy
does not apply if we determine that you were negligent or
fraudulent in the handling of your account or Debit Card,
such as when you have given someone else your card, card
number, or PIN, or when you do not tell us within 60 days
of unauthorized transactions.
Transactions Outside of Visa
In addition to Visa network processed transactions (for
the Debit Card), the Card is enabled to allow non-Visa
network transaction processing. is means you may use
your Card on a single-message or regional debit network
(“Regional Debit Network”). Not all Regional Debit
Network transactions require a PIN to authenticate
transactions. Examples of the types of actions that you may
be required to make to initiate a Visa network transaction
on the Debit Card include signing a receipt, providing a
Card number over the phone or via the Internet, or swiping
the Card through a POS terminal. Examples of the types
of actions you may be required to initiate a transaction on
a Regional Debit Network include initiating a payment
directly with the biller (possibly via telephone, Internet, or
kiosk locations), responding to a logo displayed at a payment
site and choosing to direct payment through that network,
and having your identity veried using known information
derived from an existing relationship with you instead of
through the use of a PIN.
Commercial Accounts
If your account is not a consumer account, your use of the
card, including liability limitations, will be subject to our
separate Business Debit Card Access Agreement. is
is true regardless of any consumer account protections
disclosed in this document, with your periodic statements,
or other communications from us. e error resolution and
liability provisions applicable to consumer accounts in the
Electronic Fund Transfer Services portion of this Deposit
Agreement, at the end of or with any periodic statements or
other documents you may receive from us, do not apply to
commercial accounts. Use of your card or PIN is controlled
by you. All use of a card will be deemed to be an act of and
the responsibility of yours, whether or not the card is or
is not a valid card. Unless your liability may be limited as
described under the Visa Zero Liability Policy, you will be
liable for all transactions made using a card, PIN or card
number. You shall be responsible regardless of whether such
card transactions were eectuated: (a) by or on behalf of
any authorized individual, or for any authorized purpose, or
by an unauthorized person or in conict with any of your
established usage limitations; (b) using a valid PIN; or (c) in
accordance with any rules or regulations of Visa, the Bank
or any merchant. Without limiting the foregoing, you are
responsible for any and all transactions of any type processed
through an authorized system if we receive transaction
data identifying a card, PIN or other access device as one
issued to you. For purposes of this Deposit Agreement, an
59
authorized system is any system that will process transaction
data for valid cards. Under no circumstances will we be
liable for any special or consequential damages involving
commercial accounts. e owners of commercial accounts
assume sole responsibility for any unauthorized use of
the account’s cards, and/or PIN, and/or any other access
device or other electronic transaction, and shall indemnify,
defend and hold the Bank harmless from all claims, actions,
proceedings, losses and damages related to or arising out of
any unauthorized transaction.
ACH and Wire Transfers
We may oer you automated clearing house (ACH)
origination and wire transfer services, subject to the terms of
our separate service agreements. From time to time, you may
be a party to an ACH entry or a wholesale (wire) funds
transfer, which may be credited to or debited from your
account. Division 11 of the California Commercial Code
governs wholesale (wire) funds transfers, as well as non-
consumer ACH credit entries and those consumer ACH
credit and debit entries that may be excluded from the
Electronic Fund Transfer Act and its implementing
Regulation E (referred to herein as “payment orders”). e
term “payment order(s)” includes payment orders, as dened
in Division 11 of the California Commercial Code. We
reserve the right to choose any wire transfer system or
clearing house to aect your payment orders.
Provisional Credit. Credit given by us to you with respect to a
payment order is provisional until we receive nal settlement
for such entry through a Federal Reserve Bank. If we do not
receive nal settlement, you are hereby notied and agree
that we are entitled to a refund of the amount credited to
your account in connection with the payment order, and the
party (the originator of the entry) making payment to you
will not be deemed to have paid you the amount of the
payment order. Further, we will notify you of the receipt of
payments in the periodic account statements we provide you.
You acknowledge that we will not give next day notice to you
of receipt of a payment order. Credits to your account will be
reected on the applicable periodic statement.
Form and Accuracy. All payment orders must be provided to
us, which may be required to be in a form prescribed by us,
presented either in-person, or by phone or facsimile to the
number approved by the Bank. If you will communicate
payment orders using our online banking services, all
payment orders must also be consistent with our separate
agreements.
You assume the sole responsibility for providing us with
accurate transaction information in the form and format that
we require. We are not responsible for conrming such
information, or for failing to detect and reject duplicate
payment orders. If you provide us with a payment order that
is incorrect in any way, you agree that we may charge your
accounts for the transaction whether or not the error could
have been detected by us. We are not obligated to detect
60
errors in your transfer or payment instructions.
Inconsistent Information. We advise you that any receiving
nancial institution (including us) of a payment order is
entitled to rely on any account or bank number you have
provided even though that account or bank number may
identify a party dierent from the person or entity you have
described by name in any transfer order.
Security Procedures. You may agree with us to the use of
certain procedures and security devices (referred to
individually and collectively, “Security Device(s)”) designed
to verify the authenticity of payment orders. In this regard,
application of the procedures and Security Devices to
authenticate a payment order will be collectively referred to
as the “Security Procedures” in this Deposit Agreement. In
the absence of a separate applicable agreement addressing the
Security Procedures, you agree that the applicable Security
Procedures customarily followed by the Bank for payment
order requests will be deemed to be the Security Procedures
for the purpose of this Deposit Agreement. If we take any
action not provided in the Security Procedures in connection
with any payment order, such additional action shall not be
deemed to become a mandatory part of the continuing
Security Procedures. You understand and agree that we will
use the Security Procedures to verify the authenticity of
payment orders and that the Security Procedures are not
designed to, and are not used for the purpose of, detecting
errors in transmission or content of payment orders,
including discrepancies between account names and
numbers.
Before sending a payment order request to us, you agree to
review the Security Procedures and determine whether the
Security Procedures will provide a commercially reasonable
method for verifying whether a payment order is yours. As
part of the review, you will consider the size, type, and
frequency of payment orders you normally make or
anticipate making, along with such other factors as you may
deem relevant or appropriate.
Commercially Reasonable Procedures. If the size, type or
frequency of payment orders made by you change such that
the Security Procedures in use by you no longer provide a
commercially reasonable method of providing security
against unauthorized payment orders, you agree to
immediately notify us.
Supplemental Security Devices. We may oer to you or require
you to use additional authentication tools or methods from
time to time. If you choose not to implement supplemental
authentication tools, your access to some or all of the services
may be limited. e term “Security Devices” will include any
supplemental authentication tools that are used by you. Your
continued use of any modied Security Procedures will
evidence your agreement that the modied Security
Procedures are commercially reasonable for you.
You Are Responsible for Veried Payment orders, Even if
Unauthorized. If we act on a payment order in compliance
with the Security Procedures, then you will be obligated on
the payment order, and it will be treated as your payment
61
order, whether or not authorized by you.
You Are Responsible for Payment orders Actually Authorized.
Regardless of whether or not we complied with the Security
Procedures, any payment order received by us will be treated
as yours and will bind you if the payment order is delivered
to us directly or indirectly by any authorized representative.
You will also be responsible for the payment order if you
would otherwise be legally bound by the payment order,
regardless of whether the payment order was erroneous in
any respect or that any loss would have been prevented if we
had complied with the Security Procedures.
Safeguarding. You will use and safeguard the Security Devices
and Security Procedures. In connection with such
safeguarding obligations, you will implement and maintain
physical, technical, and administrative controls and
procedures sucient to prevent impermissible or
unauthorized access to or use of the ACH and wire services,
Security Device or Security Procedures. You assume all risks
associated with disclosure of any part of the Security
Procedures, including a Security Device, to third parties,
including employees. You agree to limit disclosures of
Security Devices to those third parties, employees or agents
that you authorize to access the services on your behalf, or
who have a specic need to know.
Delay or Refusal. We may delay or refuse to execute any
payment order. We may do so for any reason or for no
reason. We may provide notice to you of such delay or
refusal, but are not obligated to do so. We may delay or
refuse processing of a payment order, for example, if: (A)
processing would or may exceed the available funds in your
aected account; (B) the payment order is not authenticated
to our satisfaction or we believe the payment order may not
have been authorized by you; (C) the payment order contains
incorrect, inconsistent, ambiguous, or missing information;
(D) processing would or may involve funds which are subject
to lien, security interest, claim, hold, dispute, or legal process
prohibiting withdrawal; (E) processing would or may cause a
violation of any laws or rules applicable to you or to us; (F)
for any reason determined by us in our sole discretion; or (G)
for any other reason under the Deposit Agreement.
Recall, Cancel or Amend. If you inform us that you wish to
recall, cancel or amend a payment order after it has been
received by us, we may, but will not be required to, use
reasonable eorts to assist you to do so; however, we shall not
be liable for any loss, cost or expense suered by you if we do
not, or are unable to, amend, cancel or recall a payment
order. You hereby agree to indemnify us against any loss,
liability, and claim or expenses (including legal fees) we may
incur in connection with assisting you to recall, cancel or
amend a payment order, and you agree to immediately
reimburse us for any monies paid by us associated with such
losses, liability, claims or expenses incurred by us.
Foreign Transactions. Foreign transfers may be subject to
delays, charges imposed by other nancial institutions, and
changes in foreign currency exchange rates. If you direct a
payment order to a foreign country, we may execute the
62
order in the currency of the country of the payee’s bank at
either our buying rate of exchange for U.S. dollar transfers or
the exchange rate of the payee bank. If the transfer is made in
U.S. dollars, we cannot guarantee that the beneciary will
receive the funds in U.S. currency. e beneciary bank may
convert the funds into the local currency and may also charge
incidental fees. If for any reason the payment order is
returned to us, you agree to accept the refund in U.S. dollars
in the amount of the foreign money credit, based on the
current buying rate on the day of the refund, less any charges
and expenses incurred by us. Unless you advise us otherwise,
we may charge your account to pay for fees imposed by
intermediary banks or instruct such banks to obtain payment
of their charges for services and expenses by deducting the
amount from your order. A portion of those charges may be
shared with us. Dierent rules may apply to foreign
remittance transfers subject to the Electronic Fund Transfer
Act.
Screening. We may screen payment orders that would result
in debits or credits to your account for compliance with
applicable laws, rules, and regulations. Where we believe a
payment order may be subject to being blocked or frozen
under the OFAC-administered sanctions laws of the United
States or of sanctions laws of another country, or may be
otherwise suspicious or illegal, we may block (or “freeze”) the
funds and deny you access to them for a reasonable time
sucient to allow us to resolve the matter.
Individual and Multi-Party Accounts
Because decisions concerning whether an account should be
held in a particular capacity may have signicant legal, tax,
and estate planning consequences, consultation with your
attorney or tax advisor is recommended and you agree to do
so. e following is a brief summary of the general forms of
account ownership available at the Bank. We reserve the right
to refuse some forms of ownership on any or all accounts.
Individual Accounts
If you open an account in your name alone, you are
considered the sole owner of the account. is account
is issued to one person who does not intend (merely by
opening this account) to create any survivorship rights to any
other person.
Joint Accounts
A personal account opened by two or more persons is a joint
tenancy account. All joint accounts will be treated as joint
tenancy with right of survivorship unless we agree with you
in writing that the account is owned in some other capacity.
When any account owner dies, the funds pass automatically
to surviving owners. A joint account owner authorizes the
other account owners to endorse items in that person’s name
and to cash the items or deposit them into the joint account
and to otherwise transact on the account. Each joint owner
may, without notice to the other(s), withdraw any or all of
63
the funds on deposit, close the account, stop payment on
a check drawn on the account, or conduct other account-
related services. We may rely on the instructions of any one
of the account holders without liability to any other account
holder. We may pay the account funds to any of the joint
account holders, regardless of who actually owns the funds
and without the consent of the others.
Each joint owner guarantees the signature(s) of the other
joint owner endorsing checks payable to any of the joint
owner(s). Each joint account owner is jointly and severally
liable to us for any and all fees and charges assessed against
the account, all amounts owed to us on the account,
including overdrafts to the account and all costs, losses, or
liabilities related to this Deposit Agreement or the account.
Notice provided by us to any joint owner is considered notice
to all joint owners.
Tenancy in Common
If a tenancy in common account is opened, no right of
survivorship exists. To open a tenancy in common account,
you must clearly indicate on your signature card that the
account is held as “Tenancy In Common;” otherwise, the
account will be considered a simple joint tenancy account.
Upon death of any party, the ownership interest of that third
party passes to the estate of that party and is subject to our
right to seto and security interest in the account.
Community Property
If a married couple opens a community property account
that is not with right of survivorship, each will have an equal
interest in the account. To open a community property
account, you must clearly indicate on your signature
card that the account is held as “Community Property.”
Otherwise, the account will be considered a simple joint
tenancy account with right of survivorship. e ownership
during lifetime and after death of a spouse is determined by
the law applicable to community property generally and may
be aected by a will and is subject to our right to seto and
security interest in the account.
Custodian for Minor
is account shall be governed by the provisions of the
California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, as amended
from time to time (“CUTMA”). e account is controlled
by the custodian, but is owned by the minor. e custodian
is solely responsible for managing these funds and disbursing
them in accordance with the CUTMA. If the custodian
resigns, is removed or dies, we will recognize the designated
successor custodian. e custodian can designate a person
or entity as a successor custodian to act when the current
custodian resigns, or becomes legally incapacitated or dies.
If no successor custodian is named, the California Probate
Code will govern the determination of a successor custodian.
e custodian and/or any person opening this account
agree to indemnify, defend and hold us harmless from and
against any and all claims, damages, liability, or exposure,
64
including reasonable attorney’s fees, that we may suer or
incur arising out of any action or claim by any beneciary
or other custodian with respect to the authority, action or
inaction taken by the custodian in handling or dealing with
the account.
Payable on Death (POD) Account
One or more parties may open this account. e balance
may be paid to any or all the account owners during their
lifetime. When all account owners have died the account is
owned by the surviving POD payee(s). A POD payee must
survive the death of all account owners to receive any interest
in the account funds. When there is more than one surviving
POD payee, each payee’s interest in the funds will be deemed
to be in equal shares, unless otherwise expressly reected in
records of the Bank and as provided by applicable state law.
Totten Trust Account
A Totten Trust Account is an informal trust account,
reected on our records, but without a written trust
agreement. One or more parties may open this account. e
balance may be paid to any or all the account owners during
their lifetime. When all account owners have died, the
account is owned by the surviving Totten Trust beneciaries.
A beneciary must survive the death of all account owners to
receive any interest in the account funds. When there is more
than one surviving beneciary, each beneciary’s interest
in the funds will be deemed to be in equal shares, unless
otherwise expressly reected in records of the Bank and as
provided by applicable state law.
Trust and Other Fiduciary Accounts
Legal title to the account is owned by the signing party(ies)
as trustee, custodian, guardian, executor, administrator,
conservator, or other duciary (collectively, “duciaries”) for
the named beneciary(ies) under a separate trust agreement,
employee benet plan, court order or other duciary
arrangement. Certain beneciaries may, in turn, be acting
as trustee or duciary for others. e duciary(ies) certify
that they are authorized to manage funds in this account
and agree to indemnify, defend and hold us harmless
(in their individual capacity and jointly and severally)
from and against any and all claims, damages, liability, or
exposure, including reasonable attorney’s fees, that we may
suer or incur arising out of any action or claim by any
beneciary, account owner or other duciary with respect
to the authority, action or inaction taken by the duciaries
in handling or dealing with the account. We will not be
responsible for monitoring a trustee or other duciary’s
management of the account. We will not be obligated to
monitor items deposited to, or drawn against, accounts held
by a trustee or other duciary to determine whether a trustee
or duciary is acting consistently with or in breach of any
duciary duty. For formal trust accounts, you may be asked
to provide a copy of relevant pages of the trust agreement,
execute a trustee’s certication of trust, or other documents.
65
Commercial Account Types
Business accounts may be available to both prot or non-
prot businesses and associations.
Corporate, Partnership, Limited Liability or Other Statutory
Business Entity Account – ese business accounts
are established pursuant to statutory organizational
requirements.
Co-Proprietorships – If a proprietorship account is permitted
to be opened with multiple individuals as co-owners, the
account will be treated as a joint account with right of
survivorship held for a business purpose. We reserve the right
to refuse to open, or allow an account to be maintained, as a
proprietorship account with multiple owners.
Fictitious Business Name Account - If the name in which the
account is held is ctitious, the account holder represents
that he or she has the right to use that name and has fullled
all legal requirements for using and or doing business under
that name.
Organization Account - Such an account is issued in the
name of a legal entity, such as a club or a league. We reserve
the right to require the governing body of the legal entity to
give us a signed authorization telling us who is authorized to
act on its behalf. We may honor such an authorization until
we actually receive written notice of a change from the
governing body.
Limitation on Time to Sue (Commercial Accounts)
Unless another time is provided in another provision of this
Deposit Agreement, or required by applicable law, if your
account is not a consumer account, an action or proceeding
by you to enforce an obligation, duty, or right arising under
this Deposit Agreement or under applicable law with respect
to your account must be commenced within one year after
the cause of action accrues.
Limitation on Time to Sue (Consumer Accounts)
Unless another time period is provided in a provision of
this Deposit Agreement, an action or proceeding by you
to enforce an obligation, duty, or right arising under this
Deposit Agreement or under applicable law with respect to
your account must be commenced per the applicable statute
of limitation.
Dispute Resolution
is provision contains the terms of how a dispute
between you and the Bank will be resolved. A dispute is
any unresolved disagreement between the Bank and you
arising out of or relating to this Deposit Agreement or
any prior version of the Deposit Agreement. A dispute
may also include a disagreement about this arbitration
agreement’s meaning, application, or enforcement. Please
read this provision carefully since it specically limits
your rights in the event of such dispute. By this provision,
at the request of you or the Bank, disputes must be
resolved by arbitration. Arbitration is a means of having an
66
independent third party resolve a dispute without using the
court system. With arbitration, there is no right to appeal
the decision of the arbitrator as there is normally in the
court system. BY THIS DEPOSIT AGREEMENT YOU
UNDERSTAND THAT EACH OF US IS WAIVING THE
RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL OR A TRIAL BEFORE A
JUDGE IN PUBLIC COURT.
e Bank and you (such references include our respective
subsidiaries, aliates, predecessors in interest, successors
and assigns) agree to arbitrate all disputes. Either of us may
submit a dispute concerning this Deposit Agreement to
binding arbitration at any reasonable time consistent with the
terms of this Dispute Resolution provision, notwithstanding
that a lawsuit or other proceeding has been commenced. If
either of us fails to submit to binding arbitration following
a lawful demand, the one who fails to submit bears all costs
and expenses incurred by the other compelling arbitration.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, either party may bring an
individual action in small claims court.
A party who intends to seek arbitration must rst send to
the other, by certied mail, a written Notice of Intent to
Arbitrate (“Notice”). e Notice to the Bank should be
addressed to: Westamerica Bank, P.O. Box 1200, MAC
B-2P, Suisun City, CA 94585 (“Arbitration Notice Address”).
e Notice must (a) describe the nature and basis of the
dispute; and (b) set forth the specic relief sought. If we
do not reach an agreement to resolve the dispute within
30 days after the Notice is received, you or the Bank may
commence an arbitration proceeding. If a party initiates a
lawsuit or other proceeding against the other, the other party
shall not be required to comply with the foregoing Notice
procedure prior to seeking to compel arbitration of the
lawsuit or other proceeding. All issues are for the arbitrator to
decide, including the scope of this arbitration clause, but the
arbitrator is bound by the terms of this Deposit Agreement.
You agree that, by entering into this Deposit Agreement,
you and the Bank are waiving the constitutional right to
a trial by jury. Unless the Bank and you agree otherwise,
all hearings conducted as part of the arbitration shall take
place in San Rafael, California or the county in California
where you opened your account. e arbitration hearing(s)
may be conducted in-person or remotely via appropriate
videoconferencing technology. For disputes involving an
amount in controversy of $10,000 (ten thousand dollars)
or less, you may choose for the arbitration to proceed in
person, by telephone, or based only on written submissions.
e arbitrator will have expertise in the laws applicable to
the dispute. e arbitrator may award to either the Bank or
you any award or relief provided for by law, except for public
injunctive relief which may only be awarded (if available)
by a court of competent jurisdiction during the award
conrmation process after the arbitrator has determined
substantive liability.
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In the event more than one dispute resolution agreement
between us is potentially applicable to a dispute, the
arbitration agreement in this Deposit Agreement shall
govern. Nothing in this section shall limit the right of any
party at any time to exercise self-help remedies, including
exercising our right of seto, foreclose against collateral, or
obtain provisional or ancillary remedies such as injunctive
relief, attachment, garnishment, or appointment of a
receiver by a court of competent jurisdiction. e arbitrator
shall also determine all issues relating to the applicability,
interpretation, and enforceability of the Deposit Agreement,
including this agreement to arbitrate. e arbitrator’s
decision is nal and binding. In addition, nothing herein
shall preclude us from closing or suspending any account or
service provided to you.
YOU AND THE BANK MAY BRING CLAIMS
AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN YOUR OR ITS
INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, and not as a party, plainti,
or class member in any purported class, representative, or
collective proceeding. Further, you agree that the arbitrator
may not consolidate proceedings of more than one person’s
claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of a
representative or class proceeding, and that if this specic
provision is found to be unenforceable, then the entirety of
this arbitration agreement shall be null and void.
If your account is a consumer account, the arbitration shall
be governed by the Consumer Arbitration Rules of the
AAA, as modied by this Deposit Agreement, and shall be
administered by the AAA. If your account is not a consumer
account, the arbitration shall be governed by the Commercial
Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association
(“AAA”), as modied by this Deposit Agreement, and shall
be administered by the AAA. e AAA’s Consumer Rules and
Commercial Rules are available at www.adr.org or by request
in writing to the Arbitration Notice Address.
is Deposit Agreement concerns banking transactions
aecting and involving interstate commerce, and thus the
Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and
enforcement of this provision. is arbitration provision
supersedes all prior arrangements and other communications
concerning dispute resolution and shall survive termination
of the Deposit Agreement.
Miscellaneous
Bank Policies and Procedures
e Bank has and maintains a number of internal policies
and procedures. Some of these are required of the Bank by
law, while others are internal policies developed by the Bank
to help us prevent losses, avoid errors, handle transactions
or otherwise. You are not a third-party beneciary of these
policies and procedures. ese are for our internal use and
do not establish standards of care against which our conduct
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(action or inaction) is to be judged or measured, including in
any dispute or disagreement with you.
Severability
If any provision of this Deposit Agreement is determined to
be void or invalid, the remainder of the Deposit Agreement
shall remain in full force and eect. No provision of this
Deposit Agreement shall be deemed to deny (and any term
to the contrary is modied so as not to deny) protections,
rights or privileges that under state or federal law are required
to be made available to consumers or to consumer accounts,
except that any modication of your protections, rights and
privileges under this Deposit Agreement will be eective to
the extent (but only to the extent) that the relevant state or
federal law allows us and you to agree to modify them.
Waivers
We may delay enforcing our rights under this Deposit
Agreement without losing them. Any waiver by us shall not
be deemed a waiver of other rights or of the same right at
another time. You waive diligence, demand, presentment,
protest and notice of every kind, except as otherwise set forth
in this Deposit Agreement.
Heading/Terms
e headings in this Deposit Agreement are for convenience
only and are not part of these terms.
Credit Reports, Financial and Other Information
From time to time we may obtain credit information about
you from check or credit reporting agencies and/or other
means. We may do so at the time you open an account,
request a service, at any time while your account is open,
or the service is available, or after your account or service is
closed, or as otherwise permitted by law. We may also order
a credit or background report on you or any other signer on
the account. You agree that by request to open an account
or acquire a service from us, or by becoming an authorized
signer on an account with us, we may obtain credit
information from a credit-reporting agency. For example,
new accounts are subject to verication through ChexSystems
(the “Reporting Agency”) and may be declined based in
whole or in part on information obtained in a report from
the Reporting Agency. You have a right under the Fair Credit
Reporting Act to know the information contained in your
credit le at ChexSystems. If we decline to open an account
or otherwise provide deposit services, the Reporting Agency
will have played no part in our decision and would be unable
to supply specic reasons why we would have denied the
account or services. You have a right to a free copy of your
report from the Reporting Agency, if you request it no later
than 60 days after you receive notice of a declined account
or service. In addition, if you nd that any information
contained in a report received by you is inaccurate or
incomplete, you have the right to dispute the matter with the
Reporting Agency. e Reporting Agency’s full name, address
and phone number is as follows:
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ChexSystems
Attn: Consumer Relations
7805 Hudson Road, Suite 100
Woodbury, MN 55125
(800)428-9623
Accounts not maintained in a satisfactory manner at the
Bank are subject to closure by the Bank and are reported to
ChexSystems. You are also hereby notied that a negative
credit report reecting on your credit record may be
submitted to a credit reporting agency if you fail to fulll the
terms of your credit obligations. We may report information
about your account to credit bureaus. Late payments, missed
payments or other defaults on your account may be reected
in your credit report. If you believe that we have provided
incomplete or inaccurate information about your account
to a consumer reporting agency, write to us at Westamerica
Bank, P. O. Box 1200, MAC B-2N, Suisun City, CA 94585.
Department of Motor Vehicles Information. You authorize us to
obtain address information from the Department of Motor
Vehicles or any other government agency. As such, you waive
your rights under California Vehicle Code §1808.21 (or
other state equivalent).
Additional Financial and Other Information. You further agree
to provide us with nancial statements or other information
regarding your nancial condition upon our request. You
agree to provide us with at least 30 days advance notice of:
(i) any material (20% or more) change in your ownership;
(ii) any material change in the type, scope or nature of your
business; or (iii) any anticipated (20% or more) increase in
the amount or volume of your payment order activity over
the preceding calendar quarter, as applicable.
Additional Information
For more information about the terms and conditions of
any of your checking or savings plans or our current interest
rate, please contact your branch or the Customer Service
Department at 1-800-848-1088.
Monitoring, Recording and Retaining
You authorize us (but we are not obligated) to monitor,
record electronically and retain telephone conversations and
electronic communications between you (including your
purported authorized representatives) and us. Accordingly,
you agree on behalf of yourself, and your employees and
agents that we may monitor and record your telephone
and electronic communications in connection with your
account at any time. Unless required by applicable law, we
may monitor and record these communications without
further notice. You agree that we may produce the telephonic
or electronic recordings or computer records as evidence in
any proceedings brought in connection with the Deposit
Agreement, and you hereby acknowledge the validity and
enforceability of such telephonic or electronic recordings.
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Your Community Banker™
For further information, please contact your local
Westamerica Community Banker, visit us online at
Westamerica.com, write us at P. O. Box 1200, MAC
B-2N, Suisun City, CA 94585, or call Customer
Service toll-free at 1-800-848-1088. Hearing
impaired customers may use TDDs to contact us
toll-free at 1-800-TDD-1088.
Equal Opportunity Employer
www.westamerica.com
1-800-848-1088
Member FDIC
ADV009 (REV. 05/23)
