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PALMDALE, Calif. (AP) - Four burgers at his neighborhood Burger King cost George Beane a whopping $4,334.33.

Beane ordered two Whopper Jr.s and two Rodeo cheeseburgers when he pulled up to the drive-through window last Tuesday. The cashier, however, forgot that she'd entered the $4.33 charge on his debit card and punched in the numbers again without erasing the original ones - thus creating a four-figure bill.

The electronic charge went through to George and Pat Beane's Bank of America checking account left the couple penniless. Their mortgage payment was due and they worried checks they had written would bounce, Pat Beane said.

"We were thinking, 'No, not now!'" she said of the overcharge.

Terri Woody, the restaurant manager, said Burger King officials tried to get the charge refunded. But the bank said the funds were on a three-day hold and could not be released, Pat Beane said.

The hold is designed to prevent customers from spending money that no longer is available in their accounts and to let the bank confirm a transaction is legitimate before transferring funds, said Bank of America supervisor Joel Solorio.

Burger King did not charge the Beanes for their meal, and the couple got their $4,334.33 back on Friday.

"For those three days, those were the most expensive value burgers in history," Pat Beane said.
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One more reason I do not have a debit card. Of course you would have to have $4,334.33 in the checking account for the charge to go through. Of which I do not have.

Originally posted by RubberDuckie
One more reason I do not have a debit card. Of course you would have to have $4,334.33 in the checking account for the charge to go through. Of which I do not have.

Only if you use debit. If you use it as a credit card i think its somewhere around half or so, hence the 3 day hold of funds. Debit is instant.

credit is instant as well

Not for Bank of America! I have an account there. Debit gets processed and posted midnight that night. Credit doesn't get processed and posted for 2-3 days. And weekend charges (Friday, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday) get processed monday at midnight.

While your "available" balance is changed, the money is not taken out of the account for 2-3 days.

I have BofA as well, and all I use is credit, yeah it takes a few days to clear, but they auth the full amount right when you use the card

i do not know how this works in the states, however up here you always have to press OK first to anknowledge the amount before you even enter your pin or account number. wouldnt you just cancel if such a large number would show up?

not at a burger king. they charge it, and rarely do u even have to sign. :/