Understanding Teller Control and Balancing Procedures

After a long day of serving members, the last thing a teller wants is a problem with balancing his or her teller drawer. Consistently being in balance is not magical; rather, it can be accomplished by working systematically using an organized cycle of events.

An Organized CU*BASE Teller Day

1.Activate - to open the teller drawer for posting.

2.Daily teller activity - member deposits, withdrawals, etc.

3.Balance - to make your teller drawer match the CU*BASE system totals.

a)Compare a tape of outside checks in the drawer, to the Checks in Drawer figure on the Teller Control screen.

b)Compare a tape of in-house drafts in the drawer, to the Inhouse Drafts figure on the Teller Control screen.

c)Enter cash denomination totals from the drawer onto the Teller Control screen.

d)Use Enter to display your Total Cash Balance figure. This figure should match the system's Adj. Closing Cash total.

4.Close - to close the teller drawer at the end of the day. The system will print a daily summary to verify the balanced condition. Follow your credit union procedure for handling this summary.

Following are some ideas which can help you achieve a balanced drawer every day:

· Start each day by verifying the beginning of day cash balance on the CU*BASE system with your previous ending balance. This includes totals and denomination breakdown.

· Plan your vault cash purchases or sales based on the entire day's work. Some days are heavier cash need days than others. Have a paper record of cash purchases and sales to verify against the system records.

· Be consistent with members. Remember the four steps to service (Introduction, Request, Review, Conclusion) and always verify transactions with the member and the receipt. Keep receipts neat, orderly, and in time-posted order.

· The majority of out-of-balance situations are related to outside checks. Try to verify checks more than once a day. We recommend a quick check verification prior to the lunch break, if possible.

· If there is not time for balancing during the day, note transactions and/or corrections that are out of the ordinary in a daily or weekly log for future reference.

· Balance out in a consistent and systematic way each time: start with outside checks, then in-house drafts, and finally, cash.

· On member cash back transactions, note the denominations given the member on the receipt. For example, if the member requests $125.00, on the receipt the denominations given could be noted as 2/50, 1/20, 1/5 (two $50 bills, one $20 bill, and one $5 bill). This can help later if you are having problems balancing the cash drawer.

Hints for Resolving Teller “Out of Balance” Situations

Situation	Possible Solutions
The outside checks figures do not balance.	Run a second tape, keeping the checks in order. Verify the tape against the actual checks. Use Audit (F3) on the Teller Control screen to verify that all checks have been entered properly. Make any adjustments as necessary. Checks should never end the day out of balance. If a check is not on the teller's audit report, it should be entered. If the check is there more than once, it should be deleted.
The in-house drafts figures do not balance.	Run a second tape, keeping the checks in order. Verify the tape against the actual checks. Use Audit (F3) on the Teller Control screen to verify that all checks have been entered properly. Make any adjustments as necessary. Checks should never end the day out of balance. If a check is not on the teller's audit report, it should be entered. If the check is there more than once, it should be deleted.
Cash figures do not balance	Recount the cash. Verify Audit Controls via printed output (left to right). See Teller Audits Left to Right for more details. Verify receipts (e.g., if receipts show cash in and then cash back again in the same amount, the teller may have forgotten to post the deposit). Use Cash (F5) to save the cash denominations already entered, then use Audit (F3) to check transaction activity. If cash cannot be balanced, the difference should be processed that same day using the Cash Over (+) or Cash Short (-) fields on the Teller Control screen. Once the appropriate amount has been entered, use Enter to recalculate the totals. The Adj. Closing Cash and the Total Cash Balance figures should then match.

Correcting Common Teller Posting Errors

One important concept to remember when trying to balance a teller drawer, is that CU*BASE assumes all transactions to a member's account are processed as cash. There is no such thing as a “check deposit” on the CU*BASE system. When an outside check is entered into the system, CU*BASE processes the check to cash before it is deposited, as follows:

1. Teller enters an outside check for $100.00 on the funds-in screen:

a) CU*BASE adds $100.00 to the outside check total.

b) CU*BASE subtracts $100.00 from the cash total.

2. Teller processes a deposit into a member's account:

a) CU*BASE adds $100.00 to the member's balance.

b) CU*BASE adds $100.00 to the cash total.

Because of this process, an outside check error may require two separate adjustments to correct the teller drawer balance. The first adjustment may correct the check total, which immediately changes the cash total. The second adjustment is designed to correct the cash total.

Some common errors:

Situation	Correction
A member cashes a check for $125.00. The teller gives the member the money once, but enters the check into the system twice.	This is a check cashing mistake and no member account is involved. Therefore, deleting the audit key for the $125.00 check from the teller drawer will lower the check total and increase the cash total.

A member deposits a check for $125.00. The teller posts the transaction twice.	Using the combined Tran Reversal/Teller Drawer Correction system, delete the audit key and reverse the transaction for the extra outside check and the extra deposit. This will adjust both the cash and check totals to the proper amounts and remove the incorrect transaction from the member's account.

A member deposits a check but the teller uses the “Cash” field to enter the amount. The teller drawer would show a total higher than the physical count.	Follow normal procedures to cash a check, using the check amount Cash (F5).

A check is issued from a member's account using Process Code “C” but the teller entered the check amount into the withdrawal field on the Deposits/Withdrawals screen, thus withdrawing double funds from the member's account. The teller drawer would show a total lower than the physical count.	First, delete the audit key for the incorrect cash withdrawal. This will adjust the cash total up. Second, perform a Member Transaction Reversal to remove the cash withdrawal from the member's account.
Also see Teller Audits Left to Right for a description of situations that can cause “left-to-right” errors.