CDM accepted your cash but did not credit your account

Reviewed on: 2026-06-12.

Direct answer: your bank must credit the money by the next calendar day. RBI's circular of 19 September 2019 on turnaround time for failed transactions fixes T+1 for cash deposit machine failures. If the credit comes later, the bank owes you Rs 100 for every day of delay, and it must pay this on its own, without you asking. Your two strongest pieces of evidence are the machine receipt or error slip and the CCTV footage at the machine. If the bank does not settle within 30 days, go to the RBI Ombudsman at cms.rbi.org.in.

The money is not lost. When a CDM accepts notes and then fails, the cash sits inside the machine. The bank finds it as “excess cash” when it reconciles the machine. Your job is to fix the evidence on day one so the excess cash gets matched to your transaction, not absorbed into a vague suspense entry.

Three common causes. A note jams in the counting module mid-transaction. The network or power drops after the machine has pulled in your notes but before the core banking entry posts. Or the machine counts a different total than you inserted and aborts. In all three cases the notes usually fall into the machine's reject or retract bin. The bank's cash management team finds the difference when it opens and balances the machine, which can take a few days for a low-traffic machine.

• Photograph the machine screen if it shows an error, and the machine itself. Every CDM carries a machine ID sticker. Note it.
• Keep the receipt or error slip if one printed. If nothing printed, note the exact date, time and location in a message to yourself so the timestamp is recorded.
• Write down the denomination breakup of the cash you inserted. The bank will match this against the excess found in the machine.
• Call the bank's phone banking line the same day and get a complaint ticket number.
• Follow up in writing the same day, by email or through the bank's grievance portal. Ask the bank in the same message to preserve the CCTV recording and the machine's electronic journal for your transaction time. CCTV at many machines is overwritten in roughly 90 days, so a written preservation request matters.

RBI circular DPSS.CO.PD No.629/02.01.014/2019-20 dated 19 September 2019 harmonised turnaround times for failed transactions. For cash deposit machines, where the account is not credited though cash was accepted, the bank must credit the account by T+1, that is, the next calendar day after the transaction date. Calendar day, not working day. Sundays and holidays count.

If the credit comes after T+1, the circular requires the bank to pay Rs 100 per day of delay. The circular says this compensation is to be paid without the customer claiming it. In practice, banks often skip it, so quote the circular and demand it in writing.

To: The Branch Manager and Grievance Redressal Cell
[Bank name, branch]

Subject: CDM accepted cash, account not credited. Transaction of [date], machine ID [ID]. Demand for credit, EJ and CCTV preservation, and TAT compensation

Dear Sir or Madam,

On [date] at about [time], I deposited Rs [amount] in cash ([denomination breakup]) in your cash deposit machine, machine ID [ID], at [location]. The machine accepted the notes but the transaction failed and my account [account number] was not credited. [Receipt or error slip attached / no slip was printed.]

Under RBI circular DPSS.CO.PD No.629/02.01.014/2019-20 dated 19 September 2019, the credit was due by T+1. I request you to:
1. Credit Rs [amount] to my account immediately.
2. Pay compensation of Rs 100 per day from [T+1 date] until the date of credit, as the circular requires you to pay suo motu.
3. Preserve the electronic journal (EJ) of the machine and the CCTV footage for [date, time window], and confirm this in writing.
4. Share the result of the machine's cash reconciliation for that date.

Complaint ticket already registered: [number, date].

Yours faithfully,
[Name, account number, mobile, address]

Ramesh deposited Rs 49,500 in a Bank of Maharashtra CDM at Sitabuldi, Nagpur on 3 May. The screen froze after counting, no slip printed, no credit posted. He photographed the machine ID, emailed the branch the same evening with the denomination breakup, and asked for EJ and CCTV preservation. Credit was due by 4 May. The bank reconciled the machine, found Rs 49,500 excess, and credited him on 16 May. That is 12 days beyond T+1, so he wrote back quoting the 2019 circular and the bank paid Rs 1,200 as delay compensation. The written denomination breakup is what made the match quick.

Do not accept this on a phone call. Ask in writing for the EJ extract for your transaction time and the reconciliation report for that machine and date. If the bank still denies the deposit, the CCTV becomes decisive, which is why the early preservation request matters. Escalate to the bank's nodal officer, and then to the Ombudsman. You may also consider a police complaint if the bank's own records contradict its denial, though most cases resolve at reconciliation or Ombudsman stage.

If 30 days pass from your first complaint without credit plus compensation, or the reply is unsatisfactory, file under the Reserve Bank Integrated Ombudsman Scheme at cms.rbi.org.in or call 14448. Attach your complaint trail, the ticket numbers, the receipt or your timestamped notes, and your account statement. The scheme is free and covers all banks, public and private. If your bank later stonewalls on a different issue, such as a KYC freeze that continues after you submitted documents, the same CMS portal route applies.

Public sector banks such as Bank of Maharashtra, SBI or Canara Bank are public authorities. You can file RTI to the bank's CPIO asking for the EJ extract for your transaction, the excess cash or reconciliation report for that machine and date, the action taken on your complaint number, and the bank's CCTV retention policy. These records usually force the matter to a close. See how to file RTI online. Private banks like HDFC Bank or ICICI Bank are not covered by RTI; for them the Ombudsman is the pressure route.

No. The machine's electronic journal logs every event, including failed deposits, and CCTV shows you at the machine. Record date, time and machine ID immediately and ask for preservation in writing.

Treat the shortfall as a failed deposit of the difference. Give the denomination breakup. Reconciliation of the machine will show the retained notes.

Complain to your own bank first and also to the bank that owns the machine. The T+1 rule and compensation still apply. Keep both ticket numbers.

The circular says the bank must pay it on its own. Banks often do not, so demand it in your written complaint and again before the Ombudsman.

Commonly around 90 days, sometimes less. Send the written preservation request in the first week. Without it, footage may be overwritten before a dispute matures.

Yes, if the delay was long. The Ombudsman can direct payment of the TAT compensation. For a 60-day delay that is Rs 6,000, worth one online filing.

Related guides: closed loan still showing active on your credit report, CERSAI charge not removed after loan closure, claim approved but payment delayed, and all practical guides.

Download the CDM failed deposit checklist (PDF).