This is a page or two of what I wrote for the book “The Only Way Through is Forward : How an American Survived Bankruptcy in Amsterdam During Covid-19”. It was a good way to spend “Lockdown 2.0, the Winter Edition”.
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June: Starting over
When you enter into bankruptcy the first thing that happens is your bank accounts are frozen and all your money disappears. This can cause a few problems. Things like automatic payments for electricity, phone, internet. How am I going to pay for my insurance?
I can open a new account, by law as a Dutch resident I am legally entitled to one. But with the Corona situation it’s not as simple as walking into the bank, waiting in line for a little bit and walking out later with a new account. Appointments have to be made. Ernst, my newly appointed bankruptcy trustee/curator attempts to get past this by asking ABN-AMRO if they can simply reactivate my account after they’ve cleared it out. Then with a little help from the family I can get some money and the automatic payments won’t miss a beat.
The bank gets back to Ernst a few days later with a big fat “No” as an answer. I have to reopen a new account in order to begin banking again. I make a call to the toll free number and explain my situation. Fortunately they still have all my information and are very nice and understanding over the phone. I’m told that to make an appointment in Amsterdam would take two to three weeks. I would rather not wait that long so I arranged an appointment in Zaandam for the following Monday. I ask what I’ll need to bring and I am told that my Dutch ID and passport will be fine.
I’ll also need a face mask because since the beginning of June the Netherlands requires them on all forms of public transport, including the ferry I’ll need to ride to get to Zaandam.
Mask in hand I arrive in Zaandam only to be told that I also need an Uittreksel. An Uittreksel is an official government document from your city of residence which states your current address. A kind of proof of residency. Why the bank never mentioned that I would need one is a mystery to me but all I can do is re-schedule the appointment. Which I have to do over the phone, not in person.
The big question is, how do I get an Uittreksel? Normally you could walk into city hall and pay for one there, cash or card. Obviously with Corona this is no longer an option. You can order one on the city website but you need access to your bank account to pay for it online. I no longer have a bank account, how am I going to use something I need and don’t have to get another thing I need so I can use it to get the first thing I need? It’s a real life Catch-22.
Fortunately the very next day I ran into our neighbor from above the bike shop, Jan Andreas. Jan has a recruitment business one floor above and I happened to run into him on the sidewalk outside our building. He asks how it’s going and I tell him the latest news. He immediately offered to pay for the Uittreksel so we stepped upstairs into his office and within a few minutes I successfully ordered one which would arrive via the mail a few days before my next appointment with the bank.
The following Monday I’m cycling to Zaandam, very prepared. Face mask, rain gear and Uittreksel. I’ve left early due to rain being expected so as I approach the ferry to Zaandam I’m making good time when my phone rings.
It’s ABN-AMRO calling to let me know that due to my being in bankruptcy they cannot open and account for me.
What???
This makes no sense. I proceed to explain (over the phone, wearing a face mask, on a ferry sailing across the North Sea Canal) that I will be at the bank within fifteen minutes of the ferry docking and that at no time during the past few weeks (it’s been weeks now without an account) that myself and Ernst have been in contact with the bank have they said that I cannot open an account.
I tell them that I am going to call the bankruptcy curator, Ernst, and I will continue to cycle to Zaandam where we can talk more.
Ernst answers the phone and I tell him what’s up.
“That’s bullshit” is the first thing he says.
Ernst is a good man.
