‘Noodles’ the dog charged overdraft fee by British bank

It's possible they thought the customer simply had cruel parents, a fact that would explain both his unusual name and his dubious actions: a $10.88 overdraft fee left over from the time he withdrew money beyond the sum in his bank account.

But when staff at the NatWest Bank in Leicestershire, Great Britain investigated a little further, they discovered that this "Noodles the dog" fellow was actually a dog.

What's more, notes the Huffington Post (via DigitalSpy), Noodles and his humans had already moved out of the address the bank had on record, leaving new tenant Charley, the six-year-old Labradoodle, to pick up the overdue charges.

The bank sent a stern letter to Noodles, urging him to contact the bank within 14 days to discuss the matter.

"When the letter came it was addressed to Noodles the dog — it was clearly someone who was in the house before — and I had no idea what it could be," Charley's human, Rupert Chapman, told ThisIsLeicestershire.com.

"We moved in in August and the previous people had rented and I didn't know who they were, so I thought it would be fitting to send a reply from Charley."

And what a reply it was.

"I have searched every nook and cranny in the house in an attempt to find sufficient funds to repay you. I have found four drachma and 24 pesetas behind the toilet pedestal and under the stairs. I was wondering whether this would meet your needs?" wrote the eloquent and resourceful pooch.

Bank spokesperson Grant McDonald explained that as soon as management received the letter, Charley was relieved of the debt charges.

He also noted that, while the story may sound unusual, many people take out accounts in their pets' names as a way to keep a separate expense fund for things like grooming and vet visits.

That's a fine point McDonald may want to run by Collier — the NatWest staff member who signed the original letter, and who likely had no idea the name his parents gave him would end up becoming the punchline in a story about a dog with a bank account.