Banks All Over America Are Raising Fees
Sunday, November 14, 2010, 7:19 AM | 1 Comment
Because of the new banking regulation in place now, banks all over America are raising fees for a variety of services. At times, these were either free or charging minimal fees.
They are eliminating free checking and raising fees on other basic services, such as ATM transactions.
The responsibility falls one the consumer’s shoulders. If you want your canceled checks, be prepared to pay fee for them.
Banks say they’ve got to do that because of the new regulation their profits would be a lot less than before.
That is obviously going to hurt the consumers in their wallet. The banks plan to add new monthly fees for customers with checking accounts who fail to meet minimum balance requirements or use their debit cards enough to overdraw. They would be hit hard.
A month ago, TD Bank where I have checking account sent me a letter to keep a minimum of $100 all the time or else I would be hit with a $15 monthly fee. My checking is a very basic account where I don’t get interest.
What is canceled check?
A check that has cleared the depositor’s account and has been marked as “canceled” by the bank.
A canceled check has been paid by the payee bank and endorsed by the payee, the payee’s bank, and the Federal Reserve Bank.
Canceled checks can also be used as proof of payment.
Consumers used to get the original physical checks when they received monthly statements. Now the banks send images of the checks and keep the original.
If you want the canceled checks – the originals – then you have to pay for them now.
Bank of America said it will start charging customers $3 per month to receive statements with images of canceled checks and charge $1 more for a printed statement from an ATM.
On interest paying checking accounts, some banks require a minimum balance of at least $3,000 to avoid monthly fees. ATM and overdraft charges are also rising.
How to minimize the effect of rising fees
Be always aware of the balance in your checking account. Write check against it when you are absolutely sure your balance can cover it. This way you will avoid the overdraft fee.
As far as ATM fees, always use your own bank ATM to withdraw money. Most banks still do not charge fee when you use your own bank ATM.
In a Nutshell
Just be aware of your checking account balance. Make sure it can cover the check you write. The new banking law is supposed to protect consumers but from what? Banks still would charge more fees.
It looks like banks are winner one more time and consumers lose big again. What else is new?
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One Response to “Banks All Over America Are Raising Fees”
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