Comments on: Raw Deal: Overdraft protection

By: Sam Rhodes, Greenville, SC

Sam Rhodes, Greenville, SC — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:18:55 +0000

BOA has quite the game going on when it comes to overdrafts and holds. I had a draft come through without enough funds in the primary account of my business which threw the balance into the red.

I deposited a check the next day for over $30,000 but instead of crediting that deposit as they normally on the same night of the day deposited where funds are available the next day, they put a 10 day hold on the deposit. I called my client’s bank and found that the check had already cleared their bank, so BOA already had my funds.

To top it all off, they charged a $35 fee every day for the ten days they held my money on the one overdraft. It baffles me how they can get away with this because in its simplest form, it is known as robbery.

By: Simmons, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Simmons, Baton Rouge, Louisiana — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:40:49 +0000

BANKS ARE MODERN DAY LOAN SHARKS!!!

My bank hit me with 11 overdraft fees!!! $385.00!!! All debit card charges were posted on the same day. I called the bank to check my balance after every third debit to make sure that I had money. A check in the amount of $144.00 cleared my account. If the bank would have paid the smaller charges first, I would have incurred one NSF charge saving me $228.00. They are all about making money. I’m considering moving my moeny to my credit union!

By: Julie, Knoxville TN

Julie, Knoxville TN — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:24:56 +0000

I believe that the bank tactics of ordering check amounts from largest to smallest in order to make more checks bounce is not only usurous but unconscionable. Mistakes are going to happen…beware to those of you throwing stones as you’ll be next in line. People trust the banks with their money and then the banks manage it unscrupulously. It’s wrong.

By: colleen moore ellettsville indiana

colleen moore ellettsville indiana — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 22:52:43 +0000

banks are a scam.overdraft protection??i’m confused.for one if your check gets returned to the store they do’nt charge quite as much as overdraft fees so wheres the protection?

By: Hillsdale Michigan

Hillsdale Michigan — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 04:55:53 +0000

How many of you have contacted your How many of you have contacted your congressman/congresswomen about these Usury tactics. Please do so immediately.
I believe an active campaign to prevent these horrendous predatory fee practices by the banks (such as 1. charging overdraft fees on each smaller check
first rather than the one larger one, when they are not sending the checks back anyway, 2. crediting deposits AFTER debits, 3. holding deposits for days even if drawn on their bank, 4. counting debits and over drafting account even though the transaction was cancelled or never completed) of hiding rates that far exceed 4000%, far greater than Payday loans fees and charges. At least you choose a payday loan vender. But, they both prey on the poor, unlucky and uneducated.
Michigan restricts the rate of interest on personal loans to 7% per annum, most states have similar Usury statutes. However, the powerful banking lobby, funded by the 19 Billion in late charges and the 700 billion Bailout money, have convinced congress with campaign contributions and lavish trips that usury laws are not needed.
If you need help contacting your congressman/ congresswomen or would like join a possible class action suite, please call me email me Steve @ Vear. com
Do the RICO act laws on “loan sharking” (charging twice the state usury rate) apply to banks? If so, the 19 billion the banks made last year on excessive overdraft fees could be the result of Racketeering in violation of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act of 1970 (RICO) So all the credit card companies set-up in state that allow usury

By: Scott, Austin TX

Scott, Austin TX — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 23:08:36 +0000

The respondents claiming that you can solve this by just keeping track of your money and living within your means are missing the point. The question is what is an appropriate fee to charge for an overdraft. What if the penalty for jaywalking was death? These same people would argue “well, don’t jaywalk and no one will kill you”.

I know that you could theoretically be charged $35 for being $1 overdrawn. Does this seem fair? In terms of interest on a loan this would be ~ 1.3 million percent APR. I find this to be obscene…

By: Denise D'Angelo, Florida

Denise D'Angelo, Florida — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 22:52:57 +0000

Far from the contrary. THIS IS MORE THAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL MATH. Some Banks use a system of delay in a deposit or a delay in a transfer. The corrupt unregulated system also uses a larger debit prior to a smaller one sometimes causing a snowball effect of overdrafts instead of one. MY THANKS AND GRATITUDE TO Carole Maloney.A House Financial Services subcommittee is debating legislation that would change the way overdraft fees are assessed by banks. This bill needs to make a reapperance since it was last seen in 2004.

By: K. Naugle, Lynchburg, VA

K. Naugle, Lynchburg, VA — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:03:10 +0000

I found the section of “Overdraft outrage: You weigh in” where the banks respond to be very deceptive.
=======================================
“We process checks and other debits starting with the largest amounts. That way, important, large bills such as mortgages, rent and car payments will be paid first,” explained Tom Kelly, a spokesman for Chase.

Bank of America takes a similar position. “Often times, a customer’s largest transactions are those most important to their lives – e.g. mortgage or rent, car payments, insurance premiums or tuition,” Diane Wagner, a spokeswoman for BofA, said in an e-mail.

“Our posting order helps to prioritize a customer’s transactions and helps keep them from defaulting on their more important transactions,” Wagner said.
======================================

Note that with overdraft “protection” the amounts will be paid regardless of order. Thus, the only effect of processing largest to smallest is to increase the liklihood of multiple overdraft fees. There is not a shred of customer service here, because the bank quotes seem to purposely confuse bouncing a check with the overdraft loans.

By: Nicole, Chicago, IL

Nicole, Chicago, IL — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 03:05:20 +0000

After paying many unintentional overdraft fees I finally found a program that helped prevent them! It’s a product for your cell phone called Mobile Checkbook. I found it on http://www.mobatech.com and it’s been a money saver ever since. Check it out.

By: Brenda, Greensburg, IN

Brenda, Greensburg, IN — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 18:17:34 +0000

The banks are ripping people off. They say this is to protect you, they take out the biggest dollar amount first so that your mortgage, car payments, loans ect. get paid. Come on, they are protecting their interest, most people have these loans thru their banks. The banks want their money first, to hell with you!

By: Joe, New Bedford, MA

Joe, New Bedford, MA — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:39:42 +0000

It is ridiculous reading what these bankers are saying that it’s all the consumers fault. Let me tell you that banks are stacking the cards against the consumer to milk more overdraft fees out of them. And it’s usually the ones who least could afford it. For example take Bank of America, they don’t display real time postings of transactions on their banking website. I’ve had transactions including transfers from one account to another pending for up to three or four days (I have screen shots with dates to prove it). Hello, this the computer age, the only reason this is done is to scam the consumer out of more of their hard earned money. So during this time that the transactions are mysteriously pending for whatever reason (the money had already cleared in the other accounts where it came from) you get whacked if you overdraw on your account because of the banks criminal shenanigans like this. They list false account balances because they don’t account for any pending transaction that’s already in the pipeline, giving the consumer a false sense that they have enough funds in their accounts available for other purchases. And never mind that they as well as other banks take the largest transactions first giving themselves a much better chance of hitting the consumer with multiple overdraft fees. I feel politicians are only giving lip service to this (hello Reps. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. and Barney Frank, D-Mass) because this has been going on for years now and still nothing is being done about it. I guess the politicians know what side of the bread the butter is on.

By: Oliver Tucson az

Oliver Tucson az — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 02:24:14 +0000

It is time for people to take responsibility. I was taught as a child to deduct each check and if I did not have the money then I did not write another check until I made a deposit and it cleared. If you do not have the money do not write a check. Make sure that you have enough in the account to cover each check that you write. This is simply good practice. Also you can tell your bank that you do not want overdraft protection. Of course this means that your check will bounce and your credit will be ruined. The overdraft fee is a lot cheaper.

By: Bob. Tampa, FL

Bob. Tampa, FL — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 20:11:14 +0000

First off Lynne, don’t get pi$$ed off. Yours was an unique circumstance from what is sounds like. Personally, I think Direct TV owes you the money. However, I work in banking and I can tell you that 95% of the people that are getting these fees have no one to blame but themselves. It usually happens when they forget about checks they’ve written and go out and use their cards. All of a sudden the check tries to clear along with the purchases and fees get assessed. Also, Anna, in TX, here’s actual reality for you. NOT ALL ITEMS GET PAID! Banks have a limit for each account of what they are willing to pay on behalf of the customer. How long you’ve had the account, how many times you’ve overdrawn before, etc all factor in. The bank isn’t going to pay and endless amount of checks and purchases for everyone. Also, the bank I work for has a limit on the number of fees per day it charges which means you get a free pass if the bank pays items above that limit. Don’t mistake that fees are a revenue generator for banks, but they aren’t going around looking to charge you. Believe it or not they realize that it makes customer’s unhappy with them. Just remember that in the end the bank isn’t out there swiping your card for you or writing your checks out just so they can charge you fees. Please remember that next time you come into a bank branch and want to scream at an associate about your “unjust” fees!!

By: Francine Long island NY

Francine Long island NY — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 19:18:35 +0000

I love hearing people complain about something when honestly, it is your fault. Check you account on line every day, keep a record of what you spend. simple as that. if you stayed on top of your accounts and spent only what you had – guess what… NO FEES
another example of people blaming someone else for their stupidity.
only a matter of time until some idiot trys to sue the banks

By: Usarian, Anna, TX

Usarian, Anna, TX — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 10:30:58 +0000

I am glad to see this issue finally being thoroughly debated. I hope I
continue to see stories like this in your publications. Thank you for
addressing this issue.

I would like to respond to one of the typical bank excuses you mentioned
in your article:

”
“Our posting order helps to prioritize a customer’s transactions and
helps keep them from defaulting on their more important transactions,”
Wagner said.
”

…and several more like it.

Reality Check:
ALL OF THE TRANSACTIONS GET PAID! In an overdraft situation, it is not
that the larger expenditures get paid and the smaller ones are rejected.
They are ALL paid. If they reversed the order of payment, they would
still ALL get paid, but the larger transactions would be the only ones
assessing fees!

I have found myself visiting the unsavory payday loan institutions in
order to avoid being loansharked by my bank!

By: Lynne Lascano, Gainesville, FL

Lynne Lascano, Gainesville, FL — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:09:47 +0000

Most of you people really pi** me off. You act like getting an overdraft fee is always our fault. Granted, there are times when we think a check or a credit won’t hit the back before our direct deposit does, and, thus, our mistake…….thinking. But, what about things like this: I $132 in my account. I wrote 3 separate checks, all 3 under $30. I knew how much money was in my account, I used “basic math”, I had a second grade education, all that! I moved, and didn’t send my Direct TV satellite dishes back in enough time (moving out, moving in, trying to work in between), and instead of calling me and reminding me to send them it, Direct TV decided to TAKE the money from my account instead. Making that $175 bounce, the bank charged me $30, then the 3 checks came in, and I got charged $90 on top of the less than $90 in checks. Direct TV, of course, says it is not their fault and they won’t reimbure the $120. The bank says it’s their policy, and to get Direct TV to do. Mind you, this was back in June!! I am today, STILL waiting for my $175 from Direct TV after returning them the next day. And I am out $385. You all talk as if everyone upset here is just blantenly spending money and complaining about the banks policies. I realize that banking is a business for profit, but, to what extent???? To the point, that the poorer get poorer. If I had my way, since most of my jobs require direct deposit, I would never deal with a bank again. Capital City Bank is the biggest rip off of people that I have ever had the misfortune to deal with and I wish I could go take money away from them the way they do me and see how they like it!!!!!

By: CU Employee, Topeka KS

CU Employee, Topeka KS — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:25:06 +0000

I work for a Credit Union in Topeka, KS and we do offer Overdraft Privilege, but it doesn’t work with your debit card. If you do not have the available balance in your checking account to cover a purchase we decline that transaction regardless of any ODP you might have.

We also clear our items the opposite of the banks. We clear from the SMALLEST to the largest.

Our ODP or NSF fee is only $15.00 (lots of banks charge more than TWICE that!) and we waive fees for members all the time with good history with us.

Also we allow have an Overdraft Protection option that allows you to have money transferred from a credit card or other account you have at the credit union to cover an item and there is no fee for this service. Why should we charge you to use your own money?

By: Kelly, Kansas City, KS

Kelly, Kansas City, KS — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:23:30 +0000

"People act like banking is rocket science. Start with a balance, add deposits, subtract withdraws, don’t go below $0. 2nd grade math." In second grade math you know what order the numbers are added and subtracted. Read the article again. The $400 was transferred before the purchases were made. The $400 was deducted from the husbands account instantly However, the $400 was not credited instantly It was credited after the purchases. Why? Keeping a register in this case isn't going to help. According to their calculations they would be fine. But because of the order that the bank cleared the transactions, they are charged fees.

By: Candace Reinholdt Missoula Montana

Candace Reinholdt Missoula Montana — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:41:36 +0000

There is an amazing process out there that will keep you from ever paying an overdraft fee. You will need pencil and paper (ack the technology) and basic math skills. Simply subtract the amount of every bill and purchase from you paycheck, when you get to zero stop spending. I promise this will really work, but you have to do it for yourself, your bank can’t do it for you!

By: John, Fargo ND

John, Fargo ND — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:00:58 +0000

Oh one more thought for you Mike in TN. The banks are partly responsible for the mortgage mess now, but what about the people who actually signed on the dotted line? Where was their common sense thinking that they could afford a $500,000 house when they were only making $45,000 a year? Shame on you for practicing medicine with your narrow mind!! By your logic, if a patient dies as a result of a prescription you issued to them, then you should be held responsible even if the patient was reckless and took more then they were suppose to. So sad you haven’t learned about consequences of one’s actions yet.