Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Bank of America may have lost the battle over its proposed $5/month debit card fee, but, along with other major banks, it is not giving up on charging customers for other services in order to maintain profits.
At BofA consumers can expect to pay anywhere from $5 to $20 to replace a lost ATM card. They also now pay $12 a month for a basic checking account, up from $8.95.
Chase and Citigroup have hiked their checking account fees too. Citigroup’s has gone up from $8 to $10 a month, while Chase’s standard checking account, which for many used to be free, now costs $12 a month.
U.S. Bancorp now charges 50 cents a check to customers making a deposit using a mobile phone. TD Bank demands $15 for each wire transfer of money into a domestic account.
Unemployed workers in Oregon receive their jobless benefits through a U.S. Bank prepaid debit card. The bank allows these customers to make four withdrawals per month for free—then it charges $1.50 for each ATM trip, and $3 to see a teller. If someone overdrafts their account, the fee is $17.50.
It costs a bank between $200 and $300 a year to maintain a customer’s checking account, and they collect between $85 and $115 in fees. However, while they have your money they are able to invest it and make a profit for themselves.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
Banks Quietly Ramping Up Costs to Consumers (by Eric Dash, New York Times)
Banks Extract Fees On Unemployment Benefits (by Janell Ross, Huffington Post)
Federal Reserve Approves Halving of Debit Card Fees in Partial Victory for Merchants over Banks (by Noel Brinkerhoff and Ken Broder, AllGov)
Banks Move Aggressively to Increase Credit Card Profits (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
Banks Squeezing Money from Unemployed (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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