I have considered myself to be good at balancing my bank account for many years. For some reason, this year has deflated my ego and increased my distaste for certain banking practices, specifically overdraft fees. After never really having these, I had 5 charged to me on two different occasions during the second half of the year…at about $34-38 each. I was suddenly out a nice chunk of change that continued to bring me below the magic zero balance. The irony in both cases is that I had deposited money in the accounts on both occasions, which would keep me in the black.
On the second occasion, I even have an ATM withdrawal receipt from KEYBANK stating I have positive funds in my balance and yet, this same transaction was listed as one of the overdrafts. I was extremely disappointed with the bank at this point and would have much rather seen a note on the ATM machine stating something to the effect of “Sorry, but due to insufficient funds, your transaction has been cancelled.” Instead, the banks easily give money and then fine you for it later, which seems a little unethical to me. With the technology that exists today to instantly wire funds anywhere in the world, they should be able to figure out how much really is left in my account, so that this does not happen again. If I were to use the card at a store (as it is a debit card) I would be nothing more than happy to get DECLINED! Continue reading ‘Overdrafts Kick You When You Are Down’ »