last night on local NBC news: a woman fights bank on overdraft fees!

[grasswire]

She opened an account with US Bank because they offered $75 free groceries with it. She didn't need the account, but couldn't resist the $75 groceries so it would be her "mad money" account. She deposited a hundred bucks and used the account. Some time later, she got a phone call from the bank. She was overdrawn more than $200 because she had overdrafted by several dollars and multiple penalties were attached -- a daily overdraft fee of $8, too!!

She fought the bank. They dropped all the penalties and "allowed her to close her account."

SO glad this is getting some news attention.

Fight back, people! Fight back! Don't allow banks to perpetrate piratical practices.

I am fighting nearly $300 in overdraft fees with BofA for their scurrilous practice of re-ordering transactions. $300 because of an $11 overdraft!!!

Fight back! Solidarity! Power to the people!

[leftofcool]

1. Banks have been resequencing checks for years

The best way to avoid overdraft fees is to keep a check register to the penny. Never rely on your online bank amount and don't use your atm card for anything but cash unless it is an emergency.

[Roland99]

3. Chase and, I think, BoF announced recently they will process in chronological order.

[Hav]

2. Good for you.

I hope you have success. These practices sound almost criminal. My mother is of this kind who fights for every cent. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth the effort but on the other side, you just can't let them get away with it or you just encourage them to cheat more.

[Raspberry]

4. Um, how about--

--don't overdraw your account???

I work at a bank, and I see how people act like they are shocked, SHOCKED, I tell you, that they can't use their checkbooks like credit cards, spending $$$ they don't have, and then the bank has the audacity to complain and charge them fees--which is all laid out for them when they open the account.

[anonymous171]

6. How about they stop allowing you to?

I didn't ask for overdraft "protection."

[Matariki]

5. US Bank SUCKS

I had an account there once which I used as 'pocket money'. I got suckered into opening an account by some stupid offer they had with cash for debit transactions.

They *lost* an ATM deposit I made (at my branch) - fortunately I saved the receipt which showed my balance to be a few hundred dollars. A week and a half later I started getting piles of overdraft notices. When I went into the bank with the deposit receipt I was told that it would take 45 days to put the lost money back into my account and they acted as if they were doing me a favor by removing the overdraft fees that their mistake had engendered.

The story just gets worse from here. I waited a couple months to make sure everything had cleared and didn't use the account at all. I withdrew the total and figured 'account closed'. Three years later when I tried to open an account at a credit union I found that US Bank had put my name into that check systems thing saying that I owed them overdraft fees. I truly wish that they were one of the banks that had gone under - the really, really suck in my opinion.