ATM fees are up to an all-time high right now, according to Bankrate.com. If you use an institution other than your own, you get hit with a double fee- first from the bank you’re using and also from your own bank. The average fee right now is $2.75. We as consumers are wasting $4 billion on ATM fees. Just a few years ago it was $2 billion. We have power here to choose if we want to spend this money. For instance, with a credit union account, you can usually use another bank’s ATM for free. Credit unions will actually pay you back if you use another bank’s machine and are charged a fee. People use other machines and pay the extra cash without even thinking about it. It’s $2.75, which doesn’t seem like a lot. But that is almost the cost of a lunch. When ATMs first came onto the scene in the 70s, you got freebies for using them. Now, instead of bribing us, they’re billing us. Get smart and use a credit union or use only your own bank’s ATM machines.