Banks purposely ripping you off with overdraft fees on clarkhoward.com

Some bank accounts charge you a fee just to check your account. A call years ago spoke of getting hit with an overdraft fee, even though they knew they had a good balance; was this a clerical error? No, it's a new strategy in banking that tricks people into overdrafting their accounts so that the bank can charge them. Banks used to reject transactions that they knew would cause an overdraft. Not anymore. Many banks now purposely approve transactions that they know will overdraw your account. According to Congressional hearings, banks made $17.5 billion dollars due to this! Even worse, many banks use software programs to see what will cause the most bounced checks, or give you false balance reports at ATMs so that you you'll overdraw! Clark thinks a bank should at the very least inform you that they're going to try to rip you off by approving transactions that will cause overdraft fees. You now need to take additional steps to monitor your account as closely as possible to avoid getting ripped off.

What others are saying

Bank of America
I wrote a check and post dated it for the following day and asked the guy to whom I wrote the check to wait until the next day to cash the check(This was about 3p.m.). I went to Walmart (around noon, a few hours prior to writing the check) and made a $3.27 debit purchase. When I got home I checked my balance and the transaction from Walmart had cleared. The next day, the check had been posted (the guy went directly to the bank and cashed the check, urgh! Anyways, back to my story. Bank of America posted the check prior to my $3.27 transaction throwing my account into overdraft and charging me two overdraft fees instead of the one I should have incurred. When I contacted the bank, they told me they pay higher to lower debits. I told them I understood that, but the transaction for $3.27 had already been posted to my account before the check had even hit the bank. They also told me that post dating a check was useless because it was a legal document and the bank could cash it when they wanted. If it is a legal document, isn't is good for the date in which it is written? Anways, just wanted to give my two cents worth. I think it is wrong they switched the check and the $3.27 transaction therefore having me have two overdraft fees. The transaction from Walmart had cleared then they did the old swith-a-roo to get another overdraft fee. Bad Business!
By Jeff @ 11/13/08 07:23:54 PMreport abuse
Banks
My grandmother uses Bank of America and she went in to the bank at 9 am to deposit CASH and the lady said it wouldnt post for 48 hours!! I remember the days when cash posted immediatly and checks dep before 2 cleared that day! Also had a problem with Best Bank, the charged me an overdraft fee and I didnt have the money to pay it back immediatly and now i owe them over $600. they wont close my account because I owe them money and every week that my account is overdrawn they charge another $32 overdraft fee.
By Jamie Davis @ 09/19/08 11:53:46 AMreport abuse
OVERDRAFT FEES
my wife had an account with woodforest bank that had been charged off. she had a small payroll check in the amount of 199.48 that she wanted to cash at woodforest bank(husband has account at same bank) to make a long story short the bank kept her check because as they put it it all has to be applied to recovery
By DANNY BRYANT @ 08/11/08 07:04:40 PMreport abuse
Overdraft Fee
I had an automatic payment due to come out of my account on Thurs. July 24. In the morning of the day the payment was due, I took one of my paychecks and a $100 personal check written on the same bank, National City. I deposited it. I should have had roughly $30 left in my acct after the pymt cleared. The bank only credited part of paycheck. (held funds till the following day) in order to charge me $102 in overdraft fees. The bank mgr would not reverse the charges, not that he was man enough to tell me that at the time. I had to check my acct online to see if they would grace me with my hard-earned money. They have not. Does anyone know of a bank that does not steal from their customers?
By Patricia Haney @ 07/29/08 06:04:20 PMreport abuse
Over draft fees from checks
My daughter made some checks out to pay bills it turns out she has been in an over draft for about 2 weeks and everytime she called her back they never told her and the amount being said was not the correct now she has over 200 dollars in over draft fees the bank refuses to work with her before this she never had a problem
By Carmen Marcano @ 06/24/08 05:03:34 PMreport abuse
banks\ rbc bank
In the comment I made earlier I typed That the bank had charged us $200 in over draft fees. This was a typo I meant to type $2000.This is only in a month of this abuse.
By Peggy @ 06/21/08 03:11:54 PMreport abuse
banks that rip off
We had an excellant rapport with our Georgia State bank. We knew every minute what we had and did not have in our account. They have sold to RBC bank. In the last 4 weeks they have bounced every single transaction that has passed through thier bank resulting in close to $200 in overdraft and re-entry fees.We were not perfect at our old bank with maybe 1 bounced check a year, but this is ridiculous! PEOPLE BEWARE! We are not the only ones they are doing this to, we personally know 8 people that have left this bank for them doing this to them. They are holding checks, holding deposits etc. DO NOT USE RBC BANK!
By Peggy @ 06/21/08 01:55:53 PMreport abuse
bank rip off
I made a deposit to my checking account. The deposit included a check I wrote and a check my husband wrote. Both signers on the account and both checks were from local banks. The deposit slip said credit would be on the next business day. I then mailed a check for my mortgage from the account to Texas.

The bank charged me an overdraft fee of $35.00. They said the check I wrote (after I made the deposit)and mailed to Texas cleared before my account was credited with the deposit I made.

What can I do?
By Merry Cagle @ 04/09/08 02:37:54 PMreport abuse

Bank of America

I wrote a check and post dated it for the following day and asked the guy to whom I wrote the check to wait until the next day to cash the check(This was about 3p.m.). I went to Walmart (around noon, a few hours prior to writing the check) and made a $3.27 debit purchase. When I got home I checked my balance and the transaction from Walmart had cleared. The next day, the check had been posted (the guy went directly to the bank and cashed the check, urgh! Anyways, back to my story. Bank of America posted the check prior to my $3.27 transaction throwing my account into overdraft and charging me two overdraft fees instead of the one I should have incurred. When I contacted the bank, they told me they pay higher to lower debits. I told them I understood that, but the transaction for $3.27 had already been posted to my account before the check had even hit the bank. They also told me that post dating a check was useless because it was a legal document and the bank could cash it when they wanted. If it is a legal document, isn't is good for the date in which it is written? Anways, just wanted to give my two cents worth. I think it is wrong they switched the check and the $3.27 transaction therefore having me have two overdraft fees. The transaction from Walmart had cleared then they did the old swith-a-roo to get another overdraft fee. Bad Business!

By Jeff @ 11/13/08 07:23:54 PMreport abuse

Banks

My grandmother uses Bank of America and she went in to the bank at 9 am to deposit CASH and the lady said it wouldnt post for 48 hours!! I remember the days when cash posted immediatly and checks dep before 2 cleared that day! Also had a problem with Best Bank, the charged me an overdraft fee and I didnt have the money to pay it back immediatly and now i owe them over $600. they wont close my account because I owe them money and every week that my account is overdrawn they charge another $32 overdraft fee.

By Jamie Davis @ 09/19/08 11:53:46 AMreport abuse

OVERDRAFT FEES

my wife had an account with woodforest bank that had been charged off. she had a small payroll check in the amount of 199.48 that she wanted to cash at woodforest bank(husband has account at same bank) to make a long story short the bank kept her check because as they put it it all has to be applied to recovery

By DANNY BRYANT @ 08/11/08 07:04:40 PMreport abuse

Overdraft Fee

I had an automatic payment due to come out of my account on Thurs. July 24. In the morning of the day the payment was due, I took one of my paychecks and a $100 personal check written on the same bank, National City. I deposited it. I should have had roughly $30 left in my acct after the pymt cleared. The bank only credited part of paycheck. (held funds till the following day) in order to charge me $102 in overdraft fees. The bank mgr would not reverse the charges, not that he was man enough to tell me that at the time. I had to check my acct online to see if they would grace me with my hard-earned money. They have not. Does anyone know of a bank that does not steal from their customers?

By Patricia Haney @ 07/29/08 06:04:20 PMreport abuse

Over draft fees from checks

My daughter made some checks out to pay bills it turns out she has been in an over draft for about 2 weeks and everytime she called her back they never told her and the amount being said was not the correct now she has over 200 dollars in over draft fees the bank refuses to work with her before this she never had a problem

By Carmen Marcano @ 06/24/08 05:03:34 PMreport abuse

banks\ rbc bank

In the comment I made earlier I typed That the bank had charged us $200 in over draft fees. This was a typo I meant to type $2000.This is only in a month of this abuse.

By Peggy @ 06/21/08 03:11:54 PMreport abuse

banks that rip off

We had an excellant rapport with our Georgia State bank. We knew every minute what we had and did not have in our account. They have sold to RBC bank. In the last 4 weeks they have bounced every single transaction that has passed through thier bank resulting in close to $200 in overdraft and re-entry fees.We were not perfect at our old bank with maybe 1 bounced check a year, but this is ridiculous! PEOPLE BEWARE! We are not the only ones they are doing this to, we personally know 8 people that have left this bank for them doing this to them. They are holding checks, holding deposits etc. DO NOT USE RBC BANK!

By Peggy @ 06/21/08 01:55:53 PMreport abuse

bank rip off

I made a deposit to my checking account. The deposit included a check I wrote and a check my husband wrote. Both signers on the account and both checks were from local banks. The deposit slip said credit would be on the next business day. I then mailed a check for my mortgage from the account to Texas.

The bank charged me an overdraft fee of $35.00. They said the check I wrote (after I made the deposit)and mailed to Texas cleared before my account was credited with the deposit I made.

What can I do?

By Merry Cagle @ 04/09/08 02:37:54 PMreport abuse

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Jul 27, 2007 -- Banks purposely ripping you off with overdraft fees

What others are saying