Friday, September 30, 2011

Monthly ATM fees? Dumping my bank of 12 years.

I bank with a major, nation wide bank.  They are jacking up fees generally, and popping us $3 to $5 per month specifically, just for having an ATM card.

Bull.

I'm closing my accounts, both business and personal, in a few days... and transferring my funds to a credit union, which will not be charging for merely having an ATM/Debit card.

That banks are going into competition with American Express by charging me to be able to access my own money is idiocy.  I'm not about to pay $60 a year for the privilege of banking with ___________ in addition to the monthly charges I already pay on 5 different accounts.

In an economy where direct competition between financial institutions should preclude this sort of thing, we're told it's because the Fed stepped in and slapped these people for the OTHER moronic fees they were charging and overdraft costs... and methods... that were spiraling out of control on the backs of the consumer.

I disagree.

Blaming the fed for an ATM card monthly charge is like blaming the fed for the airlines charging travelers for baggage, a practice these same airlines make hundreds of millions of dollars on every year.

Nope.  This one is on the banks.  This charge is moronic, and I, for one, am voting with my feet.

2 comments:

Martin Hash said...

I will get concerned if ALL banks start charging such fees?! That would be ad hoc monopolism (if not conspired monopolism) - which is when Governments are supposed to be stepping in.

Blogging around the Pacific Northwest said...

First thing I can say I can is "WELCOME" to the herd that is moving, Kelly. I made the switch two years ago after my major bank got swallowed after it failure.

And the new entity wanted to start flooding me with new and mysterious fees. That is when I made the change to two credit unions in Clark County and I never looked back.