Costly ATM Fees Need to be Addressed
Published February 5th, 2008 in Credit News.
FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair spoke out about the expensive fees banks charge during the Reuters Regulation Summit in Washington, saying ATM fees needed to be addressed by regulators.
Bair spoke about her own experience with exorbitant banking fees, saying she once paid $6 when using a bank’s ATM, referring to it as unpleasurable.
Most banks nowadays charge about $2 per non-customer ATM transaction, which when combined with another $2 from your own bank, can be a hefty charge, especially if you’re only withdrawing $20.
And it’s clearly getting worse, as late last year Bank of America said it was raising ATM fees to $3 for non-customer withdrawals, up from $2.
Rather strange that a bank can raise their fee by 50 percent in one full swoop.
A decade ago, the cost to withdraw money from an ATM was only about a buck, revealing the industry’s move towards a fee-based profit model.
If you’re looking to avoid such fees, consider a credit union or a smaller bank that doesn’t charge ATM fees.
And by all means, avoid non-bank ATMs that charge double to triple the amount you’d see at a large bank’s ATM.
