Bank officials said that effective this summer, customers who try to make purchases with their debit cards without enough money in their checking accounts will simply be declined.
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“What our customers kept telling me is ‘just don’t let me spend money that I don’t have,’ ” said Susan Faulkner, the bank’s deposit and card product executive…
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As of July 1, the Federal Reserve will require that banks obtain a customer’s consent before they can charge them overdraft fees for A.T.M. transactions and debit purchases; many banks now automatically enroll customers.
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But the collapse in consumer credit, combined with new rules limiting banks’ ability to make money on credit cards and overdraft fees, has prompted banks to experiment with fees that reach a broader set of customers, like annual fees on credit cards and monthly fees on checking accounts.
Bank of America to End Overdraft Fees on Debit Purchases
As a cost sensitive shopper than shops around for financial services and never carries a balance, I am a massive beneficiary of a financial system that recovers its fixed costs from people who have overdrafts, carry balances, and use other expensive financial services. Nevertheless, I am aware that such fees are carried by people who are just barely making ends meet. I’m not going to stop looking for high interest savings or using no fee checking. However, serving me isn’t free and I prefer an equilibrium where we all pay our fair share of being served with financial services. That means that some people are going to get a worse deal. I’m okay with that even if it turns out to be me.
