Bank Fee Backlash Cost Big Financial Institutions More Than 2 Million Customers

7th February 2012

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Bank Fee Backlash Cost Big Financial Institutions More Than 2 Million Customers →

According to a recent study by Javelin Strategy and Research, 11% of the 5.6 million people who switched banks over the last three months did so as part of “Bank Transfer Day,” an event inspired by Bank of America’s (BAC) decision to begin charging its customers $5 per month to use their debit cards for purchases. BofA ended up scrapping the plan, but it, and many other banks, added a variety of other fees. In fact, as a 2011 Pew study showed, the average bank account has 49 fees, many of which — like the confusing “‘Staff Assisted Requests for Any Item or Statement Copy’ fee, the ‘Foreign Check Clearing Services for up to US $5,000 Drawn from Canadian Banks’ fee, the ‘Online External Transfer to Your Accounts at Other Financial Institutions’ fee and the ‘Large Amount of Coins Deposited’ fee” — charge for services that used to be free.

(Full disclosure: The author recently discovered a new $25 monthly fee that his bank is now charging him because his balance is below $15,000. This fee was added late in 2011, and was not part of the original banking agreement. The author is currently trying to get his money back, is exploring other banking options, and is attempting to remain unbiased in his discussion of the ~~greedy, soul-sucking~~ clever, fee-adding folk who run many of America’s largest financial institutions.)

ha ha, what a nice article.

Tagged: banks

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Bank Fee Backlash Cost Big Financial Institutions More Than 2 Million Customers →