Reduce and Eliminate ATM Fees
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My friend was willing to pay $6 in ATM fees to access his own money. That’s insane! As far as I know Bank of America, Chase, and Wachovia are among banks that have the highest ATM charge, $3.00 for out of network users. My friend used a Bank of America ATM this weekend to get cash. (Note: Our friend’s goal was to always know what was in the account.) Banks were getting richer from him withdrawing his money.
I don’t disagree that there should be a fee for out of network customers, but $3 is ridiculous. the good news is that you are able to drastically reduce and in some cases eliminate those ATM fees.
How? Go to your bank’s ATMs to withdraw your money. It may be a little less convienent, but it saves you some cash. This is something completely doable on your part.
You may say that the ATMs are really out of the way and cost that amount in gasoline. I’d doubt you, but maybe that is the case.
If your bank doesn’t have enough ATM machine to fufill your needs, then you have some options:
- Make a bigger withdrawl when you’re at your bank’s/credt union’s ATM. Try ti reduce the amount of trips you make to the ATMs. If you kept track of your spending, you’ll have a general idea of how much money you need to withdrawl. If you want to stay with this bank and not continue to lose money, then you have to change your behavior.
- Switch your bank or credit union with more convient ATM locations. Sometimes we get comfortable with a place and just stay there to avoid headaches. Today is a great time reevaluate the pros and cons of your financial institution. Does it offer no fee checking? Are there enough ATMs to fit your lifestyle? It’s not that hard to switch.
- Instead of withdrawing money from a machine use the card to purchase items/services. Buying with your check card make sit easier to track, but if you’re inclined to spend more with a crd, then pass on this one.
- If you still need cash, just get cash back from your purchase. There’s the cash back option. I’m not too crazy about this as you have to make a purchase to access it. In some cases it’s cheaper to get a candy bar and some cash then visiting an out of network ATM.
- Try using the Allpoint network. ING Direct and other banks use this network for their banking ATM services and it’s a great feature. Why?
Allpoint is America’s largest surcharge-free ATM network. With over 32,000 ATMs, Allpoint is your single source for surcharge-free access coast to coast.
Five options to choose from that work on reducing this fee from your budget. Personally I think #1 and #2 make the most sense, at least for me. Get a better bank/credit union and modify your behavior to reduce charges. It is unlikely that banks will lower their ATM fees; there’s just too much money involved in it. Almost $4 1/2 billion dollars were collected by banks from ATM fees.
Make no mistake: this behavior is making banks richer while consumers are losing their cash. Don’t be an ignorant consumer. Plan ahead and make sure your bank/credit union treats you right.
If this post was helpful, please buy me a cup of coffee. :D
February 19th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
Other Choices to think about are Checking Accounts like Charles Schwab. They charge you no ATM fees anywhaere and rebate 100% of those that do charge. The only thing you cannot get back is currency conversion, but still, it can be a good sized savings.
February 19th, 2008 at 11:43 pm
Really? I didn’t know about that account!
February 23rd, 2008 at 9:29 pm
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February 25th, 2008 at 8:01 am
[...] from Green Panda Treehouse discusses ways that we can reduce and eliminate ATM fees. Who wouldn’t want to do [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 9:06 am
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February 27th, 2008 at 11:06 am
[...] Reduce and Eliminate ATM Fees posted at Green Panda Treehouse. [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
Good advice. It’s amazing how the banks can zing us. Everyonce in a while a slip up on the thousands of rules they have and get hit with a fee. Oh, it gets me MAD!
Thanks,
Lisa
February 28th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
[...] Reduce and Eliminate ATM Fees [...]
March 1st, 2008 at 1:19 am
I say, dont use a ATM card. Those cards are money traps. Instead opt only for a free checking account, to withdraw money. If you know that you will be going to an event, or activity; make sure you take enough money. I see ATM’s and those cards only as a money trap for makes to rake in revenue, and for criminals to fraud you, with countless schemes.
March 4th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
I use my ATM card to withdraw from the bank’s ATM, which is much quicker than going inside to make a withdrawal and has no fee. I also use the “check card” feature to make purchases where credit cards are accepted where I would otherwise write a check or it would be inconvenient to carry cash, such as shopping or eating out.
Of course, I know roughly how much money I have in my personal account (bills and savings have already been moved into other accounts) and what I want my minimum balance to be, so I don’t have to worry about fees, overdrafting, or going over budget. It’s safe, but it doesn’t build credit.
March 4th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
There’s a right way to use ATM where you don’t incur heavy fees. Blue Panda pointed out how he does it. For some people, though, ATM are money suckers. Thanks Jeff for sharing your thoughts and thanks Blue for sharing your method.
May 15th, 2008 at 11:55 am
[...] Look to see if your bank is located nearby. (This might not be an issue if you’re considering changing your bank.) With banks charging $3 for out of network users, this is something to seriously consider. I wrote some tips on how to cut down the ATM fees. [...]