# Never used an ATM? Then you can be in charge of our new banking regulation! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 20, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156 "2010-05-20T18:06:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Qwakkeddup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/90ced4/32.png) [@Qwakkeddup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwakkeddup)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/41 "2010-05-21T05:58:36Z")
A friend of mine took a trip to a bar he knew of off the beaten path during the service fees windup. This particular ATM didn’t notify you of the transaction fee, you only found out it was $20.00 when you got your statement from your bank. He didn’t use ATMs at all for almost a year, until the govt. stepped in and started regulating those transaction fees. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/42 "2010-05-21T12:09:17Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > Does this belong in the pit? > I can’t stop laughing until I start crying. Then I start laughing again. > > [Our ancient Senate: Ben Nelson has never used an ATM - Salon.com](http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/05/20/old_senate_atm) whats so funny??? [pout] I have never used an ATM machine either. My kids do though. I never figured out why though. 🙂 They just don’t provide a service I need. I get a fixed amount of cash every week, and use the amount of cash in my wallet as a budgeting tool. Getting more cash at arbitrary intervals would break that plan. ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/43 "2010-05-21T12:23:13Z")
one true story about credit cards and ATMs. My oldest son went off to college with a credit card and debit card in his name. Came back with good grades (yea!) and a significant balance on his card. He spent half of his summer job paying off his credit card debt. That lesson learned, he gets cash every week to control his spending just like his mom and dad. The younger kids apparently learned from him since I haven’t heard of any credit problems when they went to school. They do use ATMs to get their cash though. The machines at the bank. The machines that tend to have lines in front of them on Fridays… ---
**Author:** ![Uzi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/91b2a8/32.png) [@Uzi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uzi)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/44 "2010-05-21T12:43:02Z")
I was under the impression that if you kept a minimum balance (my bank it is $1K) in your bank account your bank waived all the fees with them when you used your debit card. So, you’d just pay the fee for using the competition’s ATM. Using the debit card at a store is the same as using cash and doesn’t cost you a thing assuming you keep that minimum balance. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/45 "2010-05-21T14:35:12Z")
US Americans do their credit and debit card stuff funny - I don’t assume anything about their banking at this point. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/46 "2010-05-21T14:44:49Z")
My parents are 62 and have never used an ATM. I just don’t think it’s that unusual. Some people like the human contact of speaking with a teller. Perhaps a comparable analog: I’m in charge of hundreds of thousands of data transfers a month at my job, yet I’ve never sent a picture on my phone and don’t own an MP3 player. More relevant, Ben Nelson was an insurance executive for years (several of my friends worked with him) and probably knows as much or more about basic financial solvency than anyone in the Senate. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/47 "2010-05-21T14:49:12Z")
I just want to reiterate, since it really doesn’t seem to be clear, that I pay NO fee for using my ATM card! Not to get money out of the machine, as long as it’s a KeyBank machine, and not to buy groceries, which i do all the time. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/48 "2010-05-21T14:53:10Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > I don’t use ATMs. > > After all, why should I pay a fee to get my own money? This must be a regional thing. I’ve paid exactly one ATM fee in two years, and that was in San Francisco. I have never, ever been charged a fee for using my debit card for cash back in a store. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/49 "2010-05-21T14:53:18Z")
> [@ratatoskK](#): > > I’ve been using ATMs for 35 years. So it’s not like they were invented when the guy was already 100 years old. I’ve spent most of my life (including most of 1980’s and half of 1990’s) in U.S.A. and _never_ used an ATM machine there, not once. I’ve never “swiped” for gas or groceries anywhere. If this is a Poll question, include me among the group who think it’s silly that others think Senators not using ATM’s is silly. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/50 "2010-05-21T14:59:37Z")
> [@Uzi](#): > > I was under the impression that if you kept a minimum balance (my bank it is $1K) in your bank account your bank waived all the fees with them when you used your debit card. So, you’d just pay the fee for using the competition’s ATM. Using the debit card at a store is the same as using cash and doesn’t cost you a thing assuming you keep that minimum balance. Totally depends on your bank and it’s services. My bank is so cool that not only do they not charge me for using any ATM, they’ll reimburse me if another bank’s ATM charges me a fee. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/51 "2010-05-21T15:04:31Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I see we have a replacement for “It’s a series of tubes!” The ATM system’s electro-tubes have been getting clogged up by fees for far too long! It is time we clean the pipes and focus on using ATMs for what they were designed - small business lending! ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/52 "2010-05-21T15:14:06Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > US Americans do their credit and debit card stuff funny - I don’t assume anything about their banking at this point. Evidently people in the rest of the world have not yet realized the possibilities of the drive through. You don’t _go to the bank and get out of your car_ to use the ATM. ETA - that wasn’t trying to be snarky - several times people from elsewhere have been shocked at what you can do without getting out of your car in the US. That’s a major one. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/53 "2010-05-21T15:48:35Z")
For those interested in not paying any ATM fees, including competitors’ fees, check out banking with [Schwab](http://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/banking_lending/checking?cmsid=P-990750&lvl1=banking_lending&lvl2=checking). You need to have a brokerage account with them, but other than that, there’s no catch. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/54 "2010-05-21T16:57:28Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > You shouldn’t. Get a bank with free ATM service. (Like, I don’t know, fucking _all_ of them.) Or move to Europe, where banks aren’t allowed to charge ATM fees to users from other banks. ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/55 "2010-05-21T17:12:09Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > If this is a Poll question, include me among the group who think it’s silly that others think Senators not using ATM’s is silly. That’s not what they think is silly. This is not a poll. Read the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/56 "2010-05-21T17:17:52Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > several times people from elsewhere have been shocked at what you can do without getting out of your car in the US. Should we be proud? ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/57 "2010-05-21T17:37:15Z")
> [@StusBlues](#): > > …Ben Nelson was an insurance executive for years (several of my friends worked with him) and probably knows as much or more about basic financial solvency than anyone in the Senate. That’s what’s frightening. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/58 "2010-05-21T18:04:50Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > Should we be proud? Hellz yeah, bitches! That’s what we call progress! Shit, I buy toilet paper on Amazon. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/59 "2010-05-21T18:22:03Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Hellz yeah, bitches! That’s what we call progress! Shit, I buy toilet paper on Amazon. Interesting way to phrase that. Totally serious question: **Zsofia** , is the above literally true? And if so, are you buying in bulk for a janitorial service or something? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2010, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156/60 "2010-05-21T18:37:36Z")
I have Amazon Prime, and Amazon has Subscribe and Save. I have a problem with forgetting to buy toilet paper before we’re in desperate need - Amazon solves the problem by sending it by the case on schedule, and the price is good. ETA - of course, there’s a little storage involved, but it isn’t like it expires or anything. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/never-used-an-atm-then-you-can-be-in-charge-of-our-new-banking-regulation/540156.md?page=4)