:rolleyes:
No, it means “since the government isn’t going to let us make obscene profits the way we used to, we’ll have to find a new way.”
Recouping costs has nothing to do with it. The banks are still making a huge profit on debit cards, even under Durbin. They just want to make what they made before; they feel entitled to it.
And VISA and MasterCard are about to raise transaction fees on debit card for purchases. Right now if you buy something with a debit card the merchant has to pay an eight cent transaction fee. VISA and MasterCard are about to raise that merchant fee to 23 cents.
Oh, yeah. The new fees may start as early as this Sunday, 01 October 2011.
Well one way for consumers to stick it back to the banks, would be for everyone to go back to using paper checks for most of your transactions. The processing costs are ridiculous for banks, which is why the debit cards were invented in the first place.
The new law only applies to financial institutions that have more than $10 billion in assets.
Get away from your bigger banks and you should avoid new fees related to this law.
Hah, joke’s on them, then. There is no Sunday, 01 October 2011. Suckers!
Which is preferable. Its better to have costs be transparent. If people decide the 6$ fee is too much, as the OP does, then they can now choose not to use debit cards and avoid the fee. Previously, they didn’t have that choice, even if you paid with cash, you ended up subsidizing debit card holders.
I think they will kick it back, not because they are friendly, but because retail is a competitive business, and so retailers can’t afford to have artificially inflated prices.
Doesn’t any business? Do you really suppose they’re gonna go their shareholders and say “Sorry folks. Our company is less profitable, and your stock is worth less, but we’re not going to do anything about it. Tough luck, ya’ll.”
The problem with credit unions is that a person can’t always find one nearby that they can join. I’ve looked into it, and I am not eligible for the 1 credit union that is nearby.
I Haven’t been asked this in probably 2 years. The debit/credit choice is an option on the little swipe station/keypad thingy. No need to interact with the cashier person at all now.
BoA dopers, you need to do us all a favor and cancel your BoA accounts. Transfer to another bank, or credit union, or whatever. There are plenty.
This is nothing more than a “fuck-you” fee - and it sets a dangerous precedent. Punish BoA by leaving now before other banks make this standard.
Iono. Have they gone to the their shareholders and apologized for buying Countrywide and jeopardizing their entire investment? There’s a statistically significant chance BofA will go bankrupt in the next 12-18 months. But the fees have nothing to do with it. Free checking is becoming a thing of the past. Credit unions are looking more and more appealing and the big banks acting they way they are is driving membership gains at credit unions
It’s one thing to say “we are taking these steps to ensure we have a healthy business”, it’s another to say “We are going to take steps to negatively affect our business, and public perception of it, and lose a lot of customers, and set the process of debit adoption backwards, in an effort to make congress look like the bad guy for sticking up for consumers.” The first is business; the second is nasty negative politics starting from a misplaced assumption of entitlement.
This doesn’t belong in this thread. Not that it isn’t factual, but an appropriate response would be IMHO. Let me just say that the profit on a 24¢ fee on these transactions would be at least 23¢.
You think it’s that little?
Don;t forget, it’s not just what the system cost. It’s also what they are saving on shuffling and counting cash, processing cheques, chasing deadbeat credit card owners, etc. A computer in Omaha can do debit. The other stuff reuires bricks and bodies all over the map.
No, what they’re saying is that if they can’t make the money the way they were doing it before on the everyday slub, they will make it another way. If they can’t make it with interest rates then they will make it on user fees. God help you if you’re unemployed and don’t have direct depost because banks are now charging a $6 to $12 user fee per month for a checking account. Bank accounts with less that $5,000 (arbitrary swag) are nuisances that lose money.
The new fee isn’t going to affect me anyway, it looks like, because I only use the debit card at their ATMs. If they ever come up with a fee that I have to pay, then I’ll reconsider. With my current situation I never get charged any fees, and I don’t expect that to change.
I’m happy to switch banks if I start getting charged new fees. I’ve switched a bunch of times in my life. But always for specifc reasons related to how I use my bank accounts. Right now I see no reason to switch. I don’t make financial decisions for spite.
And, actually, in most ways I’ve been happy with Bank of America. I do a lot of travelling and they have branches most places I go. They even have agreements with banks in some foreign countries to not charge fees if you use their ATMs. For example, Scotiabank in Canada and BNP in France. I’ve taken advantage of that a lot.
Really? I’d think a bank gets at least a couple percentage points of interest on invested money, so say 3%, thus 150$ a year. Does a bank really spend more then that servicing a single account every year? With so many people using ATMs and direct deposit and the like, I’d be kinda surprised.
A bank account with $2500 is $25000 that the bank lend out and earn interest on. Naturally, this lending is done at an interest many orders of magnitude higher than what the account would earn. At 4%, which is reasonable, that’s $1000 a year the bank can earn from that $2500.
So, how is it a money losing proposition? Because the banks said so? And that industry, it’s not exactly known for its credibility when it comes to justifying the fees they charge, you know?
Are you aware when you swipe your credit card, it costs the merchant accepting that card 1-3% of the gross proceeds on the sale?
Wait, how can a bank earn a thousand dollars on $2,500 in deposits?
I phoned. The fee doesn’t apply to “premier” customers (people who keep $5,000 or more in their bank account, CDs, etc.) so it has no chance of ever impacting me, and no, I will not be switching.