The two largest complaints of banking customers include being blocked from opening a checking account and overdraft fees, according to a report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). 

The CFPB states that they received more than 200 complaints per month from U.S. consumers who claim they were unable to open a checking account at Wells Fargo, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase but were given no reason why. 

In addition, the report notes that customers are having issues with overdraft fees in connection to their checking accounts. The CFPB announced that they are in the process of establishing rules when it comes to overdraft fees. 

Overdraft Fees Overview

According to a formerly published CFPB report, overdraft fees and non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees constitute about 75 percent of fees that a banking customer will acquire. However, the federal agency states that most overdraft fees are paid by only eight percent of customers. 

For banking and credit union customers who have an “opt-in” account, meaning the bank or credit union will not deny debit card purchases that overdraw an account but covers the transaction and charges an overdraft fee, are three times as likely to have 10 or more overdrafts annually.

The CFPB further reports that opt-in customers at banks and credit unions have seven times as many overdraft fees when compared to customers who opt-out. Opt-out accounts will deny a credit union or banking customer from making a purchase if the transaction will overdraw the account. 

According to the federal agency, the purchases that lead to overdraft fees are typically small, averaging about $24. The CFPB states most banking customers who overdraw their accounts were able to make them positive again within one week. 

Credit Union Overdraft Fees Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

When banking and credit union customers overdraw their accounts and the financial institution covers the transaction anyway, a overdraft fee is issued to the account-holder. 

According to the  independent economic research firm known as Moeb’s Services, the average overdraft fee for banking customers is $30, while credit union customers are charged $28. However, depending on the state, some financial institutions charge as much as $35 per incident. 

Credit unions have recently fallen under legal scrutiny as customers report that often times transactions are processed out of order in order to charge for more overdraft fees. Some customers claim that credit unions assess overdraft fees based on the available balance which can cause an overdraft fee to occur even if the account balance did not go negative. 

According to credit union customers, how overdraft and other fees are calculated and assessed is not fully explained to them when they open an account. Some of the credit unions under overdraft fee scrutiny include: 

• State Employees Credit Union, Raleigh, N.C. 
• Pentagon Federal Credit Union, Alexandria, Va.
• Boeing Employees Credit Union, Tukwila, Wash.

These are just a few of the thousands of credit unions throughout the U.S. If you have a credit union account and were charged an overdraft fee, you may be able to participate in a credit union class action lawsuit investigation. Contact an overdraft fee attorney to find out if you have legal claim.

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