Get a bank overdraft waived!

Getting bank overdraft charges can get very expensive, very quickly. For those with student checking accounts, or a business account, bank overdrafts are more easily waived. If you do not overdraft your account very often, banks will gladly refund you all or part of the overdraft fee if you try hard enough. If you are one who does get many insufficient funds charges, it may be hard or impossible for you to get an overdraft charge waived.

When you contact your bank regarding an overdraft, it's important to have a good documentation of your account history in front of you. Inform the rep that you talk with that your account has been in good standing for many months or years and let them know that you are a valuable customer. If your account had been in good standings for a good period of time, banks will usually waive 1 account overdraft a year for you. Bank of America has waived about 1 a year for me as I only overdraft when there is an un-expected charge coming through and I get the account back into the positive the instant I notice the charge. It's usually best to call them after you have paid the overdraft as they will know you can cover the overdraft and your calling on the principal of the matter.

Did you know that banks run your charges in a way that will cause the most overdrafts to occur? Banks will process the largest charges against your account and then the largest deposits. So for example, if you $1200 rent check went through, than a $50 charge from a gas station, a $20 charge from a restaurant, and then a $400 car payment, they would process the $1200 rent check, the $400 car payment, the $50 charge from the gas station, and lastly the $20 charge. If you only had $1400 in your account, this would result in the most overdrafts possible. Banks claim that this is to keep your larger expenses from bouncing and not being paid, but in reality it is to make the most overdrafts occur.

Most bank overdrafts do not incur interest and many banks offer overdraft protection and overdraft privilige programs which can provide you with a sort of pay day loan without the high interest. For example, Century Bank only charge $25 for an overdraft, and you can overdraft up to $300 in cash from a Century Bank ATM if the need arises, saving you the HUGE interest rates of pay day loan services.