Report: Bank of America charging fee for check images
Bank of America is adding a fee that may lead some customers to shut off paper statements, American Banker is reporting.
This month, the company began charging customers a $3 monthly fee if they elect to receive images of their canceled checks along with their statements, American Banker writes.
Bank of America is not the first to charge for check images, but its move furthers an approach it adopted last year when it required customers with a new type of account to stop receiving mailed statements as a condition of waiving their monthly fee, American Banker reports.
Customers can avoid the new fee by choosing to access their check images online only or by shutting off paper statements entirely, the publication writes.
Don Vecchiarello, a spokesman for B of A, said customers can still receive paper statements at no charge — so long as they reduce the bulk by opting out of printed check images, American Banker reports.
Vecchiarello said that the move to charge for check images is “in line with the rest of the industry.”
Wells Fargo & Co., for example, charges $2 a month for check images and extended that fee to former Wachovia customers in July, American Banker reports.
What do you think of this? Justified move or not?
- Henry Unger, The Biz Beat
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133 comments Add your comment
Ragnar
February 22nd, 2011
11:20 am
Our 17-year old son had his savings in his sock drawer, so we took him to Bank of America to open a student account. We wanted him to learn how to use a bank before he leaves for college next fall.
Guess what? BOA mis-characterized his account as a regular account and began charging him $9 a month. He kept trying to fix it on-line without success.
Even though BOA caused the problem, they would not refund the fees charged in error.
As a former employee of BOA, I suggest you reconsider your relationship with this company. We are.
BOA Account Holders since 1974 (but not much longer)
Robert Heinlein's son
February 22nd, 2011
11:22 am
They only keep the electronic copies of your checks for 18 months. Several years ago I discovered this when the IRS misallocated a tax payment, and I got hit 17 months later with a whopping charge for the tax itself, fines, and fees.. To prove I had written the proper information on the check I had to produce the check.
I had discontinued getting the paper checks returned some time before, so I had no proof. BOA still had the electronic copy, and I was able to get them to print that, and it solved the problem. But if it had occurred a month later it would have cost me thousands. And the BOA employee who helped me get the check said they only keep the electronic copies for 18 months.
So now I get paper statements with the checks, plus I copy any major payment slips & checks prior to mailing them. Much cheaper than thousands of dollars because the IRS or mortgage company or such screws up.
It's OK
February 22nd, 2011
11:28 am
I love BofA and have been with them for 15 years without problems. The online banking is great and I rarely have to go in a branch for anything. ATM’s on every corner. With proper financial management (Road Warrior is right), you can bank for a very nominal fee, which is fair. Did you expect free banking? You can also get discounted rates on loans if you have multiple account relationships. Grass is always greener.
fulldawg
February 22nd, 2011
11:43 am
All I hear are horror stories about the former “Bank of Italy”. Would never do business with a firm like that!
Lynn
February 22nd, 2011
11:54 am
I certainly wouldn’t listen to Road Warrior’s advise…….if he’s keeping 10,000 balance in a checking account each month–he’s an idiot!…along with his investment advisors that told him to do it!
ANGRY AS HELL
February 22nd, 2011
12:00 pm
This is just another example of the greedy nature of the American banking industry. They get jammed up buying and selling bad home mortgages and we, the suckers, use our tax dollars to bail them out. I don’t want to hear one so-called conservative out there trying to call this something other than what it is: corporate welfare/corporate socialism. We put people in prison for stealing much less than what these thieves take, but they get away with it because of their political connections and the power they exert to prevent government from regulating their miserable butts. God forbid that the megabanks in this country should be expected to quit robbing their customers and have many more of their buisness dealings regulated.
I’ve had it. As of tomorrow, I’m pulling my money out of Bank of America and going to a credit union. To hell with these crooks !!!! B of A can go to hell!!!
Eric
February 22nd, 2011
12:13 pm
I have banked with BofA, under various names, since 1990. I have never paid a fee to them for a checking/savings/credit card account. I also have my mortgage with them. I do 100% of my banking online, have direct deposit, and never walk into an actual branch. If I need to make a manual deposit, the ATM is amazingly easy, doesn’t require a deposit slip or envelope, and you can get an image of the check on your receipt. I have written probably 5 checks in the last three years, and I can pull the image, front and back, from the website. I don’t receive paper statements, and keep a budget that I can balance to my account down to the penny at any given time.
It’s absolutely amazing that people complain about fees when they are so easy to avoid. Due to direct deposit and no paper statements, my checking account is free with no minimum balance. My savings account is free because I set up an automatic transfer of $10 from checking into savings for the expressed purpose of avoiding a fee, although I make regular transfers above that amount, this minimum transfer allows you to avoid the fee. My credit card account has no annual fee and I pay it off every month to avoid any finance charges.
The bottom line is that banks are businesses and they have to cover their costs just like any other business. They offer many ways to avoid a fee completely with a little planning. If you’re a high maintenance customer who requires paper statements, copies of checks, no direct deposit and constant customer service at a branch, then you have to understand those things come with a price. Nobody expects to walk into a grocery store and get something for free, so why do you think you should get something for nothing at a bank? It’s a business, and businesses are there to make a profit, not go broke paying overhead costs for services that entitled people think should be free.
The problem is that years ago banks offered so much for free, due to the fact that people saved more money. The bank could utilize those funds to invest and make money from, while still paying you an interest rate. Now most people don’t save a dime, so the bank has less money on hand to turn a profit. So now they have to charge you a fee to cover their costs. It’s just another sign of the American times. So many people are living right at their means or above their means and not putting money away for the future. Because of this national trend, banks are suffering and have to find ways to recoup their costs. So they are going to charge the people that cost them, simple as that.
Want to avoid fees? Read the disclosure statements and plan accordingly. I love it when people bitch about a service fee that was disclosed to them, but they claim ignorance because they didn’t read it. Who’s fault is that? The banks? Educate yourself and take personal responsibility in all areas of your life, you’d be amazed how different your life would be.
Road Warrior
February 22nd, 2011
12:28 pm
Lynn – “I certainly wouldn’t listen to Road Warrior’s advise…….if he’s keeping 10,000 balance in a checking account each month–he’s an idiot!…along with his investment advisors that told him to do it!”
What investment advisor would reccomend keeping $10,000 in checking as an investment? And when did I say that’s why I had it there? I keep it in there so that I can easily transfer balances to my CC accounts each month in addition to bills and mortgage. As as I regularly spend between $5,000 and $6,000 a month, it makes sense. As to my investment portfolio, I certainly wouldn’t trust my entire fiancial future to BOA. I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that I am well diversified in my holdings and continue to invest wisely.
Why don’t you get your facts straight before you start hurling insults?
Road Warrior
February 22nd, 2011
12:30 pm
@Eric
I agree completely, but what do I know? Maybe you should talk to Lynn about getting your finances on more solid footing.
me
February 22nd, 2011
12:41 pm
Seems like a reasonable charge and easily avoided. It’s not 1965 anymore. Anybody who can’t get with the times needs to pay for it.
shaggy
February 22nd, 2011
12:41 pm
Most people that “hate” any banks are just too stupid to know anything about banks. They think they are entitled to something or other, and because banks have money, they must be evil.
If you don’t like one, go to another, but understand that banks are businesses, set up to make money, not give it away. We have the government to take care of the giving it away part, mostly to these same “entitled” bank hater morons.
me
February 22nd, 2011
12:45 pm
Well said Shaggy!
shaggy
February 22nd, 2011
12:45 pm
ANGRY AS HELL
I am sure that BOA is cringing at the thought of you pulling your entire fortune of $156.21 from you checking account. I can hear the stock market quake at the thought.
Road Warrior
February 22nd, 2011
12:51 pm
@shaggy
LOL!
Look out, Lynn might call you an idiot!
Credit union for life
February 22nd, 2011
1:05 pm
BankRobbers of America is more like it.
moved to Delta Community, never looked back.
Credit union for life
February 22nd, 2011
1:08 pm
Shaggy,
what are your sales quotas at the bank you work for?
credit unions are .75 to 6 percent cheaper on auto loans for the exact same credit score. oh, and disrespecting any customer, no matter the amount of their account is why the big banks are a dying breed. unless the governent keeps propping them up.
Road Warrior
February 22nd, 2011
1:08 pm
Okay, I’m willing to learn. Having NEVER had a fee charged to me by the BOA, exactly what is it that everyone seems to be getting charged that I’m not?
JustMe
February 22nd, 2011
1:24 pm
“…better known as Bank of Theives”
Aren’t they all?
So many people here talk about B of A like it is the devil or something, and no they’re not perfect, but neither are any other banks. They’re all the equivalent of the devil IMO, but what are you going to do? You have to have a checking account, so you just make the best of it and deal with it.
OedipusTax
February 22nd, 2011
1:26 pm
@ANGRY AS HELL – with a name like that, nothing you offer is healthy. Your anger is poison, and anybody that agrees with you swallows your poison. One reaps what one sows. That anger will kill you. So don’t be surprised if I just look the other way and let you kill yourself. Change your mind before it’s too late.
DC
February 22nd, 2011
1:36 pm
I have a BOA account..I also plan on opening up a DCCU acount as well…mainly for their auto loans and home loan advantages..i agree they do have better rates…
shaggy
February 22nd, 2011
1:49 pm
Credit union for life
OK put words into my mouth if you feel it necessary, however I am just a person who takes my finances seriously enough to actually understand how it all works. I don’t need anyone to hold my hand to do that. I pay attention. Also, I take the time to actually read….before I sign.
Congrats on your credit union savings. Maybe you aren’t entirely a knucklehead.
Judge Dawg
February 22nd, 2011
2:21 pm
Big business .. the Republicans best friends
Steve
February 22nd, 2011
2:32 pm
I also like BoA. Been with them for about 8 years now. Never had a problem.
Mitzymy
February 22nd, 2011
3:06 pm
I still use checks because I need a record of payments where I can get to them right away, but if I need a copy of my checks, I get that online. Recently the gas company charged me for not making a payment that I had mailed. I just looked in my checkbook and saw that I had made the payment, and printed the check off the computer and took it to them. I have direct deposit for all my checks, and I check my account everyday online. I haven’t paid any fees in 10 years, and they had to give them all back to me. I had deposited a 3k 401-k check, and they said I had to wait 10 days for it to clear, but they had cashed them many times before and made the cash available right away. After I proved that fact, they erased the fees which had added up to over 600 dollars. I don’t play with my bank account, because the bank checks it everyday all day. They can only get the fees if you are lazy about your accounting. If you are 62 or older, they offer free checking if you have direct deposit. But Credit Unions are the best.
curt
February 22nd, 2011
3:14 pm
Seems like every time I hear of consumer ripoffs and corporate sleaze in the banking industry BofA comes up. I understand that it is a free market and we have alternatives but thank goodness I’m not with them nor will I ever be.
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February 22nd, 2011
3:22 pm
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PTC Bernie
February 22nd, 2011
3:27 pm
As long as I receive a paper statement and have access to the images on line, I don’t have a problem with this.
If they make the mistake of charging me a monthly fee for my checking account, when I have a 5 digit balance with them in multiple accounts, I’ll be out the door in a heartbeat. Cost of business is one thing, gouging is quite another.
B
MrsPratch
February 22nd, 2011
3:39 pm
Reading all of these comments gave me a migraine!! You want a community bank that will still be here for the next 50 years?? Bank with SunTrust. They’re the total package. And yes, there are bowls of candy by the tellers. Coffee too.
Lt Col Razor back
February 22nd, 2011
3:48 pm
I have been using Bank of America’s On-line account service for more than five years without problems. I opted out of mailed check statements and images about four years ago. If I need a statement for a given period, I simply print it out from the on-line statements and if I need the image of a specific check, I can print it out showing only the front side, only the back side, or both the front and back sides together. On-line banking provides me with the capability to monitor my checking and/or savings accounts daily or five-to-ten times per day, if I SO wish. Therefore, it is both easy and more efficient to rely on on-line banking services than it is to rely on paper statements.
I can’t imagine going back to the old paper statements and statement reconciliation method that I used before I began on-line banking.
So, GET WITH THE PRESENT, GIVE UP PAPER STSATEMENTS,AVOID THE NEW FEE, AND MOVE INTO THE MODERN WAY TO DO YOUR BANKING!!
SpotBanks.com
February 22nd, 2011
4:36 pm
There have been many complaints filed against B of A on social sites; such as Twitter @Help_BofA. Seems this check imaging fee issue broke via Twitter
mo money
February 22nd, 2011
5:45 pm
I dumped BOA 8 months ago when they started charging excessive fees for routine stuff. I joined a credit union–free checking, free ATMs nationwide, free checks!!! Best deal I’ve made in awhile.
I do what ever the tv tells me
February 23rd, 2011
9:14 am
I like that most of the comments contained tainted information that every one gets from the idiot box. Did you buy that product on late night tv too because it told you too??? Listen, look after your own money. A bank is a service, people charge for thier services… you pay for coffe dont you? the gym? cable? It’s just another service..besides how many of you really need copies of your checks??? Did you notice you can print them yourself online??? Or are you scared of the computer too? Your upset about fees? Dont over spend.. oh and have fun with your credit unions.. they give you such great deals because they are desperate for capital.. we’ll see how many of them actually survuve…
checkfree
February 23rd, 2011
1:44 pm
I haven’t written a check in 3 years—-I’m surprised banks even process them anymore. Just do everything online.