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I'm like a lot of Americans, I think. I whip out my debit card here and there when I feel I can get away with it, which is a good chunk of my time. Part of me thinks it’s a bottomless well of money I can always reach into. Well, my bank account, that is. Yeah, it’s not a healthy line of thinking, I know.
Recently – as in last week recent – Wells Fargo rolled out their experimental $3 fee on debit card usage (keep that word in mind) in five states. If the test goes well, you can bet this will be a national trend. Banks will look for anywhere to get money these fine days.
And why did I stress the word “usage?” Well, this broad new “activity” fee counts for any payments that are made, purchases, transactions made with a personal or business debit card, check card or ATM card. Of course, you still have that monthly fee to stick there. That’s not budging anywhere anytime soon.
Wells Fargo’s objective here is to try to increase its fee income as it a supplement for a huge expected loss in revenue from lower debit card fees that take into effect Oct. 1. As of June 29, the Federal Reserve ruled that banks can charge retailers 21 cents each time consumers swipe a debit card beginning Oct. 1. Oct. 1 is a date that lives in some infamy in the banking world.
So the question for consumers is… should they be afraid? After all, I know lots of my friends and family fall back on their debit card as much as I do.
I would personally say “no,” even though the idea is definitely not sitting well with me, either. Truth is, the fees are so small that- unless you purchase absolutely everything on your debit card! - You should be in the clear. But, just to be for certain and not to end up making some grave financial mistake on your part, take into account the words of Robert Straka, the President of Grandview Financial Group.
He said in article with CBS “one of the things you have to look at is that a lot of accounts have different fees to them and they charge different fees to different accounts and so it’s really difficult to see what you're paying sometimes for some of the benefits supposedly you're getting."
Importantly, due your research, and you should be fine! Keep in mind, too, that debit cards and credit cards aren’t magical sources of income. No matter how much you want to think so!
(question: are you worried?)
