Nine U.S. Banks Said to be Examined on Overdraft Fees

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-20/nine-u-s-banks-said-to-be-examined-on-overdraft-fees.html

Two years after regulators gave Americans more power to manage overdrafts of their checking accounts, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is reviewing bank practices to determine if the crackdown went far enough.

The agency, which will decide by the end of the year whether to write new rules, is scrutinizing nine banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) and Bank of America Corp., said four people briefed on the examination.

The inquiry focuses on how financial institutions persuade customers to enroll in what they call overdraft protection programs. Examiners are looking at online and mailed marketing material as well as scripts used by the banks’ customer-service representatives to determine whether they could be confusing to consumers, said the people.

Bureau examiners have conveyed “a tone of skepticism that this is really a good product for borrowers,” said Jo Ann Barefoot of Washington-based Treliant Risk Advisors, who counsels banks on dealing with federal supervisors.

[Atman]

1. TD Bank and my CC company are hard core about this.

They definitely make it sound like a beneficial service. They prey on the embarrassment factor. "Don't risk the embarrassment of having your card declined." My CC is far worse than my bank. Every time I log in I have to opt out. But they phrase it to make it sound like you're declining even if you press the accept button. Very shady. And they add it to all my e-mailed statement reminders, too.

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2. +1