CRL and other consumer advocates filed a comment letter with the FDIC supporting most aspects of the agency's proposed guidance on overdraft. The groups also made recommendations on how the agency could go even further in protecting consumers from excessive overdraft fees. Here is the summary of key recommendations from CRL, Consumer Federation of America, National Consumer Law Center, Consumer...
Excessive overdraft fees charged by banks and credit unions can cause devastation for financially vulnerable families. Many lenders used predatory policies and practices designed to repeatedly extract excessive fees from customers who could least afford them. Overdraft fees are a leading cause of financial institutions closing a consumer’s account and reentry into the banking system often is exceedingly difficult, increasing the financial insecurity of many consumers. CRL advocates for legislators and regulators to rein in the size and frequency of these fees. We estimate that the savings from these fee eliminations will be between $3 billion to $4 billion for working families.
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In August 2010, Wells Fargo was ordered to reimburse its California customers $203 million in debit card overdraft fees triggered solely by transaction reordering between November 2004 and June 2008.
As the August 15th deadline nears for existing bank customers to opt in to high-cost overdraft programs, a new CRL analysis finds bankers use aggressive, often misleading marketing to target the most vulnerable customers.
CRL's, Consumer Federation of America and the National Consumer Law Center's comment letter to the OTS regarding the agency's Supplemental Guidance on Overdraft Protection Programs.
CRL and other consumer groups provide comment on the Office of Personnel Management's proposed rule regarding garnishment of federal benefits.
CRL and other consumer groups provide comment on the Federal Reserve's opt-in rule and the proposed changes to Regulation DD.
Read our report (PDF) >> Our nation's largest banks extract billions of dollars in fees from their customers each year through abusive overdraft loan programs. Over the last ten years, these programs developed and proliferated under the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the national banks' primary regulator. The OCC recognized problems with the systems early on but...
Read our report (PDF) >> Our nation's largest banks extract billions of dollars in fees from their customers each year through abusive overdraft loan programs. Over the last ten years, these programs developed and proliferated under the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the national banks' primary regulator. The OCC recognized problems with the systems early on but...
The Federal Reserve issued rules in November 2009 related to bank overdraft practices. These rules are limited and do not address the fundamental problems with today's overdraft systems–- namely, their high cost and the frequency with which fees are charged. Americans pay $23.7 billion per year in overdraft fees, most commonly due to small debit card overdrafts that institutions could...
Michael Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs on Tuesday, November 17, 2009. Mr. Calhoun offered support for the FAIR Overdraft Protection Act, introduced by Senator Christopher Dodd, as urgent and necessary reform for abusive bank overdraft fees.