LOL.

Just 24 hours ago Wells Fargo told the New York Times said they had no plans to change their policies...

Sounds like a prettry reasonable plan.

I would say that something like $20 would be fair not $5.

@aces89: why not $5? % bucks will cover most little "slips"...if you are hitting the $20 mark it wasnt a little slip (like you know you have about $11 in your account, you charge 10.59 and it turns out you only had 10.37), you just werent paying attention.

In the face of proposed government regulation, and a bunch of very angry customers who write their Representatives, it's amazing how the banks seem to find religion.

Wells Fargo still sucks, but any improvement is good news.

They are pioneers of the principle of charging you for moving your own money from savings to checking to cover an overdraft.

Think about that for a second. The bank has $100 of your money, on which you are earning roughly 0% APY but on which the bank itself is earning interest. Say you have $50 in checking and $50 in savings. You hit a debit transaction of $51, a buck of your money from savings pays for it, and somehow the bank--despite still having $49 of your money--is suddenly entitled to a $35ish "overdraft fee" and has the gall to call that "protection."

/rant off

//not to mention they treated me like pond scum a few years ago for the terrible crime of being 17 when I needed my first checking account.

Any idea if this will affect Wachovia customers as well?

I guess they think something is better than nothing, but people please, just call them and opt out so you don't ever have to worry about this.

@West Coast Secessionist: You have a very good point. it's like a guy has your money in each of their pockets but you need $51 and he charges you almost the cost of the whole amount just to reach into his left pocket to get it. I'd call such a person an a**hole.

@aces89: $5 is pretty pathetic. I once overdrafted by about a dollar (eBay did some automatic thing through PayPal while I wasn't paying attention), and they didn't charge me any fees.

This will probably coincide with the end of free checking accounts. I see monthly maintenance fees in my future.

I don't think banks can get rid of 'free' checking accounts. They would lose customers in droves.

Is there any possibility that WF will stop charging me $2.00 every time I use a non-Wells Fargo ATM? If I use a US Bank ATM that charges $2.00, it ultimately costs me $4.00, which makes me want to punch things.

@Telekinesis123: And I'd call the person that gave that person their money an idiot.

@jaydez: Yes, according to this article: [atlanta.bizjournals.com]

@halcyon22: Thank You! I hate paying a fee, but if I'm going to have to, can't they just split the commission like a real estate agent? $1 a piece seems more reasonable....

The crappiest part about WF overdraft fees, is that there's even an overdraft fee to overdraft into YOUR savings. granted, it's only $10 compared to $35, but if there's not enough in your savings, you end up paying $45 for a single overdraft.

@halcyon22: A lot of Credit Unions will not only not-charge you for getting money from another ATM but they'll actually REIMBURSE you for the fee that other ATM charges you! Its the most liberating thing knowing it doesn't cost a cent getting money from any ATM in the world.