We all know that banks offer overdraft protection because it makes them money, not because they want to be kind to customers. Still, it seems weird–or maybe just brutally honest–that Citibank would cancel Corrie’s overdraft protection service simply because she’d managed to avoid any overdrafts since she opened her accounts.

I have a Citibank checking account linked to several other accounts (mortgage, credit cards)… due to balances on all of these, I was eligible for the whole package that included a Line of Credit. I did not really want the line of Credit but agreed to it because it provided overdraft protection.

Over the weekend I got a notice that my line of credit had been closed effective 11/21/09, due to non-usage. When I called for an explanation, I was given the same line – that it was closed due to lack of use. I explained that the whole point of overdraft protection is that it is there on the rare occasion it is needed, but to no avail. I now no longer have the line of credit. It’s just ironic, since they were the ones who insisted on opening it for me. As careful as I am about overdrafts, I am now much less likely to use my Citi debit card, since I no longer have the reassurance of OD protection.

I guess “We can’t afford all the credit we’ve extended to our customers” doesn’t roll off the tongue as easily?

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