The New Sneaky Fees Banks Are Adding

Just because the monthly debit card fee battle has been won doesn’t mean banks are gonna stop trying to squeeze more profit off basic checking accounts. Here’s a bunch of the recent fees banks have invented:

BofA – lost debit card: $5. Rush delivery: $20
TD Bank – inbound wire transfer fee: $15
U.S. Bancorp – deposit money via cellphone: $.50
BofA – basic MyAccess checking: $12/month, up from $8.95
Citigroup – basic checking account: $10/month, up from 8.
All banks – average interest rates: down to an average of .74% from .8%.

NYT says it costs banks $200-$300 per year to keep a single retail checking account open. They’re going to keep looking for ways to recoup that now that the fees they can charge for debit cards got chopped.

“They have got to make up the income some place,” Vernon Hill II, Commerce Bank’s founder, told NYT. “I think we will see a lot more fees.”

Banks Quietly Ramping Up Costs to Consumers [NYT]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.