Lauren Smith, WalletHub Staff Writer
@laurenellesmith
The U.S. Bank overdraft fee is $36 per transaction that overdraws your account, if you have a U.S. Bank checking account that allows overdrafts. Some U.S. Bank accounts will not charge an overdraft fee but only because transactions that would overdraw your account will be declined.
Key Things to Know About U.S. Bank Overdraft Fees
- Not all accounts are eligible for overdraft services. While most of U.S. Bank’s checking accounts come with overdraft capabilities, not all of them do. For example, any transaction that would overdraw the Safe Debit Account will automatically be declined. Therefore, the Safe Debit Account will never be charged overdraft fees.
- Overdraft fee waivers could be available. If this is your first time overdrawing your account, your bank may agree to waive the overdraft fee as a courtesy. Call U.S. Bank at 1 (800) 872-2657 to request to have your overdraft fee waived.
- You must opt-in to some overdraft services. By default, checks and recurring debit card transactions may go through even if you don’t have sufficient funds in your account, resulting in an overdraft fee. However, you must opt-in to allow your account to be overdrawn by individual ATM or debit card transactions. If you do not opt-in to this service, any requested ATM or debit card transactions for which you do not have sufficient funds will be declined, and your account will not be charged.
- You can set up overdraft protection to prevent fees. If you’re concerned about overdraft fees, U.S. Bank offers a service called overdraft protection that allows you to link a U.S. Bank Personal Checking Account to your main checking account. In the event that your account does not have sufficient funds for a requested transaction, funds will be transferred from the linked account to the main account to cover the purchase.
- U.S. Bank will only charge you up to 4 overdraft fees per day. Even if you attempt transactions that would overdraw your account more than 4 times in a day, you will only be charged 4 overdraft fees.
- Excessive overdrafts could have other consequences. Fees aren’t the only way banks punish you for overdrawing your checking account. If you have too many overdrafts, U.S. Bank may report it to ChexSystems. ChexSystems is like the credit reporting agencies, but for bank accounts. If you’ve ever mishandled a bank account in the past – by bouncing checks, having too many overdrafts or failing to pay fees, for example – you may have a ChexSystems report. Based on the information contained in this report, a bank may refuse to accept you as a customer in the future.
U.S. Bank’s overdraft fee of $36 per transaction is above average. According to WalletHub’s latest Banking Landscape Report, the average overdraft fee for checking accounts in the United States is $27.79.
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