Here is a recent analysis of Chase’s efforts to confuse customers into opting-in to overdraft protection, which provides no real benefit but makes them billions each year. The bottom line is that Chase is purposefully using confusing language, alternating positive/negative language, and scare tactics to get consumers to either opt-in explicitly or by accident. These tactics are a new low for a bank like Chase.
DON’T DO IT. Debit overdraft protection provides you no benefit. If you are out of money in your checking account every purchase will cost you an overdraft fee of $33 or more. Use your credit card instead. For comparison, if you made a $5 charge (a latte) on your credit card and carried it for 5 years at a 30% interest rate, it would still be less than 20 bucks, which is WAY less than a single overdraft fee.
Bankaholic did a comparison of a Chase cash back loan (which gives you back 1% of each years mortgage payments) with comparable 30 year fixed mortgages from other banks and found that they were no deal given all the Chase cash-back loans came with 1% in up-front points.
But I probably could have told you that without any analysis. 1% is an incredible small amount to get back. Let’s say you pay roughly $3,000 in interest per month or $36,000 per year, that would get you only $360 back at the end of the year.
Ok Chase, so you frequently choose to place a 7-10 day hold on check deposits. Fine. But a cashiers check? Seriously? Isn’t that supposed to be like cash?
Would Chase delay the closing of a customers account to be able to charge one more monthly service fee? This customer thinks so.
What’s worse than overdraft protection, where you buy a latte and your account goes $2 into the negative and you get assessed a $35 fee? How about Chase charging you the same fee for rejecting payments on an account with no money that they won’t let you close?
If you screw up, it takes Chase seconds to debit your account an overdraft fee. If they screw up and take out not one but two mortgage payments, it takes at lot of calls, faxed paperwork, and 7-10 days for you to get your money back.
Man, where to start on this one. Customer gets approved for a temporary loan mod and pays for over a year only to find out that Chase had rejected a permanent mod and was about to foreclose. They never contacted him to inform him of any of this. Same customer deposits a check and Chase reads the amount wrong and as a result the customer gets several NSF charges. He asks them to correct this so they … close his account? Yea, that sounds like Chase. (story)
Chase may send you a letter that carries with it a sense of urgency to sign up for overdraft protection on your debit card, or you might be left unprotected. Don’t fall for it. There is nothing urgent about overdraft protection. When you are out of money, your debit card should stop working.
Bad bad Chase, Fees & charges | admin April 14, 2010 | 
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