Wachovia overdraft protection services – at its discretion – may approve your ATM withdrawals or everyday debit card transactions, or both, even if you do not have sufficient funds in your primary or linking accounts. Your linking accounts, including savings accounts, may or may not have funds in them. This does not preclude the protection coverage. There may be zero funds in the accounts or insufficient funds; both circumstances kick in the coverage - at a cost.
Why Do You Need Overdraft?
The bank customer is afforded the safety of coverage whether or not there are funds in the accounts, thereby avoiding bad check fees and penalties or other negative consequences. Overdraft protection will cover insufficient fund transactions at a cost of $35 each. At Wachovia's discretion, you may be covered. This may help the customer avoid financial and legal penalties which could otherwise ruin or severely damage one's credit history.
What Does "Discretion" Mean?
The unknown factor is whether Wachovia will or will not cover the charge from the debit card or check or ATM withdrawal. The word "discretion" means that the decision is entirely Wachovia's. Therefore, the customer will not know for certain whether her transaction is or is not covered. This uncertainty may not have severe consequences under some circumstances – for example, if a voluntary ATM withdrawal is attempted and the transaction is not approved – but in other instances serious problems may arise. If the debit card transaction is attempted under necessary circumstances, such as when food or gas is needed, and the transaction is declined, the customer may find herself in difficult circumstances. Of course, it is obviously the customer's responsibility to know how much is in her accounts and what she will potentially be charged for the overdraft.
$35 Per Transaction, Up to Four Times Daily
At Wachovia's discretion, the customer may have up to four transactions per day wherein overdraft protection may be authorized. It's quite simple to understand; the bank covers the transaction, and though the amount of the charge might be for $5, the fee overdraft fee is always $35. It's conceivable that the bank will cover transactions amounting to just a few dollars, and the customer will be responsible for up to an additional $140 daily.
Should You Use It?
If you are in a bind, yes. Otherwise it is a costly and unnecessary expense. Save your money, be aware and keep a record of your spending. It's much cheaper in the long run.
Steven Scott Hale - Steven Scott Hale, M.Ed., J.D. I write on a variety of topics. Primarily I write content for lawyer's websites. Other topics include ...
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