When Arthur Santa-Maria called Bank of America to ask how to check the balance of his new unemployment benefits debit card, the bank charged him 50 cents. He chose not to complain, because doing so would have cost another 50 cents.
So he took out some of the money and then decided to pull out the rest. But that made two withdrawals on the same day-- so Bank of America charged him another $1.50.
For hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs during the recession, banking institutions (in addition to sitting on loan money) have added a new draconian twist to the public's financial pain. Even as unfortunate Americans have no choice but to collect unemployment benefits, they're being squeezed by the banks for additional fees.
It's outrageous that in these tough economic times, banks who are receiving taxpayer bailout money are adding insult to injury by extorting extra fees from those who are the least able to afford it-- even going so far as to demand a fee to complain about the practice.
Thirty states have struck deals with banks which allow them to take advantage of the disadvantaged-- including Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and US Bancorp. All the debit card programs carry fees, and in several states the unemployed have no choice but to use the cards if they want to receive public assistance. Some banks even charge overdraft fees of up to $20 — even though it would be simple to decline withdrawal transactions for more than what's on the card.
Absolutely shameful.
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