Sad Findings of New Checking Account Study

by Angela Nazworth | June 8, 2012 11:10 am

New research finds that checking accounts from the nation’s 12 biggest banks and 12 largest credit unions are infuriating many consumers.

According to a new study from the Pew Safe Checking in the Electronic Age Project, many consumers are saddled with hidden fees and confusing documents that accompany most checking accounts, CNNMoney[1] reports.

The study focused on the information from 274 checking accounts offered by financial conglomerates such as Bank of America (NYSE:BAC[2]), PNC Financial Group (NYSE:PNC[3]) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM[4]).

Here’s a brief look at a few noteworthy findings.

• Overdraft fees still cause problems for many consumers[5], even after tighter federal regulations.
• Many banks and credit unions are not clearly disclosing fees associated with overdraft protection programs.
• The average overdraft charge is $35 per overdraft incident from banks, and $25 per overdraft incident from credit unions.
• On average, bank customers are given a confusing and lengthy list of disclosures that range between 21 to 153 pages. The median length of disclosure documentation from the credit unions examined is 31 pages.
• It’s extremely difficult to file a lawsuit against a big bank regarding checking account problems —  66% of 237 big-bank checking accounts require customers to waive their right to bring their grievances to a jury.

You can learn about what else customers had to say about big banks and credit unions at Pewtrusts.org[6].

Source URL: https://investorplace.com/2012/06/sad-findings-of-new-checking-account-study/

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