Illinois Teen Learns About Bank Fees the Hard Way

[Admiral Yi]

but IMO there's no justification for maintenance fees on low account balances in the first place--it costs a bank essentially nothing to keep an account open.

How do you figure that?  Who's supposed to pay for the branches and the branch staff?  The ATM machines?  The monthly statements?  The deposit insurance?

[dps]

but IMO there's no justification for maintenance fees on low account balances in the first place--it costs a bank essentially nothing to keep an account open.

How do you figure that?  Who's supposed to pay for the branches and the branch staff?  The ATM machines?  The monthly statements?  The deposit insurance?

What?  They opened up extra branches, hired extra staff, and installed some new ATM machines just to service this one guy's account?

[Malthus]

but IMO there's no justification for maintenance fees on low account balances in the first place--it costs a bank essentially nothing to keep an account open.

How do you figure that?  Who's supposed to pay for the branches and the branch staff?  The ATM machines?  The monthly statements?  The deposit insurance?

What?  They opened up extra branches, hired extra staff, and installed some new ATM machines just to service this one guy's account?

I agree, the issue would be whether the fee or charge was a reasonable pre-estimate of the actual cost to the bank created by this fellow's account activity.

I'm guessing that the actual proportion of maintenance costs attributable to this guy's account activity would be some minute fraction of a cent.

[Admiral Yi]

I agree, the issue would be whether the fee or charge was a reasonable pre-estimate of the actual cost to the bank created by this fellow's account activity.

I'm guessing that the actual proportion of maintenance costs attributable to this guy's account activity would be some minute fraction of a cent.

You think the wages they paid the teller for the time he/she was processing his new account come to a fraction of a cent?

[Malthus]

I agree, the issue would be whether the fee or charge was a reasonable pre-estimate of the actual cost to the bank created by this fellow's account activity.

I'm guessing that the actual proportion of maintenance costs attributable to this guy's account activity would be some minute fraction of a cent.

You think the wages they paid the teller for the time he/she was processing his new account come to a fraction of a cent?

Are you saying that fees and penalties totalling $229 can be attributed to the actual cost to the bank of the teller's time in processing a form?   

Damn, that's one expensive teller.

[Admiral Yi]

Are you saying that fees and penalties totalling $229 can be attributed to the actual cost to the bank of the teller's time in processing a form?   

Damn, that's one expensive teller.

Are you saying that the only two possible answers are a fraction of a cent and $229?

[Admiral Yi]

What?  They opened up extra branches, hired extra staff, and installed some new ATM machines just to service this one guy's account?

I was operating under the assumption that there might be more than one person in the world who would maintain a low balance account in the absence of minimum balance requirements.

[Neil]

He wasn't a small child - he was 18! If he can't be bothered to pay attention to the materials he received when opening the account...!

18 is the new 12.

[CountDeMoney]

I'm not sure the takeaway should be that banks are evil but rather you have to pay attention to the terms you sign up for. You can't just ignore bank accounts.

No, the takeaway is that banks are evil, and there's nothing anybody can do about it.  Except blowing them up.

[CountDeMoney]

Kind of a weird society were the base assumption is you have to be prepared for everyone and every institution will try and rip you off.

Wouldn't a better life lesson for the teenager be, if you act responsibly, try and save money, the society will reward you with the ability to make financial gains and help in your transition to a productive adult member of society ?

It might be easier if these particular banks were subject to regulations, banning this sort of 'daylight robbery' and in return they're allowed to make profits from their customers in more 'legitimate' or socially useful ways ?

Stop smoking so much fucking dope.

[MadImmortalMan]

Melinda Ganziano's PR firm did an admirable job.

[CountDeMoney]

Cunt Mom would take a loan with Western Sky and then complain about the interest.

http://www.westernsky.com/TermsOfUse.aspx

LOL They even say in their commercials it's pretty fucking expensive.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=183C9NM4XMg&feature=related

And good for them, too.

[CountDeMoney]

In Canada at least, there exists a criminal rate of interest - that is, interest on a loan cannot total more than a certain percentage.

Short-term "payday" loan outfits got hammered by the courts in class actions for using fees and charges to effectively raise the loan rate higher than this "criminal' rate.

I dunno why the same analysis cannot apply to overdraft fees. The bank is essentially loaning you the money. Why should it be able to charge you more than the principal per day, and call it a "charge" rather than "interest"?

Yeah, I thought about usury laws as well, but ultimately that's not really the wrong being done.  The wrong being done is to lay out a trap for a client, and hope he falls in it. 

I'm really dismayed that majority of posters don't have an issue with that.  Just because it takes carelessness to fall into a trap doesn't mean that it's fine for the trap to exist, or that it's even legal.  Good faith in conducting business means something.

I have an issue with that, but you have to remember here you're dealing with a shit ton of pull-yerself-up-by-yer-bootstraps snot-nosed white and half-Korean Clarence Thomases.

ITS NOT OUR FAULT WERE EXPLOITING YOU ITS YOUR FAULT FOR LETTING US LOLOLOLOLOLOL HOHOHOHOHOHO GOPGOPGOPGOPGOP

[Admiral Yi]

That one had to take you more than 30 seconds.

[CountDeMoney]

Riddle me this then, Clarence: banks have minimum balance fees, designed to punitively pile on charges on the poor sucker that can't maintain the minimum balance...but what's the maximum balance fees?  Where do they hit people without economic handicaps?