I didn’t think that outrageous bank charges could shock me anymore but Wachovia has managed it. I had a check from an account holder at Wachovia. This was a check to replace a bad check so we drove 25 miles to Wachovia to cash it. When we went into the bank, we went through the normal identification process and then was informed that there would be a $5 fee to cash the check.
What?? When did banks start charging fees to cash checks that are drawn on their bank? The teller explained that while this was a business account, the account holder did not have a ‘business agreement’ with the bank so they charge a fee to cash their checks. Needless to say, I was shocked but since my own bank charged us $6 when the check was returned, we paid the $5 and left.
Does this seem a bit outrageous to you? I know that bank fees have skyrocketed. ATM fees, overdraft charges, monthly service fees, balance transfer fees, teller fees, fees to deposit your checks in person have all become standard practice. MSN Money’s Liz Pulliam Weston has an article on Bank Fees as does CNN Money in their 35 Most Outrageous Fees.
Somehow it just seems wrong to charge a $5 fee to cash a check that was drawn on one of your own accounts. Isn’t this what banks are supposed to do? Isn’t this the business that they are in? It is much like going to the gas station, filling up your car and then having to pay an extra fee to pay for your gas at the register.
Am I crazy? Has anyone else had any experiences like this with outrageous charges from banks or other businesses?
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“Somehow it just seems wrong to charge a $5 fee to cash a check that was drawn on one of your own accounts. Isn’t this what banks are supposed to do? Isn’t this the business that they are in?”
Actually, banks are in the business of serving THEIR OWN customers. Why shouldn’t you pay for the service? You add nothing to the bottom line when you, as a non-customer, go into a bank and cash a check. Why not go into YOUR bank and cash it?
Don’t blame the bank because the person who gave you the check didn’t have money in their account. Charge them for the $11 you had to pay to negotiate their check.
As a business, if my bank charged my customers a fee to cash my check, I would be looking for another bank. What if I didn’t have a bank? Should I charge the business MORE because they are writing me a check? What about their employees? Do they pay them $5 more so that they can cash the check? There is no law in this country that one has to have a bank account and there are PLENTY of people who don’t have one.
As far as what I add to the bottom line, they have guaranteed that I will NEVER be a Wachovia customer. Of course, I might not add much to the bottom line even if I were.
Cindy, why didn’t you just cash it at your own bank? Also, if the business didn’t have the proper agreement with the bank, than I would be looking to have them repay you for the $5.
I can see why Wachovia would do this though, you aren’t a customer of theirs. People are always looking to use the closest bank to gets checks cashed, and that takes time for the bank to process, thus they charge for it.
My two banks have various fees, but I have never been charged by a bank to cash a check drawn on that bank. Wachovia should not have charged you to cash that check. That’s equivalent to one of those check cashing places that charge all those crazy fees.
Opps, hit the submit button by accident. Here is the rest of my post. My weekend job paycheck is drawn a bank I do not have an account with, it is also a business account and it is a national bank. Every once in a while, I will cash my check at the bank where it was drawn on instead of taking it home and putting the check into one of my personal accounts. I have NEVER been charged a fee to cash that business check and as far as I know, neither my credit union or my two banks charge a fee to cash a check at the counter for someone who is not a customer of that bank.
Gibble, The check had been returned so rather than redeposit it and incur more charges, we drove it to their bank to cash it. The people that wrote the check have a small business and were not even aware that the bank was charging to cash their checks. We have known the folks for years and the returned check was a misunderstanding on timing. It’s a long story and not really relevant to the fact that checks are a written order for the bank to pay a certain amount of money to the payee.
The definition of a check from http://www.investorwords.com/844/check.html is
“A negotiable instrument drawn against deposited funds, to pay a specified amount of money to a specific person upon demand.”
You should not have to ask the person that you are writing a check to if they have a bank account to deposit it in. If I write someone a check for $5, they should be able to take it to my bank and cash it without paying a fee. We assume that everyone has a bank account but it isn’t necessarily true.
Wow, that is absolutely asinine. I once upon a time was a bank teller. If you want to avoid this scenario again, you can call/visit the bank the check was written from and ask if there is enough funds in the account to cover the check. The bank cannot tell you the balance of the account, but they CAN confirm whether or not there are enough available funds for you to cash the check. Then, simply take the check to your bank and cash it.
If Wachovia was bought out by Wells Fargo, then that is their standard charge that charge everyone (all over the U.S.) who does not have a bank account with them for cashing checks written by their customers. The law firm that I used to work at had their account with Wells Fargo and when I’d go down (we were in the same building) to cash it, they’d still charge me the $5.00.
I didn’t think banks still would tell you if you call whether or not an account has sufficient funds to cover a check. They don’t in the town where I live. They may still do that in the smaller towns.
I guess they didn’t have a “business agreement” with them either. I just think it’s wrong.
I never heard about http://www.wachoviabank.com like this before. Thank for this.
WACHOVIA IS OUTRAGEOUS….DO NOT USE YOUR CARD IF YOU ARE TRAVELING OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES. I USED MY CARD AND THEY DID NOT HOLD THE CASH AND IT SHOWED THAT i HAD STILL 1100 BUT IN THEORY ONLY 900 and when I made a purchase of 945, they debited on the same day ALL THE TRANSACTIONS I HAVE MADE A WEEK PRIOR with each 35$ I ended up with 400 worth of bank CHARGES AND they wouldnt remove it.
My question for them was it takes them a week to post transaction on my account and ALL the same day????
Now i am seeking legal action because this is clearly theft. 0ut of 200 liability for them THEY CANNOT SAY IT COST THEM 400.
I can beat that. My bank just began charging me $0.06 for every $100 CASH deposited in my “free” business checking. That’s right, I walked in, handed them a stack of cash (a little of $4,000) and they charged me $2.40 for the priviledge of doing so. Unbelieveable.
Personally, I don’t see a problem with it. Wachovia is there to serve THEIR customers, you are not their customer. Put it in your own bank. When someone writes me a check I deposit it in my own bank not run all over town trying to find the bank it was drawn on. That is asinine. As far as people not having bank accounts, well that is their problem. In this day and age you can’t not have a bank account, and if you don’t then you are going to pay to cash a check. I can’t believe someone has the nerve to complain about fees charged at a bank that isn’t their bank. As far as the fee, charge your customer who wrote you a bad check in the first place.
Maydina .. you blame the bank for you purchasing and spending more than you had in your bank? LOL. You should always know how much money you have and not depend on computers to tell you. Face it, you overspent and was charged for it.
Teresa, cashing a check drawn on one of their customer’s accounts IS serving their customer. I have solved the issue by not accepting checks period. Is it inconvenient for people? Oh yes but then I have been stuck with a $1000 check and totally bogus information and no way to collect or to pursue legal action. The check that I took was from a business and R did deposit it in his account. When it was returned, we were short money in the account and needed to get it taken care of quickly. We will not take a check from them in the future and I will not deal with Wachovia ever again.
Believe it or not, it is possible to live life without checks or credit cards. I do it quite regularly. I have a savings account that serves as my emergency fund but no checking account. Cash still works in most places.