Page 11 - A Guide To Financial Health v2

The products that should be helping are making

things much worse

As Americans struggle to get by, they're being offered dozens of products

and services that promise relief. But instead of helping people make

progress, financial institutions are digging deeper holes for their customers

to fall into—all while pocketing billions of dollars per year for their efforts.

Hard-earned wages that could be growing savings accounts are being

wasted, going towards banks’ profits. In 2017 alone, Americans paid over

$34.3 billion in overdraft fees.

As consumers become wiser to these punitive practices, banks adjust

accordingly. Customers hit with overdraft fees began to work harder at

avoiding them; to compensate, banks raised the average overdraft penalty

from $20 to $30. A new breed of fees has also emerged, designed to siphon

money from customers at every turn. Fees for low balances, ATM

withdrawals, and balance checks penalize already-struggling people for

simply trying to utilize their own money.