ATM's

[tinymomo]

My brother never listened to me when it comes to ATM fees....until I wrote the number on a piece of paper....he uses an ATM at least 6 times a week. At 2.00 per transaction, that is an average of 12.00 a week. At 12.00 a week X52 weeks, it is 624.00.

NOW he listens!

[fiffer010]

nope.

[funnyvalentine]

I never use them if there is a fee. I have three accounts (two minor savings and one checking) at three different banks so I have access with no fee to a machine almost everywhere.

I hear that WAashington Mutual just put in a debit card with a cash back per transaction; I am going to definately check that out.

c

[Savin4disney]

nope I pay no fees. I either get cash back at a POS. or use my bank's

[Haku]

Only for my bank's ATM. Free that way. However, I'm trying to get away from it completely, along with using cash. The reasons are the same ones that has already been cited here. Plus, even if I am not charged with a fee, driving to an ATM will still impose a hidden fee of sorts in the form of my time, wear & tear on my car, and gas. Much more convenient if I just charge everything through a debit or credit card.

[Tightwad Kitty]

Originally Posted by baselle

I use a mix of point of sale places - grocery stores especially - and my own home bank ATM. Sometimes a credit union ATM is free, also, but I haven't used that in a couple of years. I usually get caught once a year paying an ATM fee or two.

I too use a mixture of point sale places & take out extra cash and my own banks ATM's. Our banks puts a limit of the number of transactions per month. Say 8 withdrawal and two bank withdrawal at the bank and charge you a monthly account keepnig fee's also of around $5.00.

If you have a passbook account then it an account keeping fee and $4.00 for each withdrawal over first 4 each month. Using a checking accounts you have to wait 4 days for them to clear or pay $15.00 fee to have them cleared that day. This is just example of some of our banks account here.

All banks are different and you need to shop around. As you can work it to have no fees or just the monthly charge. They are closing banks here as a cost cutting measure and putting in more banks ATM's multi-one that cost fees if it's not your banks that fee is $1.50 to $2.00 at the moment. Also charging you if put the wrong pin number in and get a balance or cancel transaction now at own bank too but this fee has been around if use other ATM's.

When I do my budget balance each month, I have included a column for bank fee's, so I can act on any charge before it gets out of hand. My total to date is only my credit card annual fee for the past five years.

Is it feeding the banks not the animals these days? I am wondering!

[eisor]

I never really have cash on me. Going to a not so nice part of downtown Atlanta to school, it isn't wise to carry cash. So, I do use my bank's ATM when I need cash. My bank doesn't charge fees for their ATM and their hours are difficult for me. So, I always end up there after hours. So, I deposit and withdrawl from the ATM. Also, I sometimes get cashback when I'm at the store (saves a trip to the bank).

[Tightwad Kitty]

Good for you eisor, as long there are no fee's then you are doing the right thing but do take care when you are despositing. As for carrying cash, your safety comes first over money at anytime. I carry very little money around with me and get a bank checks/cheques if it's a large amounts.

[Haku]

ATMs are a fairly big issue among those who are, em, into self defense. However, this isn't the place for such a topic. Still, perhaps it's worth mentioning in a nutshell that:

1. ATMs are one of the most dangerous places to drop off your money. You're out in the open, there's no bank guards around, and depending on location, there are easy places to hide for the bad guys.

If safety is paramount to you, please avoid them completely. Otherwise, go during day time and be sure to check the place out before you exit your vehicle.

2. Sometimes, it may actually be a BAD thing not to have cash on you if you are being mugged. That's because the bad guys may get mad and attack you for having nothing to give them. Worse yet, they will make you take money out of the ATM, which gives them an even greater access to your money.

In short, it's actually a good idea to carry at least 5 or more 1 dollar bills so you can give someone in that situation. Holding the money, they may feel that they've got what they wanted and need to flee before they are caught, and may not even bother to check that they're only one dollar bills. Toss it away from you, don't hand it, to distract them so it can give you a chance to run back to your car.

I can elaborate more elsewhere, but these two are "the golden rules" to ATM safety....