#and it happening on my First Day makes it 100% occurence rate atm and that is making me real anxious

[pride-of-storm]

first day of work and :( my feet hurt :(

[yalelodgeccshop]

Beware the Dark Side of Debit Cards

Forewarned is Forearmed

Bank debit or ATM cards are common. Their usefulness as well as ease are obvious. If your debit card has a Visa or MasterCard logo, you can use it practically anywhere you might utilize a credit card. Today you can utilize your logo debit card to make airline company and hotel reservations as well as at many retailers. Considering that the funds are taken out from your account directly you don't have to fret about interest charges as well as gathering financial debt just like a charge card. Nevertheless, there is a dark side to financial institution debit cards you should know Buy Cc Online For Carding

Diminished Scams Defense

The initial risk is the limited fraudulence protection. Should your bank card be stolen as well as unapproved costs made you are not liable for any amount over $50. Not only that, due to the fact that it is a bank card, the fraudulent charges don't affect you quickly. Nevertheless, if your debit card is stolen the burglar could tap out your checking account rendering you damaged right away. Any kind of impressive checks and unprocessed debit purchases after that strike your account and you are billed large over-limit fees.

While many financial institutions want to collaborate with you and also may bring back the stolen funds as well as overdraft account fees it might take a couple of weeks. In the meantime, you still need to manage your creditors and also the damage done to your online reputation.

Overdraft Costs

I lately saw a tv information account regarding a poor woman billed almost $500 in overdraft account fees by her financial institution in one month. She did not comprehend that her financial institution had actually included overdraft account security to her account 'as a courtesy'. While she expected her debit card to be declined if she did not have adequate funds in her account the bank enabled the charges to undergo overdrawing her account. Then they billed her a $35 overdraft account fee for that and every various other debit acquisition as well as check subsequently processed. Before she recognized it she had actually been charged almost $500 in charges.

Preferably, we should always understand exactly just how much money remains in our account at any kind of point. However, we have actually all been in this scenario to one degree or another. Check as well as see if your account has over-limit security as a 'courtesy' and have it gotten rid of if you don't want to risk potentially hefty overdraft account fees. A little embarrassment at the register is a tiny rate to pay taking into consideration the possible consequences.

Financial institution Holds

I load my automobile with gas at several various filling station along my commute route. I've had some fascinating experiences at some stations when I spend for my gas with my ATM card on the lane. As soon as my account was to an equilibrium of $100. I pumped $30 in gas as well as took place my lively method. Later that afternoon I dropped in the marketplace to purchase $40 in groceries. Knowing that I had $70 in my account I anticipated not a problem with the purchase. However, I discovered my ATM card being denied at the register!

After embarrassingly leaving my groceries in the shop I went residence and also contacted my financial institution. It ends up that the bank had actually put a $75 hang on my account at the time I swiped my BANK CARD on the lane at the filling station. The concept being that they do not know the real buck amount of gas that I would really purchase at the time of the authorization, hence the hold. Up until the actual amount of the purchase gets rid of the account, the quantity of the hold is dealt with as spent. So, when I entered into the marketplace it appeared as if I only had $25 in my account as well as my $40 purchase was turned down.

This occurred a few times before I figured what was happening. On one occasion, over a weekend, it took 3 days for the hold to clear! Throughout that time, the equilibrium of my account was restricted by this hold. If you locate yourself possibly in this scenario, pay for your gas inside the shop where they can send out the transaction with for a details amount. By doing this no extra holds are placed on your account as well as all your available funds are genuinely offered. Also, it is my understanding that not all financial institutions have this practice as well as, in all fairness, I don't intend to portray them all as doing so.

Extra Costs

If you just utilize your debit or ATM card at Atm machines belonging to the bank that provided your card, you are probably alright right here. Yet be aware that some banks will charge a small usage cost to utilize also their very own Atm machines.

Make use of an ATM MACHINE beyond your bank's network as well as view the ATM costs gather! I just recently transformed financial institutions because they billed $3 every single time I used their card on an additional bank's ATM MACHINE network. This was in enhancement to the $2 charge the various other financial institution charged for the ease of using their network. I was being charged $5 for the privilege of reaching my own cash. Use your BANK CARD on a different network 20 times a month and you might run up $100 in additional charges. If you stop working to correctly tape these fees in your check register, you risk of over-limit as well as incurring extra overdraft costs!

Vendor Errors

Have you ever before inspected your monthly statement just to locate duplicate deals debiting your account? Remember those times the vendor asked to swipe your card once again because the first purchase really did not experience? It has taken place to me. If you utilized your bank card for this transaction, you can dispute the replicate cost as well as it will not impact you right away. Nonetheless, if you used your debit card it might not be so easy. After you confirm the duplicate cost to your financial institution they will certainly most likely restore the funds. However, if the erroneous charge triggered other checks or debit purchases to overdraw your account, you still will need to manage all the damages they've done just like a stolen card.

Cavaet Emptor! Let the caveat emptor.

While I am not a supporter of bank card, having actually been a sufferer of the debt cycle they help to perpetuate, they do have specific advantages over debit cards. I still think it is an excellent concept to keep one bank card for emergency scenarios. Debit cards are certainly convenient as well as do not sustain rate of interest fees neither construct your debt as may credit cards. However, they do have a dark side you need to be knowledgeable about to utilize them intelligently as well as successfully.

[airoasis]

Trading Lesson 2 - Placing Orders in NinjaTrader Using the SuperDOM

New Post has been published on https://hititem.kr/trading-lesson-2-placing-orders-in-ninjatrader-using-the-superdom/

Trading Lesson 2 - Placing Orders in NinjaTrader Using the SuperDOM

Good day everybody. My title is John Paul. DayTradeToWin.Com. Today is video lesson #2. On this persevered coaching, I wish to show you ways the DOM works, the way to location orders, what are limit orders, what are market orders, discontinue orders, and many others. I wish to duvet the fundamentals on easy methods to use the DOM aka cost ladder or matrix. I also have some tips on how to pleasant use this cost ladder.January 24, 2014 is today. I am displaying you the Atlas Line program. These orders you see here, for example, the brief at 1809.50 and 1807.25 are entries into the market to sell. You need the market to go down. That’s precisely what happened. The price went down. How do you really place these orders? Go over to the DOM. The best way you open the DOM is through NinjaTrader’s manipulate center, File, New, Dynamic SuperDOM (that is what i take advantage of) or Static SuperDOM. Either one brings up a price ladder / DOM. Then choose the market you want to trade from the Instrument drop-down box. A number of futures and forex markets are listed in mine. Decide on the market you need. You will have to make certain the markets you need to trade are delivered to this list by way of NinjaTrader’s Instrument supervisor.Here, decide on both your sim or brokerage account. Right here is the variety and here is the ATM procedure. I will duvet all of these strategies, including methods to manipulate a exchange utilising the ATM, the right way to position trades, what the trade means, and many others. I also use the terminology, "first-come, first-served", which i will go over. First thing – how do you location an order to move quick like proper right here. When the Atlas Line offers an order to enter the market, i admire to use limit orders. I attempt to get as practically the targeted rate as viable. To position a restrict order, left click on on the grey sell column anyplace above where price is currently trading. This trade occurred previous in the day at 1809.50. I are not able to even scroll up that far, but let’s simply say you placed an order to head brief by using left clicking.The definition of a restrict order is that this: I wish to go quick at 1809.50 or higher. In the event you attempt to place a limit order under where rate is presently to promote it, it’s going to attempt to get you a greater rate. Normally situation the restrict order above the marketplace for promoting the market. If you want to buy the market, the reverse is correct – left-click on above. Let’s consider you want to buy at 1800. If you click and drag, it will say you need 1800 or 1800.25, nevertheless it’s buying and selling at a less expensive cost, so i’m going to provide John a cheaper price and robotically fill him. The term first-come, first served is related to digital markets and trading. Whoever places limit orders first get right into a queue to get filled first on these orders. Take a seem right here at what number of merchants (or contracts) are waiting to be crammed short at these costs. As quickly as you situation a restrict order, say here, i am in line.I is also #440, or #100, #200, and many others. As quickly as cost touches 1800.25, i’m ready to be crammed. Oftentimes, the price just touches the place i’m ready to be stuffed. I is also final in line. If my quantity shouldn’t be up and best, say one hundred contracts get crammed, then i’m out of success. Fee will contact the rate of my order, but I won’t get filled. With regards to putting orders, it’s first-come, first-served kind of state of affairs. I carry this up for the reason that many traders click on their limit order, either to get into the market or to textual content on a goal. They say, I do not need this cost maybe i’m going to get a greater rate and i’ll move this to a point better, say 1801.25. Now, the trader is in the back of the road at the new price. Each time you move a restrict order, you are placing yourself at the back of the road. I tell all my students, try to maintain your order where it’s.Many other merchants are relocating their orders in and out. The opposite thing with Ninja – and another structures have this as good – it can be referred to as an ATM process. I use the ATM method characteristic to utilize exact objectives and stops. As soon as I get filled, the ATM approach that I previously established tells NinjaTrader and my broker I need a targeted stop and goal. The ATM method places me available in the market with a restrict order and a discontinue right away – it can be very speedy. Right here, the very first thing you ought to do to create your own customized ATM technique is decide on custom from the record. Specify the quantity of ticks in your discontinue (10 ticks) and say 8 ticks (2 facets) for your revenue target. The ATM strategy will follow as you see right here. That you could click on and transfer them round. Again, handiest transfer them whilst you without doubt have to as earlier mentioned. You could have as many of those ATM procedure templates as you adore. I advocate saving them by way of right-clicking this gray field.Prefer manage ATM method templates, and which you could title it some thing you need. I often use a three or two tick goal for my scalping tactics and 4 or six tick stop relative to the exchange. Every time you enter, it can be instantaneous. When I wish to exit, I click shut. The whole thing on the chart gets closed out. The following order is referred to as a stop order. I exploit the middle mouse button for this variety of order. Stop orders are like, "I need to catch this instruct." that you may capture the market as it goes down. As this market is coming down, I wish to capture this instruct and get short because it moves. The same factor is correct for an extended. With a restrict order, fee continuously has to retrace back to it. With a discontinue order, you attempt to seize it as its moving. Most traders suppose of a discontinue as a discontinue loss. That’s genuine, but that you may additionally use a discontinue as you attempt to get into a exchange.One final thing I want to quilt is a bit of little bit of psychology. This question comes up quite a bit – how many contracts will have to I exchange? Alternate one contract except you feel at ease, so you are able to do that constantly. Even supposing you have got 1,000,000 bucks to your account, I still recommend opening off slow and small and being regular. If which you could alternate one contract always good for every week or a month, then all you must do is go to 2 contracts. Again, be steady for every week or a month unless you’re ready to go to 3.It’s most important to understand you could take a loss and recover within the same day or the very subsequent alternate. Even supposing it takes a day or two, healing is still viable. That builds confidence. Again, of small, be consistent, and grow from there. Be aware of what it is wish to get stopped out and get better. My name is John Paul. I am hoping you’ve gotten loved this video trading lesson. Subsequent week, i’m going to put out a brand new lesson. Until subsequent time, take care! .

[batterymonster2021]

Trading Lesson 2 - Placing Orders in NinjaTrader Using the SuperDOM

New Post has been published on https://hititem.kr/trading-lesson-2-placing-orders-in-ninjatrader-using-the-superdom/

Trading Lesson 2 - Placing Orders in NinjaTrader Using the SuperDOM

Good day everybody. My title is John Paul. DayTradeToWin.Com. Today is video lesson #2. On this persevered coaching, I wish to show you ways the DOM works, the way to location orders, what are limit orders, what are market orders, discontinue orders, and many others. I wish to duvet the fundamentals on easy methods to use the DOM aka cost ladder or matrix. I also have some tips on how to pleasant use this cost ladder.January 24, 2014 is today. I am displaying you the Atlas Line program. These orders you see here, for example, the brief at 1809.50 and 1807.25 are entries into the market to sell. You need the market to go down. That’s precisely what happened. The price went down. How do you really place these orders? Go over to the DOM. The best way you open the DOM is through NinjaTrader’s manipulate center, File, New, Dynamic SuperDOM (that is what i take advantage of) or Static SuperDOM. Either one brings up a price ladder / DOM. Then choose the market you want to trade from the Instrument drop-down box. A number of futures and forex markets are listed in mine. Decide on the market you need. You will have to make certain the markets you need to trade are delivered to this list by way of NinjaTrader’s Instrument supervisor.Here, decide on both your sim or brokerage account. Right here is the variety and here is the ATM procedure. I will duvet all of these strategies, including methods to manipulate a exchange utilising the ATM, the right way to position trades, what the trade means, and many others. I also use the terminology, "first-come, first-served", which i will go over. First thing – how do you location an order to move quick like proper right here. When the Atlas Line offers an order to enter the market, i admire to use limit orders. I attempt to get as practically the targeted rate as viable. To position a restrict order, left click on on the grey sell column anyplace above where price is currently trading. This trade occurred previous in the day at 1809.50. I are not able to even scroll up that far, but let’s simply say you placed an order to head brief by using left clicking.The definition of a restrict order is that this: I wish to go quick at 1809.50 or higher. In the event you attempt to place a limit order under where rate is presently to promote it, it’s going to attempt to get you a greater rate. Normally situation the restrict order above the marketplace for promoting the market. If you want to buy the market, the reverse is correct – left-click on above. Let’s consider you want to buy at 1800. If you click and drag, it will say you need 1800 or 1800.25, nevertheless it’s buying and selling at a less expensive cost, so i’m going to provide John a cheaper price and robotically fill him. The term first-come, first served is related to digital markets and trading. Whoever places limit orders first get right into a queue to get filled first on these orders. Take a seem right here at what number of merchants (or contracts) are waiting to be crammed short at these costs. As quickly as you situation a restrict order, say here, i am in line.I is also #440, or #100, #200, and many others. As quickly as cost touches 1800.25, i’m ready to be crammed. Oftentimes, the price just touches the place i’m ready to be stuffed. I is also final in line. If my quantity shouldn’t be up and best, say one hundred contracts get crammed, then i’m out of success. Fee will contact the rate of my order, but I won’t get filled. With regards to putting orders, it’s first-come, first-served kind of state of affairs. I carry this up for the reason that many traders click on their limit order, either to get into the market or to textual content on a goal. They say, I do not need this cost maybe i’m going to get a greater rate and i’ll move this to a point better, say 1801.25. Now, the trader is in the back of the road at the new price. Each time you move a restrict order, you are placing yourself at the back of the road. I tell all my students, try to maintain your order where it’s.Many other merchants are relocating their orders in and out. The opposite thing with Ninja – and another structures have this as good – it can be referred to as an ATM process. I use the ATM method characteristic to utilize exact objectives and stops. As soon as I get filled, the ATM approach that I previously established tells NinjaTrader and my broker I need a targeted stop and goal. The ATM method places me available in the market with a restrict order and a discontinue right away – it can be very speedy. Right here, the very first thing you ought to do to create your own customized ATM technique is decide on custom from the record. Specify the quantity of ticks in your discontinue (10 ticks) and say 8 ticks (2 facets) for your revenue target. The ATM strategy will follow as you see right here. That you could click on and transfer them round. Again, handiest transfer them whilst you without doubt have to as earlier mentioned. You could have as many of those ATM procedure templates as you adore. I advocate saving them by way of right-clicking this gray field.Prefer manage ATM method templates, and which you could title it some thing you need. I often use a three or two tick goal for my scalping tactics and 4 or six tick stop relative to the exchange. Every time you enter, it can be instantaneous. When I wish to exit, I click shut. The whole thing on the chart gets closed out. The following order is referred to as a stop order. I exploit the middle mouse button for this variety of order. Stop orders are like, "I need to catch this instruct." that you may capture the market as it goes down. As this market is coming down, I wish to capture this instruct and get short because it moves. The same factor is correct for an extended. With a restrict order, fee continuously has to retrace back to it. With a discontinue order, you attempt to seize it as its moving. Most traders suppose of a discontinue as a discontinue loss. That’s genuine, but that you may additionally use a discontinue as you attempt to get into a exchange.One final thing I want to quilt is a bit of little bit of psychology. This question comes up quite a bit – how many contracts will have to I exchange? Alternate one contract except you feel at ease, so you are able to do that constantly. Even supposing you have got 1,000,000 bucks to your account, I still recommend opening off slow and small and being regular. If which you could alternate one contract always good for every week or a month, then all you must do is go to 2 contracts. Again, be steady for every week or a month unless you’re ready to go to 3.It’s most important to understand you could take a loss and recover within the same day or the very subsequent alternate. Even supposing it takes a day or two, healing is still viable. That builds confidence. Again, of small, be consistent, and grow from there. Be aware of what it is wish to get stopped out and get better. My name is John Paul. I am hoping you’ve gotten loved this video trading lesson. Subsequent week, i’m going to put out a brand new lesson. Until subsequent time, take care! .

[savviscouts]

We recently took a cruise (my first!) out of Venice. It was a lovely time! Venice, however, was the worst. Here’s how to avoid most of the horrible-ness we encountered.

Getting to Venice

The road to Venice, from my house near Munich, Germany, was paved with trials and tribulations. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t drive to Venice from Germany, but I am saying to be emotionally prepared for the unexpected. For example, your car could break down, causing you to arrive eight hours later than originally planned. You might miss this amazing Venetian food and wine tour that you had already paid for. You could almost, quite literally, miss your boat.

My advice? Be prepared for the worst to happen, and then just make the most of it! Also, take the train. Because if something happens to your car, it can make your already-expensive vacation turn into a budget-busting nightmare.

(For other options, check out my post on transportation around Europe!)

Because of this fiasco (there’s a good Italian word for ya!), we didn’t have much time in Venice at all. We missed an awesome wine and Venetian tapas tour I had already paid for. We didn’t get good Venetian food. Also, we only had a couple of hours to wander around and grab a street pizza before hopping on our cruise ship. So I can’t really tell you much of what to do in Venice, but I can definitely tell you a couple of things to definitely not do.

Things Not To Do in Venice

#1. Don’t Trust the Servers Implicitly

I don’t mean this in a mean or aggressive way at all, I’m just letting you know that your restaurant server is out to get you, and do not leave anything implicitly open. For example, do not say, “Oh I would like a bottle of the Merlot please.”

Instead, say, “I would like a bottle of the XX Merlot that costs 30 euros please.” Otherwise, they will pick the most expensive bottle of Merlot, not tell you, and you’ll get a huge surprise on your bill.

My Experience:

I ordered “a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon”. Based off of the bill that came later, it was not the cheap 22 euro bottle that I thought I had ordered. Be specific.

Subsequent research has shown this bottle to be anywhere between $10-$80. So I don’t know…

  #2. Don’t Trust the Servers’ Recommendations

This sounds like the same thing, but I promise you it’s not. If your server offers you a special meal that you will “just love”, ask where it is on the menu so that you can check the price. If it’s not on the menu, ask for the price. It’s not rude for you to ask for the price, and they’re expecting you to think that because they’re probably trying to screw you over.

My Experience:

The server offered us this delicious sounding fish, and a raw fish appetizer sampler that I couldn’t find on the menu. I tried to cancel the app after I ordered it, but he talked me out of it. The appetizer wasn’t good at all, and the fish was actually nice! They de-boned it for us, though, and left half the meat on the fish.

fish de-bone gif

#3. Check the Restaurant Ratings Before Sitting Down

But all the restaurants are basically the same, right?

No!

The food may be pretty similar, but the ethics may not be.

I waited until after our horrible dinner in Venice to check the TripAdvisor ratings for the restaurant we randomly picked, and, it turns out, they had horrible ratings. Not because the food was completely horrible, but because all of the servers tried to screw you over.

My Experience:

Everything on the menu was around 20 euros, so we expected the bill to be around 60 ish euros (with wine, appetizer, and fish.) We got the bill. It said 98 euros. Boyfriend put down 100 euros, and we got up to leave.

The server came running back- “Sir, sir! This isn’t the correct amount! The bill isn’t 98 euros. That’s the price if you guys decided to split it. It’s 196 euros!”

Sure enough, in smaller font below the 98 was a 196. I handed boyfriend a 50 euro note, he threw on another 50, and we left.

At this point, after our super-duper horrible no good very bad day, we kind of thought it was hilarious. We had to get more cash out of the ATM before bed. Whatever.

Back at the hotel, I got on TripAdvisor to give them a bad rating, and most of the reviews were, “Tourist trap! Stay Away!”

I took this to remember the restaurant name after I realized my horrible mistake. Next time you find yourself in Venice, DO NOT EAT AT Ai do Fradei!

Things to Do in Venice

#1. Enjoy Something

Regardless of any nightmares that may have occurred on your trip to Venice, or any horrible overpriced meals you may encounter, don’t let it affect your attitude! You’re only there when you’re there, so you might as well take a goofy picture in front of the canals and enjoy yourself.

Me, being the world’s best tourist

#2. Get Your Boat Bus Ticket First Thing

You may think you won’t need a boat bus. Unless your hotel is super close to the train station, you’ll wish you were on a boat and not climbing stairs to another bridge every few hundred feet with your suitcase. Also, you can’t get tickets at every boat bus stop. You have to buy them at the main stop directly across from you when you exit the train station. Even if you don’t want the boat buses when you first get there, you probably will the next morning. Unless you want to pay for a boat taxi, which is fine. Just be sure to negotiate the price before you get into the boat.

In Summation

Don’t trust people. Ask for prices. Make sure that you still enjoy yourself, regardless of any outside circumstances. (This really applies to all traveling.)

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The engine light that went off, just before we slowed down to 50 kph and couldn’t speed up. On the autobahn

Awesome-looking strawberry stand we passed on the way down, pre-car troubles

Beautiful views of Venice

The Venice town troubadour, live in the flesh

Me, being the world’s best tourist

Us, being all touristy and determined not to let negativity affect us!

Town troubadour strikes again

When we finally made it to our boat- what a beautiful sight!

Our faces when we dropped off our luggage and were getting on the boat at last!

How *Not* to Enjoy Venice We recently took a cruise (my first!) out of Venice. It was a lovely time! Venice, however, was the worst.

[dyernews]

Why It Pays to “Discover” Online Banking

For the longest time, banking to me seemed like mostly a practice in making the best of a bad situation. After all, how many people actively discuss what they enjoy about their bank? Instead, it’s mostly complaints about rising fees and buggy apps. Because of this and since I didn’t have any big issues with Wells Fargo and wasn’t paying any maintenance fees for my decades-old account, I assumed I couldn’t really ask for more.

That was until I turned my sights to internet banking. Suddenly I learned that I could be actually earning on my savings while still avoiding fees. Since then, I’ve actually opened a few online bank accounts — but my first and most-used of these accounts comes from Discover Bank. So let’s dive into what advantages online institutions offer as well as what I like about Discover Bank specifically.

What Online-Only Banks Have to Offer

The way I’ve utilized my checking account over the past few years isn’t exactly normal or smart. Aside from receiving my direct deposit and being used to pay rent, it basically acts a slush fund for my wife and me that just sits there until we need it. That’s not a terrible idea but, then again, it doesn’t earn us anything either. That’s why I decided it would be better to open a real savings account that would at least get us some interest. Brick and Mortar Rates

Way back when the notion that I should be setting up a real savings account occurred to me, my first thought was to just open a new savings account with Wells Fargo or perhaps a local bank in my area. However I was shocked to learn that unless you have some serious bucks — we’re talking five figures here — you would only get a .01% interest rate on your account. Really?

I knew savings account rates were low but I didn’t know they were that low. Luckily internet banks offer much better rates.

Internet Bank Rates

  At the time that I was first looking at online banking options, savings account interest rates were already 100 times better than most big institutions, with APYs north of 1%. As great as that sounds, these days those figures have more than doubled. In the case of my Discover Bank savings account, my current APY is 2.10% while other popular options such as Synchrony are up to 2.25%.

Why I Went with Discover Considering that the goal was to earn as much interest as possible, you may be wondering why I didn’t go with Synchrony, which tends to offer slightly higher rates than Discover. Truth be told, my main reason was that I already had a Discover It credit card and have been pretty impressed with my experience. I figured that having my credit card and other bank accounts under one roof made things easier and I seem to have been right about that. In fact, since the time that I first joined Discover Bank, they’ve upgraded their system so that you can access both credit and banking products with a single login where you previously needed separate usernames and passwords.

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Internet Banks

First a big plus: unlike many too-big-to-fail banks, Discover Bank and many of their ilk don’t charge a maintenance fee or mandate a minimum daily balance. Moreover various online institutions have different policies regarding overdraft fees, with some waiving such penalties in all situations and others like Discover reimbursing your first fine each year. Plus, just like regular bank accounts, online bank accounts are FDIC insured (or at least they should be — make sure to do your due diligence on an institution before joining).

As for the downsides, there’s no question that some will be concerned about the lack of a physical branch to go to. Personally, I rely so much on banking apps that I hardly remember the last time I visited a brick and mortar location. That said, the inability to deposit cash or a check in an ATM does mean that it can take longer to get your money into your account. In the case of cash, you may even have to rely on your “big bank” account to deposit the cash before transferring to your online account. Such delays mean you’ll need to think ahead if you’re actively using these accounts to pay bills — but hopefully you’ll be able to work out the kinks with some practice.

My Experience With Discover Bank

It’s now been a couple of years since I joined Discover Bank and, overall, it’s been a great experience. As I mentioned, during this time, my APY has continued to rise, so that’s a definite plus. However I’ve also noticed a few changes to my accounts over time that have been both good and, well, less than great. Let’s take a closer look at not only my Discover Bank savings account but also my checking account.

Cash Back Checking Exists

Funny enough, when I first joined Discover, I didn’t just open a savings account — I actually opened a checking account as well. That’s because Discover Bank offers cash back checking, which I thought would be a nice addition to my banking line-up. At the time the deal was that users would earn $.10 back for each debit transaction, check written, and more. I managed to maximize these dime bonuses by only using my debit card for transactions that were under a $1 and then transferring my acquired earnings to my Discover It card’s cash back stockpile.

Unfortunately Discover has since changed the structure of their cash back checking program, now offering 1% back on all debit card purchases. Admittedly this doesn’t do much for me as my Discover It card offers the same and other credit cards I have do even better. That said, this is probably the better program overall and could be perfect for those who either cannot qualify for a rewards credit cards or wouldn’t trust themselves with one.

Despite the structural change, as time has gone on, my Discover Bank has practically become my primary checking account. In fact it’s where I write my rent checks from. To that point, a few months ago, I also got to see how Discover’s “First Fee Forgiveness” program works as a mixup with my landlord resulted in an overdraft fee (that’s when I learned that postdated checks aren’t a thing). Although a $30 fee did briefly post to my account, a $30 credit was quickly issued since this was my first — and hopefully last — infraction. This was such a relief and made what turned out to be a frustrating situation at least a little bit better. Plus I can only imagine how much such a mistake would have cost me had it happened at a regular bank without such generous policies.

No Branch? No Problem

To be honest, the initial reason I decided to sign up for the checking account was because Discover debit cards offer access to (apparently) more than 60,000 ATMs without a fee. Since there’s not a Wells Fargo within a few hundred miles of my home I thought it would be wise for me to have a backup plan. Sure this whole plan only saves me a couple of dollars per withdrawal but everything adds up.

Like many banks, Discover’s app also allows you to deposit checks into your savings or checking account just by taking a photo of it. You can also sign up for various bill pay options, although I have yet to explore those despite the length of time I’ve had my accounts (so I really can’t speak to how that works.) Lastly, you can easily transfer money between your external and internal accounts using the app or website, so there’s really is no need for a branch.

Other Advantages 

A lot of what I liked about the Discover It card’s app also applies to the Discover Bank account. First the bank’s widget looks great in the iOS Today Screen and gives me at-a-glance updates on my balances. Additionally one of the upgrades that came to Discover’s debit cards when they added chips is that they are now supported in Apple Pay. As I mentioned, Discover Bank has also integrated with Discover credit cards, allowing you to see all of your accounts in the same place.

A Few Initial Issues

While I’m pretty satisfied with my account experience overall, there were a couple of problems I had when setting up my accounts forever ago. First, when signing up on the website, I was shown my account numbers and then presented with the option to register my accounts for online access. There was just one problem: clicking the button took me away from the page with my account numbers and there was no way back to them.

I assumed this wouldn’t be a big deal as surely they must have sent me an email confirmation, right? Sadly, no — aside from that initial confirmation page I had no other way of knowing if my accounts were actually even opened until several hours later when I was notified that my funding transfers had gone through. This should have been relieving but, since none of these emails contained my full account numbers, I was now sending money to accounts I couldn’t access. To be fair, I could have called their helpline to retrieve the info I needed, but I instead opted just to wait until my paperwork arrived in the mail.

Obviously this wasn’t exactly a deal breaker but I could see others being much more frustrated by such a situation than I was. I can also see some being upset that, in order to transfer between an external account and your Discover Bank account on the app, you must first add the external account information on the website. Again, not a huge deal but it is a little less elegant than you might want.

With all that said, this was several years ago now and was prior to a round of upgrades on Discover’s part. Therefore I can only hope that whatever issues plagued me so many months ago have now been resolved. Considering I haven’t run into any issues since, I’m thinking they just might be.

Final Thoughts on Discover Bank

There’s no doubt about it: bringing my savings to internet banking accounts was among the smartest money moves I’ve made. No longer am I letting my cash just sit in a checking account doing nothing. Instead I’m earning interest, which has also encouraged to save even more.

Beyond the increase in APY, on the whole, I’d say Discover Bank has improved even since my initially positive review. The merging of credit and banking accounts, sleeker debit card, and Apple Pay support have all been welcomed additions — even if my little $.10 trick no longer works. Furthermore, having found myself fallible and accidentally bouncing a check, it was great to see the bank’s First Fee Forgiveness save the day.

For all of those reasons, even though I now have other online bank accounts including Aspiration, my Discover Bank accounts are still my most used. With a current savings APY of 2.10%, I’ve found this to be the perfect place to house my emergency fund and other extra cash. So, if you’re looking for a better bank account to supplement what you currently have or want to get away from the big banks, I’d definitely recommend looking into what Discover Bank has to offer.

The post Why It Pays to “Discover” Online Banking appeared first on Dyer News.

[idonotknowhowtoo-blog]

How To Prevent Bank Costs While Traveling - WanderingTrader

Preventing bank charges while taking a trip while travelingis something that everyone need to discover how to do. Avoiding charge card fees, currency exchange costs, and foreign transaction charges while traveling abroad is very important in order to save money for more journeys and adventures.In this travel suggestions post we are going to cover the main fees charged by banking and credit card organizations. The costs can be broken down into three types; ATM withdrawal charges, foreign conversion costs (which can also be tied into charge card charges), and currency exchange rate fees.Its quite simple to prevent paying bank charges while traveling once we understand the structure of how banks charge customers for service.Trouble seeing the video? Enjoy How To Prevent Bank Fees While Traveling on YouTube.Choosing The Right Bank Among the very first things to understand is that big

public banks stay in business to make an earnings. Smaller banks such as cooperative credit union usually have smaller sized costs but they likewise provide less services. It is highly suggest to take a look at the fee structure with your

bank and likewise think about opening an account at a smaller sized bank or credit union.Credit unions are normally "not for earnings"and charge much lower costs for doing company. This indicates that they charge less charges while traveling. At the very same time large banking institutions also have their advantages. The biggest banks in the world have actually developed collaborations with each other in order to offer no cost ATM withdrawals both locally and internationally.As long as one becomes part of these banks ATM charges can be avoided.This presumes obviously that travelers will have the ability to discover an ATM with a bank that becomes part of the alliance. The alliance is called the worldwide ATM alliance. Check the fees at your local bank and look at the viability of opening an account with a credit union.

Otherwise, it is advised to have an account at one of these significant banks."Part of how To Prevent Bank Charges While Taking A Trip. Bring a stash!"Picking a Big International Bank Another choice is to pick a banking institution that has different worldwide entities all over the world. Three of the most common are Citibank, HSBC, and Requirement Charter Bank.I have actually personally had a Citibank account and know many loved ones that have accounts with standard charter. I would not suggest opening an account with Citibank as their consumer service is really poor and their charges are generally really high.If selecting one of these three banks I would suggest Standard Charter Bank

or HSBC.As I have been day trading for almost 12 years I am greatly included in the monetary markets. With the banking crises that have appeared in the last couple of years I looked very closely at bank financials. The last thing we desire is to be part of a bank that is going to fail. Citibank was bailed out by the US federal government so I would not trust the decisions that they make. HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank are much better options.Recommended Option For US citizens and citizens the very best option would be a bank account with Charles Schwab. Their bank account has no

minimum balance requirements, no month-to-month costs, and all ATM costs whether global or nationwide are refunded at the end of every month.Charles Schwab also will open a no fee brokerage account in addition to the monitoring account.I have found the bank account with Charles Schwab to be the finest alternative. Since they reimburse all costs charged by any bank travelers no longer need to fret about looking for the best ATM or bank. One can pick any bank and Charles Schwab will refund all costs

associated with any ATM deals at the end of every month.Another reason why Charles Schwab is a terrific option is because of very simple electrical wiring policy. Because I run different services online I typically have to wire cash across the world. Lots of large banks provide worldwide transfers via electronic banking but lot of times this isn't enough.Charles Schwab enables you to fax in a wire type and leave standing instructions.This implies that as soon as the wire type is sent out in and authorized one would simply require to call Charles Schwab and authorize a wire transfer over the phone. This has been vital to me as oftentimes wire transfers can get extremely

made complex. Certainly a recommended choice for more organisation associated travelers.ATM Withdrawal Fees The charges related to global ATM transactions vary. Some banks charge as high as five dollars in order to make a withdrawal at a worldwide ATM. This means that every single deal, consisting of the balance queries, is

a charge of approximately five dollars.When living in Ethiopia I understood that I was charged over $200 one month just in ATM withdrawal fees. At that point I didn't have the Charles Schwab examining account and was blinded by the worldwide ATM alliance.Sadly, there were no collaboration banks in Ethiopia.ATM costs can accumulate considerably even if one is simply going on a 2 week trip to Europe. If we assume a$ 2- $ 5 charge whenever we take out money that can equate to upwards of$50-$200 a month. Foreign Deal Charges In addition to ATM costs there are also foreign conversion costs. At any time a bank converts a foreign currency into your house currency there is a percent cost charged for that service. The overall charge is in between 2%to 5%. Preventing this bank cost while traveling is the most essential. These fees can include up to much greater than the

ATM withdrawal usage charges

. Companies such as Visa or MasterCard generally charge 1%of the overall conversion and the bank will charge in between 2%to 4%. This implies there is a possibility of being charged an ATM withdrawal charge in addition to the foreign conversion fee.Imagine securing$500 and being charged$2.50 to utilize

a foreign ATM in addition to a 3%fee of$15. Both banks and charge card business are known for charging these fees. There are lots of credit cards offered now without any foreign conversion costs. Below are some choices: Other Tips On How To Avoid Bank Charges While Traveling Usage Credit Cards with Benefits-- There are lots of charge card offered in the market

that will supply advantages such as additional miles and points. Travelers are then able to use these points and miles totally free journeys, upgrades, and VIP design benefits.As banks frequently earn money on the currency exchange a lot of

them will not supply the precise exchange rate used in order to make money on withdrawal. Any of the charge card noted above would be highly recommended as they do not charge foreign transaction costs and provide these advantages for their consumers who often take a trip worldwide. Many credit cards will also offer the very best currency exchange rates, guaranteeing you get more of your cash for your money.I would suggest the Chase Sapphire preferred card since it's a points-based system that can be transferred to a range of business. A lot of travel credit cards are business particular, meaning they can only be utilized for one brand of

hotels, airline companies, or rental automobile companies. With the Chase Sapphire chose card one can transfer to a variety of companies with

different services.Plan Ahead-- The majority of travelers plan journeys ahead of time. If you know you are traveling abroad start keeping an eye on foreign exchange rates and begin exchanging early. There are a variety of tools online that a person can utilize to evaluate the rates. Here are a couple of listed below: Sometimes travelers can buy forex from their regional bank before leaving

on their trip. I always like to have approximately$100 in local currency

for emergency purposes.Avoid Horrible Exchange Rates-- Never exchange any cash at airports. They provide the outright worst exchange rate readily available. While emergencies do happen, by preparing ahead, this can always be avoided. If in a bind, your finest bet is to use an Automated Teller Machine at an airport

instead of the official currency exchange desks.If currency rates surge in your favor constantly attempt to get more cash than regular. Any debit cards or ATM cards with the Visa logo design will use the of official Visa conversion rate offered in the link above. Travelers you too can utilize the Visa conversion rate link I have listed anytime to see the official rate that visa is using and chosen on your own to get more loan or wait till the next day as to achieve the very best rate.Planning for Contingencies What happens if your ATM card is stolen? What?It is recommended to have either two accounts or 2 debit cards(similar to ATM cards )just in case this occurs. Banks are typically able to interlink debit cards with various accounts.I have 2 examining accounts with two debit cards with Charles Schwab. If one of my debit cards are stolen or is lost I will have the ability to instantly select up the extra card and link that with my second monitoring account.This allows me to proceed organisation as normal.Having more than one inspecting account with other banks is also recommended. There are really rare cases where particular banks might have issues with worldwide withdrawals. One also needs to think about that some banks are more rigorous than others.

[samanthasroberts]

One Swede Will Kill Cash ForeverUnless His Foe Saves It From Extinction

This new activism by the banks, along with the support of Ulvaeus, transformed Swedish society in just a few years. In 2010, 40 percent of Swedish retail transactions were made using cash; by 2014 that amount had fallen to about 20 percent. More than half of bank offices no longer deal in cash. To his claim that going cashless is the “biggest crime-preventing scheme ever,” Ulvaeus now has some statistics to back it up. The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention counted only 23 bank robberies in 2014, down 70 percent from a decade earlier. In the same period, muggings dropped 10 percent. While it’s unclear the extent to which the transition to cashless has affected the rate of street crime, police point out that there’s a lot less incentive to rob a bus driver, cabbie, or shopkeeper if they don’t accept cash. Many workers say they now feel much safer.

Still, Ulvaeus is not satisfied. He’s annoyed there’s any cash left in Sweden at all. “Why would you pay for things with paper symbols that can be forged, that can be used in the black economy? It’s so unmodern,” he says. “It’s so out of touch.”

Unmodern: It’s one of Ulvaeus’ favorite, most biting insults. In some ways he has spent his whole life chasing modernity. In his earlier years, he wanted to be an engineer and taught himself to code on his Atari. Musical superstardom derailed those dreams, but Ulvaeus never abandoned that side of himself. “Pop music has always been driven by technology,” he says. “Every new sound, we were like, what are the Bee Gees doing there? We have to get that!” He’s never been someone who romanticizes the old way of doing things; retro is lame. He idolizes modern-day boundary-pushers such as Elon Musk and professional atheist Richard Dawkins.

Ulvaeus believes, with a conviction bordering on zealotry, that once the world sees Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia transform into a cashless, crimeless utopia, with tax revenues soaring, it will have no other choice but to follow suit. Take Greece, a country Ulvaeus has a special connection to (see: Mamma Mia!). “My God, what good it would do that country to be cashless,” he says. Corruption, tax evasion, the black economy: They could vanish. “I know it’s going to happen. I’m impatient. I want to see it!”

Lunch is over. Ulvaeus pays for his fish with a black elite MasterCard and drives off in his Tesla.

Overturning a centuries-old system so quickly is not without its challenges. Weird things start to happen at every level of society. To wit:

Sweden held its first major cashless music festival in the summer of 2014, and organizers provided attendees with special high tech wristbands for in-festival purchases. On the first day, the electronic payment system crashed, leaving thousands of thirsty festivalgoers unable to buy beer and forcing some vendors, one newspaper reported, to use a rather unmodern form of payment: paper IOUs.

In a curious case of an “e-mugging” on the Swedish island of Gotland last July, the victim told police he’d been forced to Swish money to a thief. The accused was easily identified—Swish requires a name and phone number—but when police found him, he said the transaction was just a friendly payment for beer. The police didn’t have enough evidence to bring the man to court, so the alleged e-mugger walked free.

Over the holidays, two young Russian tourists tried to board a bus and pay on board. The driver refused to take their bills. “We took out all this kronor when we got here,” one of them said as she walked back to the station, dejected. “It’s all still with us.”

In Överlida, a small town in western Sweden, a third-party ATM wasn’t hitting the minimum number of transactions, so the operator threatened to charge the bank extra fees. To prevent that from happening, bank employees stood next to the machine, paying 100 kronor (about $12) to anyone who would use it.

In Skoghall, a rural town north of Stockholm, the locals campaigned for an ATM to be installed at their grocery store after all the others in town were decommissioned. When they finally got one, they threw what may have been the world’s first ATM party. A live band performed a Swedish rendition of Monty Python’s “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” singing, “Weee haaave a neeeew ATM,” while people cheered and a man on the roof showered celebrants with candy.

Making a cash deposit is now cause for suspicion—even if you’re a priest. New anti-money-laundering laws force tellers to ask detailed questions about where the cash comes from, and some banks enforce strict limits on maximum deposits. This means tithes often leave churches with more cash than they can handle, especially after big hauls during Christmas and Easter.

The Swedish government’s supposedly impenetrable mainframe was infiltrated in 2012 by a hacker who stole citizens’ personal data and used it to gain access to private accounts at Nordea, Sweden’s largest bank. Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Sweden’s most famous cybercriminal and a cofounder of Pirate Bay, was convicted of the crime and served a year in jail.

In 2014, a security researcher discovered a major flaw in Swish’s design that gave him instant access to any user’s transaction history. He alerted the banks, which fixed the bug right away. Nobody noticed—until the good hacker posted about it on his blog a few weeks later.

Björn Ulvaeus, of Abba fame, wants to abolish physical currency in Sweden.Olaf Blecker

Crime is the single most important consideration in the global transition to cashless. That’s why Björn Ulvaeus is constantly talking about public safety. So you might think the former president of Interpol—the International Criminal Police Organization—would be on Ulvaeus’ side. He is not. Meet Björn number two, the leader of Kontantupproret, or Sweden’s Cash Uprising.

Björn Eriksson is a big man, with winged eyebrows and fluffy gray hair. When he sits down, he seems to do so reluctantly, as though he would much rather stay standing, or have a walking meeting in which he would walk very fast.

He and Ulvaeus share more than a first name. They were both born in 1945 and so turn 71 this year. But if time has radicalized Ulvaeus, it has hardened Eriksson.

In the early ’80s, when Eriksson was working in Swedish customs, he sniffed out a covert police operation to smuggle illegal bugging equipment through the country. The police commissioner resigned soon after, and Eriksson was tapped to take his place. He remained in law enforcement for the rest of his career, spending time as head of the Swedish police before his appointment to the Interpol presidency. Although he’s technically retired now, it never occurred to him to stop working. Of the many causes he’s still involved in, the “cash problem,” as he calls it, is where he invests most of his energy. He sees corruption, deceit, and security risks everywhere.

Consumers are not shaping Ulvaeus’ utopianist dream of a cashless future, Eriksson says; the banks and credit card companies are. After all, it was the banks that pushed people to use cards in the first place; and it was the banks, not some independent tech startup, that created Swish. The cost-benefit is obvious: Cards, with their hidden costs and fees, make banks money, whereas vaults of bills and coins do not. In fact, cash costs banks money. It must be handled, counted, transported, guarded, and counted again. As Niklas Arvidsson, an economist at Stockholm’s Royal Institute of Technology, puts it: “It’s clear the banks have a business incentive to reduce the use of cash.” Time is money, and money takes time.

True bank robberies and muggings have declined, but fraud and identity theft have gone up.

But for the most part, Swedes are not a cynical people. They like technology and trust their government and institutions. As the numbers show, most of them have been perfectly happy to renounce cash. In fact, many hardly seem to notice what’s happening at all, so convenient the changeover has been. That’s what concerns Eriksson most: not so much the opportunism on the part of the banks, which seems inevitable, but the thoughtlessness with which so many Swedes seem to have flung themselves—as though to the merry tune of “Dancing Queen”—into an uncertain, possibly unsafe future.

So last year, Eriksson started Cash Uprising, an organization whose core mission is to save the paper krona from extinction. Its members are mostly people from rural areas, small-business owners, and retirees—the ones, in other words, for whom the sudden departure of cash has been inconvenient enough to force them to stop, take notice, and worry.

Camilla Kristensson and Lars-Erik Olsson live in Gärdslöv, a cluster of houses in southern Sweden too small to be called a village. (Olsson estimates the population “in town” is about 22.) Kristensson and Olsson are treasurer and president, respectively, of the Gärdslöv cultural council, which hosts events like mushroom foraging and charcoal making. After one such event last summer, Kristensson had about 20,000 kronor to deposit in the council’s account. But when she went to the local bank, a 10-minute drive away, it refused her cash for the first time ever. So she had to start driving 40 minutes into the city every month to deposit as much money as she was allowed, storing the remainder in various hiding spots. What makes her and Olsson angry isn’t just that the bank stopped taking their cash—it’s that it happened so quickly, without regard for how it would affect people like them. “They changed it almost overnight,” Olsson says. “We need time to change.”

Now Olsson’s council is part of Eriksson’s coalition of cash activists, who hold meetings, circulate petitions, and generally make noise about cash access. Ulvaeus, who has little patience for Eriksson’s views, describes the uprising as “Eriksson and a vanguard of geriatrics,” which is not altogether untrue, but they are some of the only voices speaking up for the consumer in this massive economic shift. The Swedish government has held several hearings on how to regulate the future of cash that were largely prompted by the work of Cash Uprising, and this September the parliament could vote on a bill that might require banks to provide cash services. (In a surprising victory for the movement, the head of Sweden’s central bank recently lent his support to such a proposal.)

Eriksson does have another role in all this: He’s the chair of a major private-security lobby, an industry that a recent economic study called one of the “biggest losers” in a cash-free world. Among other things, security personnel guard vaults and protect cash. No physical cash equals no more jobs. Everyone has an interest, Eriksson says, but he believes his are at least aligned with those of the consumer.

Cash is security, he says. You can hold it in your hands; it can be protected. Spending it does not entail sharing personal information with credit card companies, app creators, or banks. It is true that bank robberies and muggings have declined in Sweden in the past few years. But according to crime statistics from the same national organizations, cases of fraud, usually involving identity theft, have more than doubled. And that stat is based only on cases reported to the police. Most banks won’t publicly share how often their customers’ card information is stolen or their systems breached.

It’s a good bet that the numbers are higher than consumers would like them to be. While Swedes swipe and Swish their money away, they open themselves up to new risks—cybercriminals who would either trick them into divulging sensitive information or exploit security flaws to steal their identity outright. “We see that cybercrime is becoming more aggressive,” says Ulrika Sundling, chief inspector of the Swedish police’s cyber-investigations unit. And she says consumers, generally unaware of the threat and therefore unmotivated to take extra steps to protect themselves, are the “weakest link.”

Eriksson has been hounding Sweden’s banks for years, convinced they’re hiding exorbitant sums of lost money for fear of bad publicity. He even bought single shares of stock in different banks so he could go to shareholder meetings and try to get his questions answered. “They don’t like me,” he says, grinning. For their part, the banks say they keep this information close for customer security. According to Gunilla Garpås, a senior business developer at Nordea and one of the creators of Swish, more transparency about cases of cyberattacks, fraud, and the banks’ defenses against them “would really be putting ourselves and our customers at risk.”

Eriksson’s suspicions don’t stop at the banks. He believes MasterCard’s sponsorship of the Abba museum is the reason Ulvaeus is such a dedicated anticash advocate—but Ulvaeus wrote his first articles on the subject long before the museum opened. That is not to say MasterCard isn’t capitalizing on this moment, though. The card company also heavily sponsors iZettle, the most popular mobile card reader in Sweden.

Björn Eriksson, leader of Sweden’s Cash Uprising, thinks abolishing physical currency is a dangerous mistake. Olaf Blecker

Last October, American retailers made the switch to chip readers. (Well, they were supposed to, but the rollout has been uneven, and some stores still allow the old swipe-and-sign method.) You likely received new chip-enabled cards from your bank as a result. The upgrade came after a year of high-profile hacks: 56 million credit and debit card numbers stolen from Home Depot, 40 million from Target, another million from Neiman Marcus. The “new” chip technology—which has been standard in the European Union for more than a decade—is intended to make electronic transactions safer and more secure.

Then, this March, several major US banks announced a new digital payment platform called clearXchange. (A better name is reportedly in the works.) It is, finally, the US equivalent of Swish: a bank-backed service that lets people transfer money from their bank account directly into someone else’s.

These moves will help speed up the decline of cash use in the US, which hasn’t seen significant change in the past few years; electronic payments have hovered around 50 percent of all transactions. Americans tend to be less trusting of their institutions than their Swedish counterparts—and for good reason. Strict privacy laws safeguard Swedes from unwanted invasions, but consumer protections in the US are considerably flimsier. As Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, puts it: “We have a hurricane of data, and we’re living in a shack.” Plus, many Americans simply don’t want banks or the government to know what they’re spending their money on (thus the appeal of cryptocurrency like bitcoin).

But don’t be fooled: Economists have been predicting the end of physical currency for decades, and Sweden’s transformation signals the time is nigh for the rest of the world. Americans may cling to their bills and coins with greater tenacity than Swedes do, but in that reluctance is an opportunity to proceed cautiously and look to Sweden for guidance.

Ultimately, Sweden’s two Björns want the same thing: a safer society. The world is going cashless, as Ulvaeus says, but consumers have to feel more secure in this new order, per Eriksson. They’re not so much rivals as complements.

Not that they see themselves that way, set as they are in their inflexible views. Offered the opportunity to get dinner with Eriksson and maybe hash out differences over schnapps, Ulvaeus thought about it for a few seconds before saying, “No, I don’t think that’s a good idea. I might get angry.”

Which is probably just as well. Imagine them fighting over the check.

Mallory Pickett (@mallorylpickett) is a journalist based in Berkeley, California. This is her first feature for WIRED.

This story appears in the May 2016 issue.

@media (max-width: 768px) { figure.wp-caption.alignnone.fullbleed-img.relative {display: none;} #related {max-width: 100%;} }

Source: http://allofbeer.com/one-swede-will-kill-cash-foreverunless-his-foe-saves-it-from-extinction/

from All of Beer https://allofbeer.wordpress.com/2018/11/10/one-swede-will-kill-cash-foreverunless-his-foe-saves-it-from-extinction/

[adambstingus]

One Swede Will Kill Cash ForeverUnless His Foe Saves It From Extinction

This new activism by the banks, along with the support of Ulvaeus, transformed Swedish society in just a few years. In 2010, 40 percent of Swedish retail transactions were made using cash; by 2014 that amount had fallen to about 20 percent. More than half of bank offices no longer deal in cash. To his claim that going cashless is the “biggest crime-preventing scheme ever,” Ulvaeus now has some statistics to back it up. The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention counted only 23 bank robberies in 2014, down 70 percent from a decade earlier. In the same period, muggings dropped 10 percent. While it’s unclear the extent to which the transition to cashless has affected the rate of street crime, police point out that there’s a lot less incentive to rob a bus driver, cabbie, or shopkeeper if they don’t accept cash. Many workers say they now feel much safer.

Still, Ulvaeus is not satisfied. He’s annoyed there’s any cash left in Sweden at all. “Why would you pay for things with paper symbols that can be forged, that can be used in the black economy? It’s so unmodern,” he says. “It’s so out of touch.”

Unmodern: It’s one of Ulvaeus’ favorite, most biting insults. In some ways he has spent his whole life chasing modernity. In his earlier years, he wanted to be an engineer and taught himself to code on his Atari. Musical superstardom derailed those dreams, but Ulvaeus never abandoned that side of himself. “Pop music has always been driven by technology,” he says. “Every new sound, we were like, what are the Bee Gees doing there? We have to get that!” He’s never been someone who romanticizes the old way of doing things; retro is lame. He idolizes modern-day boundary-pushers such as Elon Musk and professional atheist Richard Dawkins.

Ulvaeus believes, with a conviction bordering on zealotry, that once the world sees Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia transform into a cashless, crimeless utopia, with tax revenues soaring, it will have no other choice but to follow suit. Take Greece, a country Ulvaeus has a special connection to (see: Mamma Mia!). “My God, what good it would do that country to be cashless,” he says. Corruption, tax evasion, the black economy: They could vanish. “I know it’s going to happen. I’m impatient. I want to see it!”

Lunch is over. Ulvaeus pays for his fish with a black elite MasterCard and drives off in his Tesla.

Overturning a centuries-old system so quickly is not without its challenges. Weird things start to happen at every level of society. To wit:

Sweden held its first major cashless music festival in the summer of 2014, and organizers provided attendees with special high tech wristbands for in-festival purchases. On the first day, the electronic payment system crashed, leaving thousands of thirsty festivalgoers unable to buy beer and forcing some vendors, one newspaper reported, to use a rather unmodern form of payment: paper IOUs.

In a curious case of an “e-mugging” on the Swedish island of Gotland last July, the victim told police he’d been forced to Swish money to a thief. The accused was easily identified—Swish requires a name and phone number—but when police found him, he said the transaction was just a friendly payment for beer. The police didn’t have enough evidence to bring the man to court, so the alleged e-mugger walked free.

Over the holidays, two young Russian tourists tried to board a bus and pay on board. The driver refused to take their bills. “We took out all this kronor when we got here,” one of them said as she walked back to the station, dejected. “It’s all still with us.”

In Överlida, a small town in western Sweden, a third-party ATM wasn’t hitting the minimum number of transactions, so the operator threatened to charge the bank extra fees. To prevent that from happening, bank employees stood next to the machine, paying 100 kronor (about $12) to anyone who would use it.

In Skoghall, a rural town north of Stockholm, the locals campaigned for an ATM to be installed at their grocery store after all the others in town were decommissioned. When they finally got one, they threw what may have been the world’s first ATM party. A live band performed a Swedish rendition of Monty Python’s “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” singing, “Weee haaave a neeeew ATM,” while people cheered and a man on the roof showered celebrants with candy.

Making a cash deposit is now cause for suspicion—even if you’re a priest. New anti-money-laundering laws force tellers to ask detailed questions about where the cash comes from, and some banks enforce strict limits on maximum deposits. This means tithes often leave churches with more cash than they can handle, especially after big hauls during Christmas and Easter.

The Swedish government’s supposedly impenetrable mainframe was infiltrated in 2012 by a hacker who stole citizens’ personal data and used it to gain access to private accounts at Nordea, Sweden’s largest bank. Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Sweden’s most famous cybercriminal and a cofounder of Pirate Bay, was convicted of the crime and served a year in jail.

In 2014, a security researcher discovered a major flaw in Swish’s design that gave him instant access to any user’s transaction history. He alerted the banks, which fixed the bug right away. Nobody noticed—until the good hacker posted about it on his blog a few weeks later.

Björn Ulvaeus, of Abba fame, wants to abolish physical currency in Sweden.Olaf Blecker

Crime is the single most important consideration in the global transition to cashless. That’s why Björn Ulvaeus is constantly talking about public safety. So you might think the former president of Interpol—the International Criminal Police Organization—would be on Ulvaeus’ side. He is not. Meet Björn number two, the leader of Kontantupproret, or Sweden’s Cash Uprising.

Björn Eriksson is a big man, with winged eyebrows and fluffy gray hair. When he sits down, he seems to do so reluctantly, as though he would much rather stay standing, or have a walking meeting in which he would walk very fast.

He and Ulvaeus share more than a first name. They were both born in 1945 and so turn 71 this year. But if time has radicalized Ulvaeus, it has hardened Eriksson.

In the early ’80s, when Eriksson was working in Swedish customs, he sniffed out a covert police operation to smuggle illegal bugging equipment through the country. The police commissioner resigned soon after, and Eriksson was tapped to take his place. He remained in law enforcement for the rest of his career, spending time as head of the Swedish police before his appointment to the Interpol presidency. Although he’s technically retired now, it never occurred to him to stop working. Of the many causes he’s still involved in, the “cash problem,” as he calls it, is where he invests most of his energy. He sees corruption, deceit, and security risks everywhere.

Consumers are not shaping Ulvaeus’ utopianist dream of a cashless future, Eriksson says; the banks and credit card companies are. After all, it was the banks that pushed people to use cards in the first place; and it was the banks, not some independent tech startup, that created Swish. The cost-benefit is obvious: Cards, with their hidden costs and fees, make banks money, whereas vaults of bills and coins do not. In fact, cash costs banks money. It must be handled, counted, transported, guarded, and counted again. As Niklas Arvidsson, an economist at Stockholm’s Royal Institute of Technology, puts it: “It’s clear the banks have a business incentive to reduce the use of cash.” Time is money, and money takes time.

True bank robberies and muggings have declined, but fraud and identity theft have gone up.

But for the most part, Swedes are not a cynical people. They like technology and trust their government and institutions. As the numbers show, most of them have been perfectly happy to renounce cash. In fact, many hardly seem to notice what’s happening at all, so convenient the changeover has been. That’s what concerns Eriksson most: not so much the opportunism on the part of the banks, which seems inevitable, but the thoughtlessness with which so many Swedes seem to have flung themselves—as though to the merry tune of “Dancing Queen”—into an uncertain, possibly unsafe future.

So last year, Eriksson started Cash Uprising, an organization whose core mission is to save the paper krona from extinction. Its members are mostly people from rural areas, small-business owners, and retirees—the ones, in other words, for whom the sudden departure of cash has been inconvenient enough to force them to stop, take notice, and worry.

Camilla Kristensson and Lars-Erik Olsson live in Gärdslöv, a cluster of houses in southern Sweden too small to be called a village. (Olsson estimates the population “in town” is about 22.) Kristensson and Olsson are treasurer and president, respectively, of the Gärdslöv cultural council, which hosts events like mushroom foraging and charcoal making. After one such event last summer, Kristensson had about 20,000 kronor to deposit in the council’s account. But when she went to the local bank, a 10-minute drive away, it refused her cash for the first time ever. So she had to start driving 40 minutes into the city every month to deposit as much money as she was allowed, storing the remainder in various hiding spots. What makes her and Olsson angry isn’t just that the bank stopped taking their cash—it’s that it happened so quickly, without regard for how it would affect people like them. “They changed it almost overnight,” Olsson says. “We need time to change.”

Now Olsson’s council is part of Eriksson’s coalition of cash activists, who hold meetings, circulate petitions, and generally make noise about cash access. Ulvaeus, who has little patience for Eriksson’s views, describes the uprising as “Eriksson and a vanguard of geriatrics,” which is not altogether untrue, but they are some of the only voices speaking up for the consumer in this massive economic shift. The Swedish government has held several hearings on how to regulate the future of cash that were largely prompted by the work of Cash Uprising, and this September the parliament could vote on a bill that might require banks to provide cash services. (In a surprising victory for the movement, the head of Sweden’s central bank recently lent his support to such a proposal.)

Eriksson does have another role in all this: He’s the chair of a major private-security lobby, an industry that a recent economic study called one of the “biggest losers” in a cash-free world. Among other things, security personnel guard vaults and protect cash. No physical cash equals no more jobs. Everyone has an interest, Eriksson says, but he believes his are at least aligned with those of the consumer.

Cash is security, he says. You can hold it in your hands; it can be protected. Spending it does not entail sharing personal information with credit card companies, app creators, or banks. It is true that bank robberies and muggings have declined in Sweden in the past few years. But according to crime statistics from the same national organizations, cases of fraud, usually involving identity theft, have more than doubled. And that stat is based only on cases reported to the police. Most banks won’t publicly share how often their customers’ card information is stolen or their systems breached.

It’s a good bet that the numbers are higher than consumers would like them to be. While Swedes swipe and Swish their money away, they open themselves up to new risks—cybercriminals who would either trick them into divulging sensitive information or exploit security flaws to steal their identity outright. “We see that cybercrime is becoming more aggressive,” says Ulrika Sundling, chief inspector of the Swedish police’s cyber-investigations unit. And she says consumers, generally unaware of the threat and therefore unmotivated to take extra steps to protect themselves, are the “weakest link.”

Eriksson has been hounding Sweden’s banks for years, convinced they’re hiding exorbitant sums of lost money for fear of bad publicity. He even bought single shares of stock in different banks so he could go to shareholder meetings and try to get his questions answered. “They don’t like me,” he says, grinning. For their part, the banks say they keep this information close for customer security. According to Gunilla Garpås, a senior business developer at Nordea and one of the creators of Swish, more transparency about cases of cyberattacks, fraud, and the banks’ defenses against them “would really be putting ourselves and our customers at risk.”

Eriksson’s suspicions don’t stop at the banks. He believes MasterCard’s sponsorship of the Abba museum is the reason Ulvaeus is such a dedicated anticash advocate—but Ulvaeus wrote his first articles on the subject long before the museum opened. That is not to say MasterCard isn’t capitalizing on this moment, though. The card company also heavily sponsors iZettle, the most popular mobile card reader in Sweden.

Björn Eriksson, leader of Sweden’s Cash Uprising, thinks abolishing physical currency is a dangerous mistake. Olaf Blecker

Last October, American retailers made the switch to chip readers. (Well, they were supposed to, but the rollout has been uneven, and some stores still allow the old swipe-and-sign method.) You likely received new chip-enabled cards from your bank as a result. The upgrade came after a year of high-profile hacks: 56 million credit and debit card numbers stolen from Home Depot, 40 million from Target, another million from Neiman Marcus. The “new” chip technology—which has been standard in the European Union for more than a decade—is intended to make electronic transactions safer and more secure.

Then, this March, several major US banks announced a new digital payment platform called clearXchange. (A better name is reportedly in the works.) It is, finally, the US equivalent of Swish: a bank-backed service that lets people transfer money from their bank account directly into someone else’s.

These moves will help speed up the decline of cash use in the US, which hasn’t seen significant change in the past few years; electronic payments have hovered around 50 percent of all transactions. Americans tend to be less trusting of their institutions than their Swedish counterparts—and for good reason. Strict privacy laws safeguard Swedes from unwanted invasions, but consumer protections in the US are considerably flimsier. As Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst at the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, puts it: “We have a hurricane of data, and we’re living in a shack.” Plus, many Americans simply don’t want banks or the government to know what they’re spending their money on (thus the appeal of cryptocurrency like bitcoin).

But don’t be fooled: Economists have been predicting the end of physical currency for decades, and Sweden’s transformation signals the time is nigh for the rest of the world. Americans may cling to their bills and coins with greater tenacity than Swedes do, but in that reluctance is an opportunity to proceed cautiously and look to Sweden for guidance.

Ultimately, Sweden’s two Björns want the same thing: a safer society. The world is going cashless, as Ulvaeus says, but consumers have to feel more secure in this new order, per Eriksson. They’re not so much rivals as complements.

Not that they see themselves that way, set as they are in their inflexible views. Offered the opportunity to get dinner with Eriksson and maybe hash out differences over schnapps, Ulvaeus thought about it for a few seconds before saying, “No, I don’t think that’s a good idea. I might get angry.”

Which is probably just as well. Imagine them fighting over the check.

Mallory Pickett (@mallorylpickett) is a journalist based in Berkeley, California. This is her first feature for WIRED.

This story appears in the May 2016 issue.

@media (max-width: 768px) { figure.wp-caption.alignnone.fullbleed-img.relative {display: none;} #related {max-width: 100%;} }

from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/one-swede-will-kill-cash-foreverunless-his-foe-saves-it-from-extinction/ from All of Beer https://allofbeercom.tumblr.com/post/179957886817

[andrewdburton]

5 ways to avoid overdraft fees

Overdraft fees are total BS.

When consumers overdraft their accounts, it’s by an average of $24 — but then they often get hit with an average of $34 in fees.

In 2016, Americans paid $15 billion in overdraft fees. That’s more than 80 million Hamilton tickets, or three billion Big Macs (that’s a dozen Big Macs for every American).  

Rather than just sit around and complain about overdraft fees, though, I want to show you how to beat the banks at their own game.

In fact, you can actually negotiate your fees away with a simple script.

But first, let’s take a look at what overdraft fees are exactly, as well as what a few banks are going to charge you.

What is a bank overdraft fee?

Overdraft fees occur when you take more money out of your checking account than is currently in there. When this happens, your bank will charge you a fee to facilitate the transaction.

Though the fee will vary from bank to bank, here are overdraft fees from a few of the most popular banks as of August 2018:

BANK

OVERDRAFT FEE

Chase

$34

Bank of America

$35

Wells Fargo

$35

US Bank

$36

PNC Bank

$36

Citibank

$34

  Overdraft fees occur per transaction, which means you can do it multiple times a day. So even though $34 here or $36 there might not seem like a lot, you can find yourself saddled with $100+ in fees if you do it several times a day.

Even if you don’t do it multiple times a day, one overdraft hit is bad enough. In fact, getting an overdraft fee just one time is often enough to wipe out your interest gains for an entire year.

Luckily, you can negotiate to get them waived if you have the right scripts. That’s why I want to show you exactly how you can get your overdraft fees waived with a simple phone call with your bank.

The exact script to get overdraft fees waived

Here’s a truth not a lot of people know: All bank fees are negotiable.

Most banks understand that people are occasionally forgetful, so they’re very willing to waive a first-time fee if you ask. After the first time, it gets harder but can still be done if you’re determined.

Remember: Your bank wants to keep you as a customer. A well-executed phone call can often make a difference.

Here’s how I was able to waive an overdraft fee I got years ago: I called up my bank and the conversation went like this:

RAMIT: Hi, I just saw this bank charge for overdrafting and I’d like to have it waived.

BANK: I see that fee. Unfortunately, we’re not able to waive that fee. It was [some BS excuse about how it’s not waivable].

RAMIT: Well, I’ve been a good customer with the bank for X years now and would still like to get it waived since this is a rare occurrence. What else can you do to help me?

BANK: Hmm, one second sir. I see that you’re a really good customer. I’m going to check with my supervisor. Can you hold for a second?

[hold]

I was able to check with my supervisor and waive the fee. Is there anything else I can help you with today?

And just like that, I got my overdraft fee waived. This script works so well for a number of reasons:

I repeated my complaint and asked the bank rep how they could constructively help me.

I’ve been a loyal customer to the bank for many years, which you should always use to your advantage when calling to negotiate.

I was polite but firm. Nothing can force a negotiation to go sour faster than a bad attitude.

You can use this exact script in order to get yours waived too.

And it doesn’t just work for overdraft fees — you can use this for other bank fees too, like processing fees, late fees, and even ATM fees.

For more tactics on negotiations, make sure you check out my article on how to negotiate anything.

What to do if they say no?

But there is always the chance they still say no to your request — and that’s okay. When that happens, there are three options you can take:

Persist. Banks pay hundreds of dollars in customer-acquisition costs and don’t want to lose you. If you’re persistent enough and make it hard for them to say no, you’ll have the upper hand if they try to shoot you down.

Hang up and call again. Sometimes getting your fee waived is a matter of hitting the right bank rep. If the first bank rep keeps shutting you out, politely thank them for their time, hang up, and dial the number again.

Pay the fee. You’re not going to win all negotiations. Sometimes you’re going to have to just pay the fee. BUT if you have the right scripts and prepare, you can be infinitely more ready than you were before.

When it comes to overdraft fees though, the best system is the one where you don’t have to worry about them at all. That’s why I suggest learning how to avoid getting overdraft fees entirely so you don’t have to concern yourself with negotiating the rate away.

4 other ways to avoid overdraft fees

Prevention is better than a cure. So rather than deal with the consequences of overdraft fees, avoid them entirely with these four methods:

Opt out of overdraft protection

Account transfers

Envelope system

Get a new checking account

Opt out of overdraft protection

When you sign up for a checking account, many banks try to convince you to sign up for something called overdraft protection. It’s the policy in which the bank will cover you when you overcharge on your debit card, but charge you the overdraft fee for the trouble.

However, if you choose to opt out of overdraft protection, your card will simply get declined every time you attempt to charge more money than you currently have in the account.

Sure, it might be embarrassing if you’re on a date and it turns out you can’t pay for dinner because your card got declined — but it can go a long way in saving you money on overdraft fees.

Account transfers

Some banks offer an overdraft protection service that works by transferring money from another account to the one you’re trying to take money from.

This can be from another checking account, a savings account, or even a credit card (depending on what your bank offers).

For example, say you’re using your debit card to buy dinner. Your debit card is linked to your checking account, which doesn’t have enough money in it. If you have an account transfer set up, it’s okay! If you’ve depleted the money in your checking account, money will just be transferred from your savings to cover the costs.

NOTE: Some banks charge a small fee with this practice as well — though it’ll be much lower than your overdraft fee.

Envelope system

This is a great system to help you keep track of your expenses for anything.

And it’s simple: At the beginning of each month, you allocate cash for things like going out, groceries, gas, and whatever else into envelopes. Once you’ve spent the money in those envelopes, you’re done spending for the month.

Of course, if there’s an emergency you can definitely dip into other envelopes — but that only means you have less money to spend in those areas.

You can set up your envelope system in three steps:

Decide how much you want to spend in each major category each month.

Put money into each envelope (e.g., $200 for groceries, $150 for eating out, $60 for entertainment).

Spend the money — but when the envelopes are empty, that’s it for the month.

You don’t even need to use physical envelopes. One of my friends used to track her spending with a separate bank account and debit card, while opting out of overdraft protection.

When the month started, she’d transfer around $200 into the account — and when she went out, she would only spend that money. Once the money was gone, she’d stop spending.

Whatever system you decide to use, you just need to make sure to decide how much you’re willing to spend in each category (and that’s all up to you).

Get a new checking account

One great way to avoid overdraft fees entirely is to get a checking account with a bank that doesn’t have them.

My favorite: Charles Schwab Investor Checking.

A few highlights:

No fees

No minimums

No-fee overdraft protection

Free checks

Deposit checks via pre-paid envelopes or via iPhone app (snap photos of your check — no need to go into branch)

An ATM card

Unlimited reimbursement of any ATM usage

That’s right. There’s no-fee overdraft protection AND unlimited ATM reimbursement.

How often do you go out with friends and have to withdraw money from out-of-network ATMs? How often do you find yourself at a cash-only taco place at 3:30am, needing to withdraw $20, but you hesitate because of onerous ATM fees?

Those fees can add up, and Schwab reimburses you for all of them. If you rack up $200 worth of ATM fees in a month, you’ll see a $200 deposit from Schwab before the month ends. This means you can use ANY ATM — corner stores, other banks, whatever — without having to look for some specific bank’s ATM.

Some people will balk at using Schwab because it’s an online bank. That’s fine, but I urge you to reconsider: It’s rare to find a checking account that (1) avoids screwing you at every turn, and (2) actually rewards you for using them.

Master your personal finances

Once you learn how to avoid getting nickeled-and-dimed by your bank, you’ll be well on your way to living a Rich Life.

And you don’t need any fancy get rich quick schemes or snake oil. All you need is determination and the right systems put in place to help you get the most out of your financial situation and not have to worry about living “frugally” (aka sacrificing the things you love).

That’s why I’m excited to offer you something for free. I have an offer: My Ultimate Guide to Personal Finance.

In it, you’ll learn how to:

Master your 401k: Take advantage of free money offered to you by your company … and get rich while doing it.

Manage Roth IRAs: Start saving for retirement in a worthwhile long-term investment account.

Automate your expenses: Take advantage of the wonderful magic of automation and make investing pain-free.

Enter your info below and get on your way to living a Rich Life today — and avoid overdraft fees forever.

[optinform id=1]

5 ways to avoid overdraft fees is a post from: I Will Teach You To Be Rich.

from Finance https://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog/get-bank-and-overdraft-fees-waived/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[paulckrueger]

5 ways to avoid overdraft fees

Overdraft fees are total BS.

When consumers overdraft their accounts, it’s by an average of $24 — but then they often get hit with an average of $34 in fees.

In 2016, Americans paid $15 billion in overdraft fees. That’s more than 80 million Hamilton tickets, or three billion Big Macs (that’s a dozen Big Macs for every American).  

Rather than just sit around and complain about overdraft fees, though, I want to show you how to beat the banks at their own game.

In fact, you can actually negotiate your fees away with a simple script.

But first, let’s take a look at what overdraft fees are exactly, as well as what a few banks are going to charge you.

What is a bank overdraft fee?

Overdraft fees occur when you take more money out of your checking account than is currently in there. When this happens, your bank will charge you a fee to facilitate the transaction.

Though the fee will vary from bank to bank, here are overdraft fees from a few of the most popular banks as of August 2018:

BANK

OVERDRAFT FEE

Chase

$34

Bank of America

$35

Wells Fargo

$35

US Bank

$36

PNC Bank

$36

Citibank

$34

  Overdraft fees occur per transaction, which means you can do it multiple times a day. So even though $34 here or $36 there might not seem like a lot, you can find yourself saddled with $100+ in fees if you do it several times a day.

Even if you don’t do it multiple times a day, one overdraft hit is bad enough. In fact, getting an overdraft fee just one time is often enough to wipe out your interest gains for an entire year.

Luckily, you can negotiate to get them waived if you have the right scripts. That’s why I want to show you exactly how you can get your overdraft fees waived with a simple phone call with your bank.

The exact script to get overdraft fees waived

Here’s a truth not a lot of people know: All bank fees are negotiable.

Most banks understand that people are occasionally forgetful, so they’re very willing to waive a first-time fee if you ask. After the first time, it gets harder but can still be done if you’re determined.

Remember: Your bank wants to keep you as a customer. A well-executed phone call can often make a difference.

Here’s how I was able to waive an overdraft fee I got years ago: I called up my bank and the conversation went like this:

RAMIT: Hi, I just saw this bank charge for overdrafting and I’d like to have it waived.

BANK: I see that fee. Unfortunately, we’re not able to waive that fee. It was [some BS excuse about how it’s not waivable].

RAMIT: Well, I’ve been a good customer with the bank for X years now and would still like to get it waived since this is a rare occurrence. What else can you do to help me?

BANK: Hmm, one second sir. I see that you’re a really good customer. I’m going to check with my supervisor. Can you hold for a second?

[hold]

I was able to check with my supervisor and waive the fee. Is there anything else I can help you with today?

And just like that, I got my overdraft fee waived. This script works so well for a number of reasons:

I repeated my complaint and asked the bank rep how they could constructively help me.

I’ve been a loyal customer to the bank for many years, which you should always use to your advantage when calling to negotiate.

I was polite but firm. Nothing can force a negotiation to go sour faster than a bad attitude.

You can use this exact script in order to get yours waived too.

And it doesn’t just work for overdraft fees — you can use this for other bank fees too, like processing fees, late fees, and even ATM fees.

For more tactics on negotiations, make sure you check out my article on how to negotiate anything.

What to do if they say no?

But there is always the chance they still say no to your request — and that’s okay. When that happens, there are three options you can take:

Persist. Banks pay hundreds of dollars in customer-acquisition costs and don’t want to lose you. If you’re persistent enough and make it hard for them to say no, you’ll have the upper hand if they try to shoot you down.

Hang up and call again. Sometimes getting your fee waived is a matter of hitting the right bank rep. If the first bank rep keeps shutting you out, politely thank them for their time, hang up, and dial the number again.

Pay the fee. You’re not going to win all negotiations. Sometimes you’re going to have to just pay the fee. BUT if you have the right scripts and prepare, you can be infinitely more ready than you were before.

When it comes to overdraft fees though, the best system is the one where you don’t have to worry about them at all. That’s why I suggest learning how to avoid getting overdraft fees entirely so you don’t have to concern yourself with negotiating the rate away.

4 other ways to avoid overdraft fees

Prevention is better than a cure. So rather than deal with the consequences of overdraft fees, avoid them entirely with these four methods:

Opt out of overdraft protection

Account transfers

Envelope system

Get a new checking account

Opt out of overdraft protection

When you sign up for a checking account, many banks try to convince you to sign up for something called overdraft protection. It’s the policy in which the bank will cover you when you overcharge on your debit card, but charge you the overdraft fee for the trouble.

However, if you choose to opt out of overdraft protection, your card will simply get declined every time you attempt to charge more money than you currently have in the account.

Sure, it might be embarrassing if you’re on a date and it turns out you can’t pay for dinner because your card got declined — but it can go a long way in saving you money on overdraft fees.

Account transfers

Some banks offer an overdraft protection service that works by transferring money from another account to the one you’re trying to take money from.

This can be from another checking account, a savings account, or even a credit card (depending on what your bank offers).

For example, say you’re using your debit card to buy dinner. Your debit card is linked to your checking account, which doesn’t have enough money in it. If you have an account transfer set up, it’s okay! If you’ve depleted the money in your checking account, money will just be transferred from your savings to cover the costs.

NOTE: Some banks charge a small fee with this practice as well — though it’ll be much lower than your overdraft fee.

Envelope system

This is a great system to help you keep track of your expenses for anything.

And it’s simple: At the beginning of each month, you allocate cash for things like going out, groceries, gas, and whatever else into envelopes. Once you’ve spent the money in those envelopes, you’re done spending for the month.

Of course, if there’s an emergency you can definitely dip into other envelopes — but that only means you have less money to spend in those areas.

You can set up your envelope system in three steps:

Decide how much you want to spend in each major category each month.

Put money into each envelope (e.g., $200 for groceries, $150 for eating out, $60 for entertainment).

Spend the money — but when the envelopes are empty, that’s it for the month.

You don’t even need to use physical envelopes. One of my friends used to track her spending with a separate bank account and debit card, while opting out of overdraft protection.

When the month started, she’d transfer around $200 into the account — and when she went out, she would only spend that money. Once the money was gone, she’d stop spending.

Whatever system you decide to use, you just need to make sure to decide how much you’re willing to spend in each category (and that’s all up to you).

Get a new checking account

One great way to avoid overdraft fees entirely is to get a checking account with a bank that doesn’t have them.

My favorite: Charles Schwab Investor Checking.

A few highlights:

No fees

No minimums

No-fee overdraft protection

Free checks

Deposit checks via pre-paid envelopes or via iPhone app (snap photos of your check — no need to go into branch)

An ATM card

Unlimited reimbursement of any ATM usage

That’s right. There’s no-fee overdraft protection AND unlimited ATM reimbursement.

How often do you go out with friends and have to withdraw money from out-of-network ATMs? How often do you find yourself at a cash-only taco place at 3:30am, needing to withdraw $20, but you hesitate because of onerous ATM fees?

Those fees can add up, and Schwab reimburses you for all of them. If you rack up $200 worth of ATM fees in a month, you’ll see a $200 deposit from Schwab before the month ends. This means you can use ANY ATM — corner stores, other banks, whatever — without having to look for some specific bank’s ATM.

Some people will balk at using Schwab because it’s an online bank. That’s fine, but I urge you to reconsider: It’s rare to find a checking account that (1) avoids screwing you at every turn, and (2) actually rewards you for using them.

Master your personal finances

Once you learn how to avoid getting nickeled-and-dimed by your bank, you’ll be well on your way to living a Rich Life.

And you don’t need any fancy get rich quick schemes or snake oil. All you need is determination and the right systems put in place to help you get the most out of your financial situation and not have to worry about living “frugally” (aka sacrificing the things you love).

That’s why I’m excited to offer you something for free. I have an offer: My Ultimate Guide to Personal Finance.

In it, you’ll learn how to:

Master your 401k: Take advantage of free money offered to you by your company … and get rich while doing it.

Manage Roth IRAs: Start saving for retirement in a worthwhile long-term investment account.

Automate your expenses: Take advantage of the wonderful magic of automation and make investing pain-free.

Enter your info below and get on your way to living a Rich Life today — and avoid overdraft fees forever.

[optinform id=1]

5 ways to avoid overdraft fees is a post from: I Will Teach You To Be Rich.

from Surety Bond Brokers? Business https://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog/get-bank-and-overdraft-fees-waived/