Superior Gold Group - Is Overdraft Protection Worth It?

Recent changes in federal law made it so that you have to opt into overdraft protection plans offered by banks

. It used to be that you would be enrolled by default and without your knowledge. Then, when a check came in that exceeded your balance, the bank would pay it, and charge you the fees that come with it.

Now that you have to specifically join such programs, is it worth it? Everyone makes mistakes, and it's entirely possible that you could forget to balance your checkbook, and cause an overdraft. Without the protection, that check could be returned, causing embarrassment, and fees from the person that you wrote the check to. With the protection, payments would be made, but fees would be assessed every time such a payment is made. If you are a responsible check writer who rarely makes balancing mistakes, having the overdraft protection plan could be worth it, because overdrafts would in theory be limited.

If, however, you find that you overdraft your account often, you could find yourself immersed in fees from which you can never recover. On the other hand, an overdraft protection plan would also give you access to emergency funds, with, of course, a fee for accessing those funds. There are many factors to consider before signing up, and you'll certainly need to be self-disciplined so that you don't become too reliant on the feature and find yourself on the wrong end of numerous service fees.

Before deciding whether or not to enroll in such a program, get all the information. Find out if there are any monthly fees, and what the fee is for each overdraft. You'll also want to find out whether or not you can un-enroll from the program if you find yourself getting into trouble with it.

Overdraft protection can be a wonderful tool, but it comes at a cost. After all, the banks are fronting you the money, and they certainly want that money back. They're also not loaning you the money out of the goodness of their hearts, though some banks may waive the fee for the first overdraft.

You'll need to decide whether you can be disciplined enough to use the overdraft program responsibly, because the last thing you want is to wake up to hundreds of dollars in fees. Sure, your checks will be paid, but is it worth it? Only you can decide.

Talk to a representative from your bank and get all the information before deciding whether or not to join their overdraft program. Your individual financial circumstances will play a large part in the decision, but the bottom line is that you need to be aware of the fees that will be assessed, and you'll need to ask yourself if that will create a larger financial deficit than the one you'd try to be getting out of by joining the program in the first place.

Superior Gold Group - Is Overdraft Protection Worth It?

By: Superior Gold Group

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