BANK OF AMERICA STARTS ITS FIRST BANK STATEMENT FEE
It’s hard enough to find decent money market interest rates or any other type of rates where you can actually make some money. Now it seems, Bank of America is starting it’s first push towards charging customers for paper statements which will further cut into the amount of money it costs just to be alive and have money.
BAC has just initiated an $8.95 fee in Georgia for anyone wanting to continue on with paper statements, something that has for years been a basic service. After Georgia it will most certainly be expanded to other states as they try to eventually get all their customers to participate in paperless banking.
Apparently they can save money and make money at the same time with this new strategy. Obviously by switching people to online statements, Bank of America will save on all the costs of printing paper statements and then mailing them out to the customers. They will then make money on those that do choose to pay the fee as it surely doesn’t cost them $8.95 to print and mail out a statement.
Banks are going down the same road as the airlines with all these extra fees because they are looking for every possible way to make and save money. If that means nickle and dimeing their customers with all sorts of added fees for every little thing that used to be free then that is what they are going to do it seems.
Right now BAC is the only bank that is beginning this paper statement charge but surely other banks will be close behind, especially if no one really puts up a fight. The Internet has changed a lot of the way we live our lives and now it seems people without computers or an Internet connection will soon have to pay just to get their bank statement. With money so tight, interest rates so low, and now added fees for seemingly ever little thing, it is getting harder and harder everyday to hold on to the money we do have.
