Clark Howard's Tips

ATM fees topped $4 billion last year

May 9, 2008

Americans wasted over $4 billion on ATM fees last year, according to BankRate.com. Some giant monster mega-banks are pushing their non-customer fees as high as $5!

There's a better answer than getting ripped off. You can go to a credit union or a community bank and get real customer service and not have to pay for ATMs. Quite often, your credit union or community bank will have an ATM network that's fee-free. That means you can use the ATMs for nada at various banks, credit unions and other independent spots.

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In another example, the stock brokerage Clark uses reimburses all his ATM fees. He always tries to find a free or very low-cost ATM because he feels guilty about sticking them with the bill. Similarly, Clark's brother uses an online bank and gets a monthly stipend to cover any ATM charges he incurs.

The bottom line is that there are many ways to get around paying ATM fees. But convenience is king and too many people don't want to be bothered. Yet at a time when every dollar counts, Clark would prefer that you choose to not get ripped off.

More Clark Howard Credit and Banking Tips The dangers of home-equity borrowing  ID checks, minimum purchase rules a no-no with credit cards  The Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter  Advance-fee loans are back with a vengeance  Wachovia, WaMu say goodbye to option payment loans  Cycling your unused credit cards back into the mix  Banks offer diverging interest rates on savings and CDs  Mortgage bailout proposal to help banks, not homeowners  Credit limits being reduced without your knowledge?!  65 million paying for credit monitoring/fraud alert services  Full list